How To Make It in the New Music Business: Practical Tips on Building a Loyal Following and Making a Living as a Musician
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- Create Date：2022-12-28 10:21:40
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Ari Herstand
- ISBN：132409186X
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Summary
How to Make It in the New Music Business， since its first publication in 2016，？has become the go-to resource for musicians eager to make a living in a turbulent industry。 Widely adopted by ambitious individuals and music schools across the world and considered “the best how-to book of its kind” （Music Connection）， this essential work has inspired tens of thousands of aspiring artists to stop waiting around for that “big break” and take matters into their own hands。 In this highly anticipated new edition， Ari Herstand reveals how to build a profitable career with the many tools at our fingertips in the post-COVID era and beyond， from conquering social media and mastering the digital landscape to embracing authentic fan connection and simply learning how to persevere。 This edition breaks down these phenomena and more， resulting in a timeless must-have for anyone hoping to navigate the increasingly complex yet advantageous landscape that is the modern music business。
Reviews
Chloe Potter
，
Absolutely the most useful resource for advancing my music career that I have found。 Ari Herstand knows what he is talking about。
Jaron Jammer
，
Helpful tips overall。 Some of the information was a bit out of date， but that’s to be expected with how fast things change with regard to social media promotion， the music industry and what is relevant。
Asirus
，
I know， I know， as business books go， this certainly is a niche one。 As an artist however， this book is compulsory reading。One of the biggest confusion that plagued me when I first decided to embrace my inner artist and let my music live is the matter of royalties。 Whilst there’re loads of information on the internet， I struggled to find information written for an absolute beginner artist， someone who is taking their very first step in the music industry。 Many resources are written assuming the I know， I know， as business books go， this certainly is a niche one。 As an artist however， this book is compulsory reading。One of the biggest confusion that plagued me when I first decided to embrace my inner artist and let my music live is the matter of royalties。 Whilst there’re loads of information on the internet， I struggled to find information written for an absolute beginner artist， someone who is taking their very first step in the music industry。 Many resources are written assuming the reader already understood the lingo。 When I did chance upon articles for beginners， they were poorly written and only led to more confusion。 There is also the pickle that most of these resources are US-based so the information does not fully apply to me， an Aussie。Thankfully there’re awesome people like Ari Herstand， one of my mentors who I’ve been studying with to learn all about sync licenses， has written a most excellent book all about， as the title suggests， making it in the new music business。 In this second edition， he details everything an artist needs to know such as the various royalties for songwriters and performers， who collects them， who are the Performance Rights Organisations （PROs） you should be registered with and many more tips about #artistlife。Thanks to this book， I now finally understand that because I am an independent artist who write and perform my own music， I own the royalties to both sides， both the publishing and master！ I have since registered with all the PROs I should。 This did required some more homework on my part to figure out what the equivalent PROs are in Australia， but it was most certainly a worthy exercise。 I’ve put forth my suggestion to Ari about an International chapter in the 3rd edition of this book which I know he is working on so hopefully it will be a more straight forward process for future artists。Now that I have put in the effort to understanding the many different royalties- how it all came to be historically since the very first record （so everyone got their cut）， how it all had to evolve over the years （so everyone keeps getting their cut）， I can see why it is all so unnecessarily complicated and seems to only be getting more complicated。 No wonder so many artists simply chuck this into the too-hard-fuck-it basket！ I remember asking a few professional musicians about royalties and PROs back when I was first trying to figure this out and NO ONE could told me straight how it is！It’s also no wonder that change （if any） is so very slow to come in the music industry！ Why would big labels and publishers want to change a system that keeps artist ignorant， uninterested， and their pockets full？Artists have long been exploited and that is abhorrent， especially in this digital streaming age when artists are no longer at the mercy of big labels and can be in full control of their careers。 I am super grateful to have this wonderful resource to guide me as I embark on my musical adventure。 I feel great to have the biz side of my music sorted so I can focus on creating music。If you too are aspired to getting your music synced and want in on the sync course I mentioned， you can use this affiliate link here and get 10% off the course with my code: SELINAT at check out。As Ari and my other mentor Vo Williams always say， we win together so let’s win！*This review was originally published on my blog: https://asirus。net/book-review/how-to。。。 。。。more
