Your Music Craft on YouTube: Original Content Inspirations
Creating content for YouTube can be overwhelming, especially if you’re starting out.
But with the right ideas and strategies, creating engaging videos doesn’t have to be so hard.
From behind-the-scenes videos and Q&As to collaborative projects and music education tutorials, there are plenty of Youtube content ideas artists can utilise to engage their audience and promote their music career.
Key Points
- Personal storytelling allows you to connect with your fans on a more personal level, giving them insight into who you are and why they connect with your music.
- Collaborating with other musicians can help propel your career by increasing exposure, branching out into different genres, gaining access to each other’s fanbase and discovering new ideas.
- Performance Videos such as acoustic sessions or live recordings give viewers an insight into the creative process behind the songs performed while connecting in more meaningful ways.
- Behind-the-Scene videos of studio recording sessions gets fans involved in the production process while also showcasing musical talent when collaborating with others.
Personal Storytelling
Share your musical journey and offer an insight into your creative process through personal storytelling on YouTube.
Share Your Musical Journey
Personal storytelling allows you to connect with your fans on a more meaningful level, giving them insight into who you are and why they connect with your music.
It’s also important to remember that there is no ‘right’ way to tell this story – whatever comes naturally should be embraced – as it will add authenticity and texture that will help build connections between yourself and dedicated followers.
Offer An Insight Into Your Creative Process
As a musician sharing content on YouTube, you can give viewers access to the stories behind your songs and unique perspectives that are only available through artistic expression.
You can take fans along with you as you create something new or revisit familiar topics from another angle, allowing them to better understand who you are as an artist.
Performance Videos
Whether it’s an acoustic session, live show recording, or a genre-specific performance – showing performances of your music is the perfect way to engage and entertain fans on YouTube.
Acoustic Sessions
Acoustic sessions are an excellent way for musicians to showcase their musical abilities on YouTube and connect with fans in a more personal way.
By performing acoustic versions of popular songs, guitarist, singers, and other instrumentalists can reach out to their audience while highlighting the intricacies of their music that sometimes doesn’t come through when it’s a full-band recording session.
When creating an acoustic session for YouTube, musicians should consider both the choice of songs to perform and the atmosphere they create within the video.
While pop songs may work well as a conventional style arrangement in larger venues or recordings, taking those same tracks into intimate living rooms can put extra emphasis on inventive instrumentation – particularly guitar solos – giving viewers fresh insight into your creative method.
Collaborate With Other Musicians
As an independent artist, collaborating with other musicians is one of the most powerful ways to propel your career.
Making content alongside other artists is an easy way to produce engaging content for your and the other artist’s fanbase.
Behind-the-Scenes Content
Get fans involved in the production process with behind-the-scenes videos of studio recording sessions and making-of clips.
Studio Recording Sessions
Studio session clips are excellent pieces for YouTube content.
It provides the opportunity to show fans an inside look into the creative process – giving them a behind-the-scenes glimpse of what goes on during the production stage before new songs are released.
This is especially useful if you’re working on something big such as an album or EP, which could create buzz and excitement around its release.
There are plenty of different types of content that can be shared during studio recordings, such as interviews with band members about their experience in the recording studio; clips from live take recordings; sneak peeks at tracks still in progress; footage profiling different instruments being recorded individually (i.e., drums vs guitars); behind-the-scenes stories etc.
Making-of Videos
By showing behind-the-scenes footage of recording sessions, writing songs, or practising in the studio, you can give viewers an exclusive glimpse into your creative process and show how each song was crafted—creating an emotional connection between yourself and your fans.
They also help create buzz around upcoming releases by providing sneak peeks of tracks or albums that are still in production.
Some successful making-of examples come from popular musicians like BTS, who released multiple making-of videos while creating their Map Of The Soul:7 album; Katy Perry, who showed off her single “Harleys In Hawaii” on Twitter using clips from the accompanying Behind the Scenes video; and Lady Gaga who shared snippets of the second season of poker Face through various social media channels prior to its release.
Fan Interaction
Give fans a chance to engage with you by hosting exclusive fan content, live streams and chat sessions, and Q&A videos on your YouTube channel – a great way to connect with your fanbase even when you can’t meet them in person!
