Get the best from your videos

How Do You Make a Video Go Viral? And Should You Even Try?

Fri, 16 Oct 2026 17:18:32 GMT

Everyone wants to know the secret to making a video go viral.

But I've got a slightly different question. What happens if it does?

Imagine waking up tomorrow morning to discover that a video you posted has been watched 100,000 times.

Brilliant!

Your phone's going bananas, people are commenting, sharing, following and generally making you feel like you've finally cracked this social media business.

But here's the question.

Who are those 100,000 people?

Are they interested in your music? Do they know who you are? Will they listen to your next release?

Or have they simply enjoyed 30 seconds of entertainment before disappearing into the endless scroll?

Because there's a rather important difference between getting attention and getting somewhere.

And if you're an independent musician, I think that distinction matters enormously.

Can you actually make a video go viral?

Not reliably, no. Sorry. Bit of an anticlimax, that.

There are plenty of things you can do to improve the chances of your video reaching more people, but nobody can guarantee that something will take off.

Social media platforms use complicated recommendation systems to decide what people see, and those systems are constantly evolving.

But there's also something far less scientific involved.

Human behaviour.

Sometimes a video catches people's imagination for reasons nobody could have predicted.

Sometimes a carefully planned piece of content falls completely flat.

And sometimes a video featuring a bloke with parcel tape over his mouth gets 25,000 views.

The first mistake: trying to reach everyone

If you're making videos to promote your music, the temptation is to reach as many people as possible.

But reaching everybody isn't necessarily helpful.

Imagine you're an acoustic singer-songwriter whose music appeals to fans of Joni Mitchell, Laura Marling and Nick Drake.

You could make a funny video about your cat doing something ridiculous.

It might get thousands of views.

But unless your cat has an unusually sophisticated taste in folk music, those viewers might have very little interest in what you actually do.

That's not to say musicians shouldn't be funny or show their personalities. Quite the opposite.

But you need to understand who you're trying to attract.

I've written more about this in Before You Make a Video, Know Who You're Talking To.

The point is simple.

A thousand views from people who might genuinely love your music could be worth far more than 100,000 views from people who couldn't care less.

Give people a reason to stop scrolling

This is where things get practical.

When somebody comes across your video, they're making a decision almost immediately.

Do I watch this?

Or do I keep scrolling?

That means the opening moments are enormously important.

And I've spent a fair bit of time experimenting with this.

One of my videos began with the words:

"Musicians are making a big mistake on social media."

It went on to explain why musicians should think more carefully about the text accompanying their performance videos.

That opening helped the video reach more than 14,000 views and brought in over 20 new followers.

Another began:

"This is going to come as a bit of a shock."

That one passed 12,000 views.

And then there was the video where I spent the entire time with parcel tape over my mouth.

More than 25,000 views.

My wife watched that one repeatedly. I'm still not entirely sure what she was trying to tell me.

Now, none of those figures qualifies as going viral in the grand scheme of things.

But they demonstrated something useful.

The opening of a video can make an enormous difference to whether somebody gives you their attention.

And that applies whether you're trying to reach 500 people or 500,000.

Your opening doesn't have to be loud

There's a common misconception that grabbing attention means shouting, waving your arms about or doing something completely ridiculous.

Sometimes it does.

But it can also be much more subtle.

You might begin with a question.

A surprising statement.

An intriguing image.

A moment from a live performance that makes somebody stop and listen.

Or a line that immediately tells the viewer they're about to discover something interesting.

For musicians, this is particularly important.

Starting every video with "Hi guys, I've got a new single coming out..." isn't necessarily going to give somebody a compelling reason to watch.

Try beginning with the most interesting part instead.

Perhaps the song was inspired by something unexpected.
Perhaps the recording nearly went horribly wrong.
Perhaps there's a story behind a lyric that nobody knows.

Give people a reason to become curious.

Then reward that curiosity.

Make something worth watching

Of course, a strong opening is only the beginning.

If you promise something interesting and then spend the next minute talking about something completely different, people will leave.

You need to deliver.

That doesn't mean every video needs expensive cameras, elaborate lighting or a professional editor.

I've seen beautifully produced videos that are utterly forgettable.

And I've seen somebody sitting in their kitchen telling a brilliant story that I couldn't stop watching.

The important thing is what happens in the video.