Ömürden Cengiz
，
nice sourcenice source for musicians especially for indie and local ones。 There are lots of good recommendations about how to start and grow business。
Absinthe
，
Very US-centric so if you're European like me， be aware of that。 Very good advice & a mine of information though！ Very US-centric so if you're European like me， be aware of that。 Very good advice & a mine of information though！ 。。。more
Carrie Garrison
，
Great book for songwriters， performers， music managers， and aspiring entertainment lawyers alike。 As an attorney myself， this book helped me better understand the music business and industry， which is key to understand the clients I wish to attract。 Ari writes well and in an easily-understandable manner。 His book is a practical guide and an invaluable resource that I will reference for years to come。
Zack
，
Ari Herstand wants you to succeed in the new music business， as evidenced by this exhaustive tome。 This isn’t exactly a page-turner， which is why it took me over five months to read， but it is a book I’m so grateful to have read through once and to have as a reference going forward。 Extremely thorough， infinitely helpful， and even kinda funny at times， this book has provided potent fuel to help propel my professional music career into a higher realm。
Ada Levine
，
just finished this book as 'required' reading for an upcoming internship， it was an overwhelming amount of very specific information at once but could definitely be useful for independent artists looking to increase their online presence ！！ just finished this book as 'required' reading for an upcoming internship， it was an overwhelming amount of very specific information at once but could definitely be useful for independent artists looking to increase their online presence ！！ 。。。more
Bobby Phillipps
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Read the second edition。 Absolutely solid stuff， this lives on my studio desk as a reference book now。
Christian
，
Aims to be comprehensive。 Succeeds in breadth， but falls short in depth。For a book touting "practical tips，" much of what is presented is high-level。 Perhaps most disappointingly， given the social media success of the artists Ari Herstand has worked with， the book fails to present anything more than the basics of digital marketing and branding。To make it in the new music business， as the title states， I'd argue that digital marketing is the most important element。 You can't book tours if you hav Aims to be comprehensive。 Succeeds in breadth， but falls short in depth。For a book touting "practical tips，" much of what is presented is high-level。 Perhaps most disappointingly， given the social media success of the artists Ari Herstand has worked with， the book fails to present anything more than the basics of digital marketing and branding。To make it in the new music business， as the title states， I'd argue that digital marketing is the most important element。 You can't book tours if you have no following。As a former marketing consultant， I can tell you that there IS a science behind virality。 There IS a method behind drawing attention and converting viewers into fans。 There is no indication that Herstand understands this。Unfortunately， Herstand demonstrates what I see often with other successful influencers - they may have gotten there themselves， but heck if they know how they did it。 This is the dirty secret of the coaching industry as well。While this book is a solid survey of the music industry， it falls well short of the bold claims in its title。 Aspiring professionals should treat this book as a primer， but nothing more。 。。。more
nick machado
，
This is a great read for any musician at any level。 The field is constantly changing and staying fluid is key。 This book opened my eyes to areas of self promotion I was neglecting and shouldn’t have been。 I learned a lot from this book and it sparked a lot of new thoughts for me。 I enjoyed it and definitely recommend it。
Jesus
，
The density of information in this book is effectively counterbalanced by Herstand's direct but affable tone。 So for a comprehensive handbook， it's a pretty easy read。If you are an independent musician， buy this book and read every page。 Then go back and read it again， this time with sticky tabs to mark the pages or paragraphs to which you'll be returning。 The density of information in this book is effectively counterbalanced by Herstand's direct but affable tone。 So for a comprehensive handbook， it's a pretty easy read。If you are an independent musician， buy this book and read every page。 Then go back and read it again， this time with sticky tabs to mark the pages or paragraphs to which you'll be returning。 。。。more
Dan Barton
，