Exclusive Fan Content
Exclusive fan content helps to engage and build relationships with fans, offering them unique experiences, access to behind-the-scenes information or sneak peeks of upcoming releases.
It is an effective way for musicians to provide their most devoted followers with something special they cannot get elsewhere.
This could be through live streams and chat sessions, Q&A videos answered by the artist, behind-the-scenes look at studio recordings or even songwriting processes and exclusive early previews.
Artist Isaac Gracie has had success by using Instagram Live chats on a weekly basis with his fans to answer questions about his music process as well as curating specially picked playlists each week.
Other successful artists such as Taylor Swift have used exclusive fan experiences like providing ‘Secret Sessions’ where invited guests can individually listen to her new album before its release whilst getting personal interactions from her, which proved vital in building a loyal fanbase leading up to the official launch later on down the line.
Live Streams And Chat Sessions
It’s a great way for the artist to forge a connection with their fan base and provide exclusive content that can only be seen through the live stream.
Similarly, hosting regular Q&A sessions gives fans an opportunity to get answers from the musician while also allowing them to build relationships which is key for long-term engagement and loyalty from the fanbase.
In terms of experimentation, engaging videos such as tutorials or covers can help catch the attention of new audiences across various platforms apart from YouTube as well.
Q&A Videos
Q&A Videos are a great way for musicians to interact with their fans and build an even closer connection. By answering questions about their music, production process or personal lives, they can provide insight into who they are as individuals and help fans get to know them better.
Additionally, Q&A videos also allow musicians to address common misconceptions or criticisms from fans that could otherwise negatively affect them if not accurately addressed.
Successful Q&As have been used by popular artists such as Billie Eilish, Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande to increase fan engagement through honest conversations, which further add an intimate feel of being part of the artist’s world.
Popular questions often involve their creative inspiration, life stories, genre preferences and upcoming projects.
Touring And Travel Vlogs
Document your journey by sharing videos of your travels, concert destinations, and exclusive behind-the-scenes access to get fans excited and give them a real feel of being on tour with you.
Travel Vlogs
Travel vlogs have become a popular way for musicians to engage with their fans and promote their music.
By creating videos about touring, recording sessions, and more, musicians can give viewers an exclusive look into their lives as an artist.
From behind-the-scenes footage of tours or music video shoots to unique cover songs that feature the musician’s creativity and artistic process – travel vlogging has proven to be effective in helping musicians build connections with their audience.
When travelling, it is important for musicians to document and share their experiences.
Viewers want to get a glimpse of the culture of other countries as well as meaningful conversations while on tour.
Visually appealing footage coupled with interesting anecdotes can go a long way in engaging people from different parts of the world and building loyalty towards the musician’s brand.
Tour Documentary Videos
Tour documentaries allow viewers to see the behind-the-scenes action while on tour, giving them a glimpse into how you’re spending time away from home and what it’s like being part of a working band in different cities.
Popular examples include Jack Johnson’s 2008 “Sleep Through The Static” world tour video series “On & On: Road Journals,” Chance The Rapper’s “Magnificent Coloring World Tour,” featuring exclusive footage from his shows around the US, London & Europe in 2016/2017 and Kacey Musgraves’ 2018 MTV documentary special “Kacey Musgraves: All Of The Colors.”
In each case, the artists pass along unique content to their fanbase that allows for deeper connection beyond simply playing music onstage – whether that be getting lost between locations during travel or dealing with technical glitches at venues.
This also provides musicians with ample archival footage documenting important moments throughout their careers.
Exclusive Access To Behind-the-Scenes Tours
Exclusive access can be a highly effective tool in connecting with your fans by giving them an extra dose of encouragement and insight into what really goes on during tour life.
For instance, taking Live Streams on the road is a great way to include exclusive video glimpses of soundcheck or travel days where your fans often don’t get perfect view spots at shows.
You may even consider having a dedicated camera following you day-to-day, from chatting with tourmates while getting ready in the morning jamming around town as part of local bands over dinner or nightfall fun – all these moments create real connection stories between you and your fan base.
Offering exclusive short videos on YouTube or any other social media leading up to specific shows will draw more attention, pump up the excitement, increasing engagement levels like never before!