Does it entertain?
Does it teach somebody something?
Does it make them feel something?
Does it reveal something interesting about you?
And does it give them a reason to keep watching?

For musicians, this is where there's so much untapped potential.

You don't just have songs to share.

You have stories, experiences, opinions, rehearsals, performances, collaborations and all the little moments that make you who you are.

I've explored this in Why Musicians Need to Be More Than Their Music.

You don't need to turn your life into a reality television show.

But giving people something beyond another performance clip can make an enormous difference.

Don't ignore the packaging

Once you've made a good video, there are a few practical things that can help it reach the right people. Think about the words you put on screen, particularly at the beginning.

Make sure the video is easy to follow, even when somebody isn't listening with the sound turned up.

Use captions when they help people understand what's being said.

Choose a format that suits the platform.

And write a description that gives people a reason to care, rather than simply announcing that you've posted another video.

I also think musicians sometimes underestimate the importance of editing.

A pause that feels perfectly natural in conversation can feel like an eternity on social media.

A shot that looks lovely might not actually contribute anything to the story.

Sometimes removing five seconds can make the whole video work better.

And sometimes the best edit is knowing when to stop.

None of this guarantees a viral hit.

But it gives your content a better chance of being watched and enjoyed.

The algorithm isn't your audience

It's tempting to become obsessed with what social media platforms supposedly want.

Should you post at 7pm?
Are hashtags dead?
Does Instagram prefer shorter videos?
Should you post every day?

There's no shortage of people online claiming to know the answers.

Some of their advice is useful. Some of it is based on genuine experience. And some of it is complete nonsense dressed up as a secret formula.

The platforms certainly care about how people respond to content.

But rather than spending your life trying to second-guess every algorithm change, I'd concentrate on making videos that people actually want to watch.

Pay attention to what works.

Look at which videos hold people's attention.

Notice which ones encourage comments, shares, profile visits and follows.

And, crucially, look at whether those people are interested in what you do.

Because that's where the really useful information lives.

Going viral for the right reasons

Here's something interesting I've discovered through my own social media experiments.

On Instagram, I publish two very different types of video.

I share advice for independent musicians. Things like how to promote their music, build an audience and make better use of video.

I also publish a series called Behind The Song, where I uncover surprising stories about famous songs and the people who made them.

Both are about music, but they attract different audiences.

And the results have been fascinating.

Looking at two recent videos from each series, my Monday musician-focused content attracted a combined 1,177 views and seven new followers.

Not spectacular numbers, but these are videos aimed directly at the people I work with.

Now compare that with Behind The Song.

Two videos attracted 4,530 views and 74 new followers.

Almost four times the views and more than ten times the followers.

And here's another interesting detail.

Between 87% and 94% of the views on those Behind The Song videos came from people who weren't already following me.

In other words, the series is reaching well beyond my existing audience.

Brilliant.

But does that mean I should abandon the Monday videos and concentrate entirely on Behind The Song?

Absolutely not.

Because the two series are doing different jobs.

The Behind The Song videos introduce MONOKI to music lovers who might never otherwise discover me. Some will be musicians themselves. Others might simply enjoy finding out something surprising about their favourite records.

The other videos are much more focused. They're designed to demonstrate that I understand the challenges independent musicians face and, hopefully, encourage some of them to explore what I do.

One series is building awareness.

The other is building credibility with the people most likely to need my services.

And I need both.

There's something else worth mentioning here.

Behind The Song isn't some random attempt to chase views by jumping on the latest internet trend.

It's about music, storytelling and the people behind the songs.

Which is rather convenient because those are exactly the things MONOKI is built around.

So even when a video reaches people who might never become clients, it's still introducing them to the right world.

And that's an important distinction.

Going viral isn't just about how many people you reach. It's about whether the attention you're attracting helps you build what you actually want.

For an independent musician, that might mean reaching people who love your style of music, rather than thousands of viewers who enjoyed a funny clip but have no interest in hearing your songs.

For me, it means balancing content that reaches a broad audience of music fans with content that speaks directly to musicians.

And while I'm delighted that Behind The Song is attracting new followers, I'll be watching something else too. Whether those followers stick around, engage with my other content and become genuinely interested in MONOKI.

Because that's when audience growth starts becoming something more valuable than a number on a screen.

What happens after the views?

Imagine your video has taken off.

Wonderful.

But what have you done to help those viewers discover more about you?

