Why You Should Start a Blog Today

This article was first published in the May edition of The Allegro, the AFM Local 802 monthly publication.

I landed my first tour because of a little blog I kept about playing keyboards on a cruise ship. I called it the Chronicles of a Cruise Ship Musician (CCSM). I’d only meant for it to be a casual way to keep in touch with people back home and at first I filled it like a diary – overindulging, maybe, in the self-absorbed drivel that I figured nobody was even reading.

photo credit: kpwerker

Eventually, though, I stopped writing commentary on what I was eating at the buffet (thankfully) and started writing about the job itself. Maybe it’s hard to imagine now, but when I started the blog in 2004 it was hard to find useful information about what it was like to play music on a cruise ship. None of us on the gig seemed to have any idea what we were getting ourselves into before we actually arrived at the ship.

It wasn’t very long before the blog began to get comments from musicians that had found the website through search engines. They were curious about the gig and I answered their questions as best I could. This continued after I’d finished my six month contract and, in fact, continues to this day. The blog now has several guest writers and serves as a candid source of information from a musician perspective.

A few summers after my cruise gig I received a phone call from a bassist that had been reading CCSM. His tour was ending soon, and he thought he might try working cruise ships as a kind of semi-retirement. We ended up talking for nearly two hours, first about cruise ship jobs, then about touring. At that time I was very eager to get on the road.

He had some great advice for me – including a strong suggestion to join the AFM – and just 4 weeks later I’d already landed my first tour.

I don’t mean to say that writing a blog will get you a gig – it was much more indirect than that for me. I am, obviously, an advocate of internet-aided networking, but even I don’t think that merely joining a social network or starting a blog will be enough to get you more work. Tech-based networking will never replace old-fashioned face time, but nevertheless, it has become a powerful way to suppliment existing, or even facilitate new, one-on-one interactions. The story of CCSM certainly reflects that.

What the internet has provided us as professional musicians is not just the ability to promote ourselves, but an ability to define ourselves. Blogs, profiles, personal websites – these are the new resume. You can now write a blog that attracts attention to your knowledge and personality, create a Facebook profile that shows employers your mutual contacts, and build a website that attracts new students and clients. And yes, if it works right, this altogether could lead to new work.

So maybe I do mean to say that writing a blog will get you a gig? Maybe. For me, the internet has been a very successful way to connect, communicate and collaborate with musicians all over the industry, and blogging has been central to that good luck. Contrary to their widespread stereotypes, blogs and social networks are not about (or should not be about) broadcasting our secret adolescence to all of cyberspace, they are about creating a presentation of ourselves, in our case, as expert music professionals whose knowledge and talent add value to whatever projects we’re involved in.

Have you thought about starting a blog? You should. Don’t wait any longer – dive in. You’ll be surprised how quickly and easily you’ll connect with others. You never know what new opportunities that will create for you.

About the author

David J. Hahn is a freelance music director, accompanist and writer. Originally from the Chicago area, he now lives in New York City and works primarily in musical theatre. Find out more at his website and follow him on Twitter.

All posts by David J. Hahn | Forum Profile

Great post, David.

“…write a blog that attracts attention to your knowledge and personality…”

I think that’s the key. Your static website only goes so far to paint a fetching portrait of who you are as a professional. In a blog, you have an opportunity to add depth and character, and also use it as a forum to ‘give back’ in the form of sharing knowledge. Those who do it well tend to come off as smart, generous, and fun.

Cheers!

Adrian

Adrian Ellis
5/28/2009

The internet is a positive thing for musicians. Blogs, videos in youtube, websites, social networking sites like myspace, etc. But I agree that old-fashioned face to face contact and interaction in “real” life is the best thing. There is absolutely no substitute for that. It is the best way for people to get to know you and for you to get to know them.

Carolyn Ohlbaum

Carolyn Ohlbaum
5/29/2009

As a matter of fact… I just did!

http://bcwesolowski.wordpress.com/

Brian Wesolowski
5/29/2009

OK, you talked me into it. ;)

I just started a blog to chornicle my life as a working musician. Check it out at http://oneworkingmusician.com.

Comments/suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Jason Parker
5/29/2009

Great post, David. I think you’ve really touched on something that is important for any professional who values networking and promoting themselves online. However- I think you’re missing an important point- Your cruise ship musician blog was successful because it filled a niche that was at the time unfilled. If you had just started a general blog of the musings of David Hahn, I doubt you would have built as solid of a following. Again, great post. You’ve inspired me to revive my blog about pursuing a professional music career while continuing to practice a 9-5 existence.

Ethan Waldman
6/10/2009

You’ve singled handly just changed my whole perspective on writing blogs. I had always thought that they were really used for gossip. I know that as a artist, gossip can play some kind of role in your career so I had always tried to stay away from it. You’ve just showed me a effective way to utilize this whole blog system thing. For that I thank you!!

- Face-Off

Antoine Aaron
6/14/2009

I agree David. That “presentation of ourselves” you mentioned is the ticket. It makes it easy for people to connect to you. A good example is an article like this one. Now, I feel like I know you (even though this is obviously only the surface), your art will have more meaning for me.

And for a musician this is very important. Your “content” for lack of a better word is more palatable when people feel connected to you first. Having a blog gives an artist the ability to relate to people as a person.

Not to mention, it gives you more visibility Online and makes it possible for more people to find you.

Thanks for the presentation – very cool.

- Will

Will Duke
7/17/2009

Thanks Will.

You make a good point about fans wanting to connect before they’ll give the music a try. But doesn’t that seem like a new paradigm? Is that something that’s new to modern musicians? We have to have a personal presentation BEFORE the music, not after? I wonder when that change happened.

David J. Hahn
7/17/2009