Indie Artist X

I’m Indie Artist X. My name’s Austin Collins. It’s nice to meet you.

I’ve been doing the music thing for a while now, but not operating with a specific goal in mind. Not long ago I read an interview with one of my favorite artists, Jason Isbell, where he said, “Today, my wildest dreams of rock stardom can be boiled down to this: I really don’t want to get a regular fucking job. I think that’s an achievable goal that, in the long run, can make me very happy, indeed.”

And so I adopted this as my goal – sorry to rip you off, Jason, but I agree that this is an attainable goal. I’ve always prided myself as being a hard worker, maybe not all the time at my job in “cube world”, but definitely when it comes to music. But this beast can be a frustrating one. A lot of times friends and family think this is a cute phase you’re going through. If you’re an artist though, you feel me – all you wanna do is play music, write music, and perform your songs for anybody who will show up and look you in the eye. This is what we’ve dedicated our lives to.

Load In

When the Indie Artist X Team approached me about the project, I remember telling them, “I’ll work harder than anyone, I just don’t know what to do.” And that’s when the fun started, because they told me. Here’s what I have to say to each of my fellow artists out there who don’t want a “regular fucking job”:

1. It’s a lot of work.

2. Make Friends.

3. Get in the van.

4. Technology is your friend

The Work Part

Have you ever looked at the Great Wall of China or the great pyramids and thought to yourself “how the hell did they build that thing?” The answer is one brick at a time. A wise friend pointed that out to me in the course of the IAX project. It takes some of the pressure off – it’s not one thing you’re doing, it’s everything you’re doing and its adding up over time. Each brick is important and each one creates a base for the next one.

The Friend Part

Friends, not fans. It starts at home. Surround yourself with like-minded, positive people. People that believe in what you’re doing. That goes for everybody: your agent, your manager, your bass player, your spouse, your dog. TRIM THE FAT. Don’t waste your time with leeches, narcissists, or anybody who’s always pissing on your pancakes. So get lean and then go out and make more friends.

Here’s how I operate. My band includes myself and 2 of my best friends plus a revolving cast of bass players. We didn’t start out that way and we have our dysfunctional moments, but we really enjoy each other and we’ve learned how to work and live together. So the connecting starts there – at home, the family unit. Then we go out and do the two things we love – hang with people and play music.

The Touring Part

I’ve learned that touring is everything. There is a direct correlation to our success and how much we tour. You have to play out. You have to play in front of people. It’s the best way for people to hear your music and what else? That’s right. Playing live is the best place to make new friends and those friends might be into your music. And they might come back to your next show too. Get in the van, baby. Just get in the van.

The Technology Part

Web 2.0! It’s the new thing and it’s a 2-way conversation. I put this last because it’s the wild west out there – just about anything is possible. Just about everybody has a facebook account. Hell, my grandmother has one. What a great way to connect with people. I’m just now discovering what can be done with through a band-specific page. Wow. You’ve got one right? Twitter – People are on it and they talking. Are they talking about our music?

Load Out

It’s difficult in words to describe what an amazing experience this has been for me. I’ve met so many people as a result of being a part of this “grand experiment”. Everyone involved has offered incredible insight and advice. And the best part about all of this is they’ll help you too. All you have to do is go to their respective websites (I’ll list them) and invest your time wisely.

To the Indie Artist X Team, I can’t begin to express how grateful I am for your involvement over the last few months. Thank you for taking time away from your jobs, your families, and your lives to invest in me and answer a lot of stupid questions. You’ve blessed me and made me a better person.

Click here for an overview of the Indie Artist X Project.

The Indie Artist X Sponsors

Fan Development

Andrew Goodrich – Artists House Music

Commerce

Bruce Houghton – Hypebot

Website

David Rose – KnowTheMusicBiz.Com

Awareness

Cameron Mizell – MusicianWages.com, CameronMizell.com

Influencers

Heather McDonald – About.com Music Careers