This is a must-read for independent musicians who are aiming to professionalize。 Thanks to Ari's experience building his own career and his blog Ari's Take， he has the credibility and the access to the right information。 A few main takeaways: 1。 being a professional musician is not rocket science。 It's perfectly attainable in any number of ways， if you assemble the portfolio of income streams that suit your strengths。 Becoming a professional creative is made out to be so elusive as to be unattai This is a must-read for independent musicians who are aiming to professionalize。 Thanks to Ari's experience building his own career and his blog Ari's Take， he has the credibility and the access to the right information。 A few main takeaways: 1。 being a professional musician is not rocket science。 It's perfectly attainable in any number of ways， if you assemble the portfolio of income streams that suit your strengths。 Becoming a professional creative is made out to be so elusive as to be unattainable。 That narrative sinks in， and we deserve to have that demystified。 You are your own road blocks — are you willing to find the information and execute a path？2。 Honestly， Ari's music is average to me。 And in my opinion， that makes the book even better。 If （insert singular generational talent） wrote this book， it would be hard to take the advice seriously。 But the fact that Ari has the chops of any other Long Haired Guy Playing Acoustic in the Quad gives the book a real "and you can do it too" effect。 3。 The business of music is so vast and complicated that this book should be treated like a Wiki。 Take any topic that strikes you and find the books and resources dedicated entirely to the topic。 。。。more
Nate Yielding
，
I listened to this on audible and I found it to be so invaluable to me， a musician， that I bought a physical copy and am about to read it again and take tons of notes
Agnė Pasaravičienė
，
Great book for freelance musicians who want to get a grasp of how nowadays music industry works。 Recommend it！
Benjamin Josie
，
Simply put， this is THE BEST music industry book out there。 Herstand provides a phenomenal， hands-on guide with plenty of practical advice for the modern musician， songwriter， artist， producer or manager。 He has loads of experience， and has clearly put in countless hours of research， effectively organizing his thoughts to make it easy as possible for the reader。With almost 500 pages， this book has an unbelievable amount of knowledge， though I flew through it in a little over a week， BOTH times I Simply put， this is THE BEST music industry book out there。 Herstand provides a phenomenal， hands-on guide with plenty of practical advice for the modern musician， songwriter， artist， producer or manager。 He has loads of experience， and has clearly put in countless hours of research， effectively organizing his thoughts to make it easy as possible for the reader。With almost 500 pages， this book has an unbelievable amount of knowledge， though I flew through it in a little over a week， BOTH times I read it。 For anybody at all who is interested in the Music Industry， buy this book now， and read it immediately。 。。。more
Fipah
，
3 stars = I liked it， do read this if you're a country/rock/pop-rock US-based touring musician or a band or if you already are playing venuesHowever， if you're a solo act not playing venues yet， not from the US， there is not that much to benefit from here。 The best advice is given on:- how to play venues and organise everything- how to pick a manager- how to network- how to organise your band- how to press releases， promos， buzz， music blogs- how LA music scene works and how to make it work for 3 stars = I liked it， do read this if you're a country/rock/pop-rock US-based touring musician or a band or if you already are playing venuesHowever， if you're a solo act not playing venues yet， not from the US， there is not that much to benefit from here。 The best advice is given on:- how to play venues and organise everything- how to pick a manager- how to network- how to organise your band- how to press releases， promos， buzz， music blogs- how LA music scene works and how to make it work for youHowever， most of the information is nothing new， nothing surprising， though you will definitely get practical info – even with email examples。 This really is helpful when you're learning how to pitch and promote your music。 I was disappointed that the royalties section was very basic。 Again， the focus of this book is the practicalities of actually playing venues， working well as a band/business （organising Google spreadsheets） and pitching music blogs and writers。 It is not rocket science， though you will sure benefit from someone actually showing you in layman's terms how to organise your musical journey。It is not bad， however， to me it still feels very PDF-ish。 You know the feeling。 Everyone today has their own PDF e-book。 This has that vibe。 Also， the author's underlying experience comes from a rock/pop-rock/jazz/country-ish background （my oversimplification， read: not EDM， not Bjork， not classical）， he is very knowledgable there。 He also is a bit wiser （i。e。 not in his twenties） and you can。。。 feel it。 Nothing against the author， it just does not work for me。 The vibe is a bit dated， I can't help it， the advice feels like as if your dad wrote a book for teens about being a teen while not being a teen himself。 Gosh， this is so hard to phrase。 It just feels。。。 safe。 Nostalgic。 Older。 Like as if he studied what works but there still is his dated background and foundation that no longer can keep up with all that the present can offer？ Don't get me wrong， Ari sure offers up-to-date advice。 But the book is basically a handbook for a band from the 90's or early 2000's who suddenly appeared in 2020 and have to learn how to tour， pitch their work， learn about handy music websites and 101 organise their band business structure。 Like a handbook from someone who writes about how things are now， while being one tiny step behind。 It lacks that innovation aspect。 It has that nostalgia feelings of how music was played back in the days。 As such， it also serves well a demographic trying to stay in that era while still utilising today's perks like the internet。Maybe this simplification will help: this book is for those who want to go on a tour with their band and gain traction， find their rock/pop-rock/jazz/country fans。 This is not a book for musicians in the vein of Arca， Bjork， Sophie， PC Music etc。 （probably because the innovators do not need to read books about how to make a living as musicians）。Just my feelings， again， this will be helpful if you're a touring US-based band 100%。 。。。more
