How To Become A Successful Hip Hop Artist: Videos

In this final component of a series on how to become a successful hip hop artist, part four examines why videos are a useful marketing tool and how to make them effective and engaging without breaking the bank.

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Guest Post by Darius Burgan of ArtistShortcut.comPart 4 of a 4 part series.Welcome to the last article of this 4 part series about becoming a successful Hip Hop artist.Before we start, if you haven’t read the 3rd article in this 4 part series, please do: Becoming A Successful Hip Hop Artist: MusicIn the above article, you’ll learn:

How to figure out if your music sucks
How to market your music once you know it’s good
4 methods you can use to market your music today

But today, we’re going to focus on videos.

Why Videos?

Videos are the future. That’s not just an opinion, the data supports it (below is a graph from Google Trends). Youtube is also the second biggest search engine, aside from Google.

But, aside from the data, what do you think your target audience would want?Photos do a good job at getting part of your image across; they’re also cheaper and quicker to create. However, if you go back to article #2 in this series, you’ll remember that I talked about how your image is more than just the way you look but, also the way you act.Videos allow you to give your fans the best of both worlds. It gives you the ability to show the fans, not only your look, but your personality.So, if you’re not creating videos, you’re missing out on a ton of opportunity to gain new listeners, as well connect with the ones you do have.

Some Videos You Can Make:

music videos
blog update videos
freestyle videos
live show announcement videos
new ‘song release’ broadcast videos
Fan Q&A videos
and more….

Tips For Making A Video For Less Money:

During my years of working in the Hip Hop Industry, I’ve found myself doing a number of different jobs. One of those jobs involved being a celebrity Videographer.With that said, there are a few common things I’ve experienced, that make creating a music video (or any video) more expensive.

“Just Make It Dope”

That phrase (and those similar) will likely make your video shoot more expensive. Before shooting your video, know what makes it “dope”. The more information you give the director, the easier it is for him to give you a great finished product, quickly.

Fewer Locations, More Scenes

Adding locations, adds time. And when you add time, you add money.What most artists don’t think about when choosing several locations is:

The time it takes to set up a scene
The time it takes to pack up a scene
The time it takes to travel to different locations

Those 3 things alone can add hours onto your video shoot.However, scenes are easier / quicker to set up if you’re in the same location. You can avoid the travel time and instead of packing up the equipment for a different scene, you can simply transport it to another area at that location.Even though you know it’s not a different location, your viewers will have no way of knowing (as long as the scene looks different).

Memorize Your Music

Memorize at least 80% of your song if you’re shooting a music video. The director will be able to cut and switch scenes if you forget some words but, the more you forget, the more work needs to be done in editing. This means more time spent, and ultimately more money.

Don’t Overcomplicate Things

If you want to create a blog update video or something simple, you don’t need to hire someone to record it, edit it, and upload it. Turn on your iPhone camera and start recording or open your computer and use the webcam. Don’t over complicate things, and don’t worry about making it perfect. This is a game built on longevity, consistency, and continual improvement.Improve as you go.

Few Ways To Promote Your Videos

Get your music video on Hip Hop blogs
Post it on your website
Strategically schedule social media post (no constant spam-like posting)
Send an email out to your email list
Link to the video from your Soundcloud, Bandcamp, etc..
Create an email signature with a link to your music video for when emailing
Email influencers asking for feedback
and more….

To Recap:Article #1: Your BrandingArticle #2: Your ImageArticle #3: Your MusicArticle #4: Your VideosEach article covers a different, yet important aspect of becoming a successful Hip Hop artist.Will these articles alone make you successful? No. But, what they will do is help you better understand what’s needed, to become a successful Hip Hop artist.If after reading one of these articles, you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or email me at ‘Darius@ArtistShortcut.com’ and I’ll try to help as much as possible.