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Should You Be A Solo Artist Or A Band Member?

Posted In Music, Products Review, Technology Reviews - By Mike on Wednesday, February 13th, 2013 With No Comments »

So you’ve got some musical talent, you love to sing, and you are considering making a foray into the music industry as a professional male or female vocalist. One of the questions that you may want to consider as you begin to explore each of your options for getting your name out there in the public arena as a singer for hire, is whether or not you should establish yourself as a solo artist or whether you should form a band and become its lead singer.

There are a number of implications to how you get started with and advance your music career either way, and both have their pros and cons that are worth considering. You can most certainly become successful either way, regardless of which one of the two paths that you choose. But each one of these choices comes with its own set of hurdles and challenges, advantages and disadvantages that you must take into consideration.

Let’s explore some of the pros and cons of each alternative scenario so that you will be able to make a more informed decision as to which approach may be more appropriate for your specific interests, depending on your particular situation.

Advantages Of Forming A Band

You may have heard the old cliche expression “there is strength in numbers”. That is true in just about any endeavor, and making music is no exception. There is without a doubt a certain strength, a certain measure of leverage that you can capitalize upon if you go into the music business as part of a band as opposed to going it alone as a solo artist. This is because your band is now the sum total of each band member’s individual strengths and talents. This increases the value and the demand for the music that is produced. This also increases the quality of the music that can be produced, since you are part of a cohesive unit, collectively pooling together your creativity in pursuit of artistic expression.

If you were to have gone into the music business as a solo artist, you will most certainly be valued for your most valuable asset, which is your voice. While the sound of your voice may be music to many peoples’ ears, no song is complete without an instrumental score to accompany it.

While you as a solo male or female vocalist could seek out a band that can compose music to accompany your lyrics or you could hire a music producer who can coordinate the same for you, the fact of the matter would remain that your lyrics and the band that composes your music would remain two distinct, separate entities. The band would not be identified as your band. They would be a live band for hire.

But if you were to join a band from the outset, then you would have much more improved collaboration and your identity collectively as a band would define the music that you produce. It would be much easier to work together with a team that functions as a family unit.

Perhaps the greatest advantage of forming a band is that your band becomes a brand. Your band would have a name that, if it gains in popularity, could become a household name.

By being a cohesive unit with a branded identity, your band will have greater leverage and thus much more expansive and influential networking capability with the who’s-who in the music industry. After all, the band will consist not only of a lead singer, but perhaps backup vocalists, a drummer, guitarists, a pianist, and other instrument players. Each one of these individuals will be able to individually harness the power of their own contacts and outside influences, and thus be able to help propel the band forward. In fact, it could be argued that being a member of a band lends more credibility to your cause.

If you feel that forming a band is an overwhelmingly intimidating and overly complicated process, then you can always allay your concerns by hiring a band manager to help manage the affairs of your band.

Disadvantages Of Forming A Band / Advantages Of Going Solo

While there are many advantages that being a member of a band can bring in terms of accelerating your musical career, there are many advantages of going solo instead just as well.

For example, if you are Bolden to a band, then you have little to no leeway to look out for your own interests, short of actually departing from the band (thereby potentially causing the band to break up). You are no longer free to make your own independent decisions and must work within the strictures of whatever is the greater good for the sake of the band and not for your own self as an iconic figure or for the sake of each individual member.

As a member of a band, you will be typecast. You will be known as part of that band. Your name will be synonymous with that band. That could of course be a good thing if the band were successful, but what if you want to be independent? You don’t want to be associated with just one band? You want to be known for your own music as an independent artist?

Furthermore, as a solo artist, you get to call the shots and dictate what kind of music you want to accompany your lyrics. Whereas with a band, you are surrendering some of your own independent creative censurer and must go by either the general consensus of the band members, or according to the direction provided by a band manager or producer.

When you are a member of band, then your success isn’t your own. Your success depends on the success of the music. Any chance you might have had to succeed and climb the ladder of success may be overshadowed by the band if it is not performing well.

And of course a band is a much bigger headache to manage than if you were to be managing your own affairs as a solo male or female vocalist.

So the bottom line is that there are no doubt a number pros and cons to being either a member of a band or being a solo male / female vocalist. You can achieve the success of your dreams either way. But both require treading two completely different paths, each with their own disparate challenges, obstacles, and advantages. Ultimately, at the end of the day, which choice you make depends on your own personal lifestyle choice, as well as the circumstances that you feel may help you advance in your musical career.

Mike is a freelance writer who writes on different topics such as technology, business, finance, gadgets. He holds bachelor’s degree in electronics. His famous articles includes article on Looking for a gig.

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