Daisycrazyme
，
I listened to this book via the libby app courtesy of my local library， but I will probably end up buying the hard copy。 The listen was enjoyable， and I couldn't help but think of it as a textbook or encyclopedia。 The book is packed with intel directing you to useful sources of info that would take years to learn/find solo。 The music business is complex and dynamic， but Ari provides a helpful roadmap for going far outside your comfort zone。 I listened to this book via the libby app courtesy of my local library， but I will probably end up buying the hard copy。 The listen was enjoyable， and I couldn't help but think of it as a textbook or encyclopedia。 The book is packed with intel directing you to useful sources of info that would take years to learn/find solo。 The music business is complex and dynamic， but Ari provides a helpful roadmap for going far outside your comfort zone。 。。。more
Alex
，
Some hidden gems and great insight if you have no idea what you're doing in the music business。 Some hidden gems and great insight if you have no idea what you're doing in the music business。 。。。more
Michel Mario
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Increíble libro que me hubiera gustado leer mucho antes en mi carrera artistica/musical， siempre había buscado el consejo de alguien con experiencia y que pudiera brindar de una manera real los temas como: promoción， distribución， marketing， lo que debes cuidar siendo artista， etc。 Te brinda de igual manera consejos prácticos de como mantener relaciones de trabajo y conseguir que la gente te apoye monetariamente。 De verdad le recomiendo mucho este libro a las personas que quieran crear una vida Increíble libro que me hubiera gustado leer mucho antes en mi carrera artistica/musical， siempre había buscado el consejo de alguien con experiencia y que pudiera brindar de una manera real los temas como: promoción， distribución， marketing， lo que debes cuidar siendo artista， etc。 Te brinda de igual manera consejos prácticos de como mantener relaciones de trabajo y conseguir que la gente te apoye monetariamente。 De verdad le recomiendo mucho este libro a las personas que quieran crear una vida de la música， aplica para todas las personas （productores， músicos de sesión， artistas， ingenieros de audio， bookers， etc。） 5/5 。。。more
Chris Turnbaugh
，
Wow。 An exhaustive guide to virtually every aspect of the music business as it is now。 I've played a lot of gigs and worked a lot of sessions in my time， but this goes into details I didn't know and discusses topics I hadn't considered。 It is shaded mostly towards solo artists and bands， but anyone in the music business could benefit from reading this book。 I highly recommend it。 Wow。 An exhaustive guide to virtually every aspect of the music business as it is now。 I've played a lot of gigs and worked a lot of sessions in my time， but this goes into details I didn't know and discusses topics I hadn't considered。 It is shaded mostly towards solo artists and bands， but anyone in the music business could benefit from reading this book。 I highly recommend it。 。。。more
Paul
，
Solid advice for the DIY music scene on getting your music moving and out there into the world。 There's indeed a great deal of information and work to do， but it's neatly enumerated here。 Skewed more for a US audience at times， but the majority of the book is actionable for citizens of most nations。 Solid advice for the DIY music scene on getting your music moving and out there into the world。 There's indeed a great deal of information and work to do， but it's neatly enumerated here。 Skewed more for a US audience at times， but the majority of the book is actionable for citizens of most nations。 。。。more
Mariuca García-Lomas
，
I have mixed feelings with this book。 On one hand， it is a super useful and complete guide of all the business parts of music （royalties， marketing， sales， etc） but I found him super cynical and even cruel to his fans， like his fans were just a thing he had to deal with to get what he wanted and also， his approach to art-making is the complete opposite of my beliefs。 So everytime a musician ask me about this book and I tell them: "read it fully knowing who wrote it。 You have to pay attention not I have mixed feelings with this book。 On one hand， it is a super useful and complete guide of all the business parts of music （royalties， marketing， sales， etc） but I found him super cynical and even cruel to his fans， like his fans were just a thing he had to deal with to get what he wanted and also， his approach to art-making is the complete opposite of my beliefs。 So everytime a musician ask me about this book and I tell them: "read it fully knowing who wrote it。 You have to pay attention not only to advices but more importantly: who is giving the advice？"。 。。。more
Michael Rivas
，
Every Single aspect of how to "make it" in todays music industry （2020） is mentioned in here。 Its very practical as Ari himself was/is a musician and does exactly what we want every piece of new information to do: give us the info and what to do with it。 The only way you don't make it after reading is if you don't have talent or didn't try。 Every Single aspect of how to "make it" in todays music industry （2020） is mentioned in here。 Its very practical as Ari himself was/is a musician and does exactly what we want every piece of new information to do: give us the info and what to do with it。 The only way you don't make it after reading is if you don't have talent or didn't try。 。。。more