It also allows for deeper connections with existing fans – providing something special back beyond just music itself, but now they see behind-the-scenes footage too, if only for an instant burst of momentum right when it’s needed most.
Promotion And Marketing
Partnering with brands and creating promo videos for albums, tours, and shows can help musicians build their presence online.
Promo Videos For Albums, Tours, And Shows
Promo videos are a great way for musicians to promote their upcoming albums, tours, and shows.
They provide an opportunity to give fans a sneak peek of what’s coming up and entice them with exciting visuals and music that bring the project to life.
These videos should focus on giving your viewers enough information about what they can expect from the album or show without giving away too much.
Partnership With Brands And Products
There have been many successful partnerships between musicians and brands over the years.
For example, artist Will Smith partnered up with Acura back in 2018 to create content around his guest performance at the iHeartMusic Awards that year.
For any aspiring musician looking into this kind of deal, there are some tips you should consider before entering into negotiations: research what type of campaigns the company partners usually launch; determine how much money you’re willing or able to invest in commencing such a partnership; look for ways in which you can meet mutual goals (i.e., cross-promotion); also reach out to relevant professionals — like marketers or publicists — who might be able to guide you through specific steps needed along the process.
Creative And Entertaining Content
Create entertaining and creative content such as music-related comedy sketches, fun and unique cover songs, collaborations with non-musical YouTubers, and live virtual concerts to attract more viewers to your channel!
Music-Related Comedy Sketches
Music-related comedy sketches can be used to help musicians develop a more personal connection with their fans while also increasing engagement for their channel.
When done correctly, these types of videos have had huge success on YouTube, as evidenced by several hugely popular cover songs from artists like Ryan Higa and Ten Second Songs, which get millions of views each video.
Fun And Unique Cover Songs
Cover songs are incredibly popular across social media platforms like YouTube and TikTok.
Adding your own personal touch to covers helps make them stand out. You can experiment with different sounds and try covering various genres for added impact – try switching up styles between Pop, Rock or EDM, as these are all popular genres amongst audiences today.
Live Performances Of Virtual Concerts
Through virtual streaming platforms such as Twitch and YouTube Live, artists can reach a far wider audience than if they hosted normal live shows.
They also offer unique opportunities for music professionals to explore new revenue models during these tough times; charging ticket fees, creating VIP packages, offering merchandise bundles or selling limited edition prints are just some of the ways that artists can monetise their gigs virtually.
How Do You Get Noticed On YouTube For Music?
Having great musical talent isn’t enough to get noticed on YouTube – you need the right content and approach. To really succeed as a musician, it is important to create compelling content that resonates with your audience, build communities around your music, and engage with other users.
Optimising video titles and descriptions with relevant keywords can help get your music videos seen by more viewers. Additionally, using tags in each post will ensure that they appear in the correct search results.
Collaborating with popular creators in similar genres or themes may even boost the visibility of your videos further.
Lastly, engaging directly with followers on comments sections and social media channels is also essential for fostering relationships and gaining recognition from both fans and industry professionals alike.
Are YouTube Ads Worth It For Musicians?
For musicians, it can be difficult to generate a large enough fanbase or advertising budget to sustain their careers.
With the help of YouTube ads, they can get greater visibility and promote their music more easily.
YouTube ads offer a range of targeting options that can specifically target relevant audiences worldwide in an affordable way.
These types of campaigns are able to effectively reach new fans by placing small investments into tailored ad creatives which contain audio-visual elements and catchy messaging.
By building awareness through pre-roll video and mid-roll video ads as well as on search results pages (often shown when searching for competitors’ music), musicians benefit by increasing brand recall amongst potential listeners without damaging organic reach.
Thank Fans For Their Support And Feedback
At the end of the day, thanking your fans for their support and feedback can have a lasting impact on how you succeed as a musician.
Showing appreciation for their engagement with your YouTube channel is an important part of connecting with your followers and keeping them interested in what you are doing.
I hope those few tips will be helpful in your YouTube journey.
Cheers, Josh
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Hello, I’m Josh, and I’ve been honing my graphic design skills for almost 15 years now, catering to the needs of bands and businesses alike. What really fascinates me is the business aspect of the music industry. In addition to my design work, I also happen to play the Hammond organ, and I strive to share my knowledge through helpful articles that I write exclusively for you all!