Is your profile clear about the music you make?
Can people easily find your songs?
Have you got other interesting videos waiting for them?
Is there a reason for them to follow you?
Can they find out when you're playing live?

If you've attracted attention but given people nowhere interesting to go next, you've potentially wasted a wonderful opportunity.

And this is where I think musicians need to stop treating individual posts as isolated events.

Your videos should work together.

One might introduce somebody to your music.

Another might tell the story behind a song.

Another might show you performing live.

And another might give them a glimpse of your personality.

Over time, those different pieces of content help people build a picture of who you are.

That's how casual listeners can become fans.

So should you try to go viral?

There's absolutely nothing wrong with wanting your videos to reach a huge audience.

And if one takes off, enjoy it.

But I wouldn't make going viral your primary goal.

I'd focus on making videos that attract the right people, give them something worth watching and encourage them to discover more.

Some will reach a few hundred people.

Others might reach thousands.

And occasionally, if the timing, the content and a little bit of luck all come together, something might really take off.

But I'd rather have a smaller audience that's genuinely interested in my work than a massive audience that forgets me five minutes later.

Because views tell you how many people watched. They don't tell you how many people cared.

And for a musician trying to build a career, that second number is far more interesting.

How to Make More Videos in Less Time

Fri, 16 Oct 2026 09:18:33 GMT

How to Make More Videos in Less Time

Making videos for social media doesn't have to take over your life. And if you're an independent musician, you've probably got better things to do than spend every afternoon talking to your phone.

Like making music, for example.

But here's the problem.

You know video is an important part of promoting your music. You know you need to show up regularly. And you probably have a reasonably good idea of what you'd like to talk about.

Finding the time to actually make those videos?

That's another matter entirely.

Between writing, recording, rehearsing, performing and everything else involved in being an independent musician, content creation can easily become another job on an already rather long list.

But there's a simple technique I use that can make the whole process considerably easier.

It's called batch filming.

And it might just give you a few hours of your life back.

What is batch filming?

Batch filming is exactly what it sounds like.

Rather than setting up your camera every time you need to make a video, you record several videos in one session.

You prepare your ideas, get your equipment ready, set up your lighting and film a collection of videos that you can publish over the coming days or weeks. It's something I've used for years.

The beauty of batch filming is that you only have to deal with the fiddly bits once.

The camera.
The lighting.
The microphone.
The background.

And, if you're anything like me, the inevitable ten minutes spent wondering why something that worked perfectly yesterday has suddenly stopped working.

Get everything set up properly and you can concentrate on making your videos.

1. Start with a plan

Before you even think about pressing record, decide what you're going to make.

You don't need a complicated content calendar covering every waking moment of the next six months.

But having a list of ideas makes a huge difference.

For example, let's imagine you're an independent musician preparing to release a new single.

You could make five videos around that one song:

The story behind the lyrics.
A short acoustic performance.
Something unexpected that happened during recording.
The inspiration behind the song.
A question you've been asked about the music.

That's five pieces of content without having to invent five completely unrelated ideas.

And you could probably film most of them in one afternoon.

You can also turn a bigger topic into a series.

Perhaps you're recording an album and want to share what happens along the way.

Rather than trying to squeeze everything into one enormous video, break it into smaller stories.

One about writing.
One about recording.
One about working with other musicians.
One about something that went spectacularly wrong.

People love a good story. Particularly when it involves somebody else having a difficult day.

2. Put filming time in your diary

This is where a lot of people fall down.

They decide they're going to make some videos when they have a spare moment.

Unfortunately, spare moments have a habit of disappearing.

So treat filming like any other important part of your work.

Put it in your diary.

It might be an entire afternoon.

It might be a couple of hours on a Tuesday morning.

The important thing is that you've deliberately set aside some time to make content.

And when that time arrives, you're ready.

You've already decided what you're filming.

You know what you want to say.

And you're not wasting the first hour trying to think of something interesting.

3. Keep your setup simple

One of the biggest advantages of batch filming is that you don't have to keep setting everything up.

Find somewhere you can film comfortably.

Think about the background, the lighting and where you're going to position the camera.

And remember that you don't need a professional studio.

A corner of your rehearsal room might be perfect.

So might your home studio, a comfortable chair or somewhere that feels connected to your music.

The important thing is that it looks good, sounds good and feels natural.

There's also something to be said for familiarity.

If people regularly see you in the same environment, that setting can become part of your visual identity.