Briar Rose Reads
，
A fairly good comprehensive primer， though might be a big reality check to a lot of musicians。 Great at highlighting just how demanding music industry success is at this point in time。 Feels like Ari knows both the industry and what it's like to struggle and succeed inside it。 Not such a fan of the repeated waxing poetic about the streaming services game。 Probably my least favorite thing about the book。All around， a good compilation of basic industry advice and simple branding/marketing things。 A fairly good comprehensive primer， though might be a big reality check to a lot of musicians。 Great at highlighting just how demanding music industry success is at this point in time。 Feels like Ari knows both the industry and what it's like to struggle and succeed inside it。 Not such a fan of the repeated waxing poetic about the streaming services game。 Probably my least favorite thing about the book。All around， a good compilation of basic industry advice and simple branding/marketing things。 It's an impressive feat to put something like this together， regardless if you think it's not quite in-depth enough。 The question is， does it really answer the big question that's on the mind of literally every single musician starting out today: "WTF Do I Do？" I think， the answer isn't really anywhere in sight， but that's not Ari's fault， because every musical career is different， a total gamble， and nobody can answer that for you。 The strength of this book is preparing you for different avenues to explore， pointing out places you might be missing， and finding your strengths & flexing them。 And that's a good start， especially if you can find all of that information in the same place。 。。。more
SY77
，
Read this if you're considering a career in music or just curious about the music businessRead this if you're considering a career in music or just curious about the music business in general。 I learned a few things from this book！ Read this if you're considering a career in music or just curious about the music businessRead this if you're considering a career in music or just curious about the music business in general。 I learned a few things from this book！ 。。。more
Fer Grajales
，
This is a great book for indie musicians/artists who want to get an idea on how to start their careers or how to improve them。 Compared to Donald S。 Passman's "All You Need To Know About The Music Business" which is a book inclined to the "Business" aspect of music， Ari's books have a more "friendly" approach for musicians。 Read both。 This is a great book for indie musicians/artists who want to get an idea on how to start their careers or how to improve them。 Compared to Donald S。 Passman's "All You Need To Know About The Music Business" which is a book inclined to the "Business" aspect of music， Ari's books have a more "friendly" approach for musicians。 Read both。 。。。more
Daniel
，
How to make money in the new music business was fun to read。 I thought it was very thorough。 One of my favorite chapters was chapter 5 where Ari talks about Los angles， new your， Nashville， and London。 I had never heard of songwriting rounds before。 I also really liked chapter 13 about Royalties and other business stuff。 On thing that surprised me was that it takes so much work to get booked into colleges to play。 I would have thought getting into colleges to play would have been easy。There is s How to make money in the new music business was fun to read。 I thought it was very thorough。 One of my favorite chapters was chapter 5 where Ari talks about Los angles， new your， Nashville， and London。 I had never heard of songwriting rounds before。 I also really liked chapter 13 about Royalties and other business stuff。 On thing that surprised me was that it takes so much work to get booked into colleges to play。 I would have thought getting into colleges to play would have been easy。There is so much that I enjoyed about How to make it in the new music business that I can't possibly write about it all。 I suppose I could。 But， I am not going to。 I wish I could remember every word I read in how to make money in the new music business。 I think after reading the book I know a lot more about the music business than before I read it。 Its the best book I have read so far this year。 。。。more
B。
，
4 stars for hubris。 In How to Make It in the New Music Business， here's a guy who says from the beginning that he his not an expert， that he has not "made it" in the music business， but he's writing this book anyway。 Apparently he updates this book every so often to modernize it。 This book is a way to subsidize his mediocre music career。 Cool。Now， does any of his advice work？ I have no idea。 I picked up this book out of mere curiosity; I haven't touched a piano in years。 4 stars for hubris。 In How to Make It in the New Music Business， here's a guy who says from the beginning that he his not an expert， that he has not "made it" in the music business， but he's writing this book anyway。 Apparently he updates this book every so often to modernize it。 This book is a way to subsidize his mediocre music career。 Cool。Now， does any of his advice work？ I have no idea。 I picked up this book out of mere curiosity; I haven't touched a piano in years。 。。。more
Liz Davis
，