But don't feel every video needs to look identical.

You can change the framing, move to another part of the room or use different camera angles.

A little variety can go a long way.

4. Know what you're going to say

This is a big one.

And it's where I see plenty of people making life unnecessarily difficult for themselves.

They switch on the camera and hope the words will somehow arrive.

Sometimes they do.

Quite often they don't.

So before you start filming, have a rough idea of what you want to say.

Personally, I prefer a few bullet points.

I know how I'm going to open the video, the main points I want to cover and where I'm going to finish.

That gives me enough structure to stay on track without making the whole thing feel rehearsed.

Now, you could write a complete script.

But there's something worth understanding about scripts.

Writing for the spoken word is a skill. And delivering a script naturally is another skill altogether.

It's not the same as reading something aloud.

You need to understand rhythm, emphasis, pacing and how to make the words sound as though they're coming from you rather than a piece of paper.

And that takes practice.

More importantly people will spot when you do it badly.

You don't have to be an actor to spot a bad actor.

People can tell when somebody doesn't sound genuine, even if they can't quite explain why.

For most musicians making informal videos for social media, I'd suggest starting with a few talking points rather than trying to memorise a speech.

You'll probably find you sound much more like yourself.

And that's exactly who people want to get to know.

5. Film everything before you start editing

Once you're set up, concentrate on recording.

Work through your list of videos, one at a time.

Don't worry if you make a mistake.

Just stop, take a moment and start that sentence again.

You can remove the mistake when you edit.

And don't feel you have to get everything right in one take.

Sometimes the second or third attempt is better because you've relaxed into what you're saying.

The important thing is to keep moving.

I wouldn't recommend stopping to edit every video before filming the next one.

That rather defeats the object.

Get all your recording done while your camera, lights and microphone are ready.

Then tackle the editing separately.

It's a much more efficient way of working.

6. Change your clothes!

Here's a little trick I mention in the video.

If you're recording several videos that will be published over the next few weeks, consider changing your outfit between recordings.

You don't need an entire wardrobe.

Just a couple of different tops can make your content look as though it was filmed on different days.

Of course, there's absolutely nothing wrong with people knowing you've recorded several videos in one session.

But a little visual variety can help.

You could also change the camera angle or move to another part of the room.

Just remember to check your lighting and sound if you move things around.

And try not to get so carried away with costume changes that you spend longer choosing tops than making videos.

7. Build a library of videos you can use again

This is one of my favourite benefits of batch filming.

Not every video needs to be about something happening this week.

In fact, some of the most useful content you can create is what marketers call evergreen content.

That's simply content that stays relevant over time.

For musicians, it might include:

The story of how you first started making music.
What inspired you to pick up your instrument.
The artists who influenced your sound.
The meaning behind one of your songs.
A memorable experience from a live performance.

These stories don't suddenly become irrelevant because another Friday has come and gone.

You can share them again later, perhaps with a different edit or a new introduction.

And if somebody has only recently discovered you, there's a good chance they won't have seen them before.

Over time, you can build a library of useful videos that take some of the pressure off constantly having to create something new.

8. Leave room for the unexpected

Now, here's something I wouldn't recommend.

Planning every single piece of content so far in advance that you've got no room for anything spontaneous.

Because some of the best moments happen when you're not expecting them.

A brilliant rehearsal.

An unexpected conversation.

Something funny that happens on the way to a gig.

A new idea that you're desperate to share.

Those moments can make wonderful social media content.

And they often reveal more about you than anything carefully planned.

So think of batch filming as a way of creating the foundation of your content.

It takes care of the videos you know you want to make.

Then you've got the freedom to share the unexpected things as they happen.

9. Schedule your content

Once you've recorded and edited your videos, the final step is getting them ready to publish.

Fortunately, scheduling content is much easier than it used to be.

For Instagram and Facebook, Meta Business Suite offers scheduling tools, and Instagram also supports scheduling for eligible accounts.

There are other options available if you're publishing across several platforms.

Personally, I find it useful to have a simple content calendar so I can see what's going out and when.

You don't need anything complicated.

A spreadsheet, a calendar or a project management tool can do the job.

Just make sure you know which video is being published, when it's going out and what you're going to say alongside it.

And don't forget to check back after it's published.

Scheduling is useful, but social media still needs a human being on the other end.

If somebody leaves a thoughtful comment or asks you a question, make time to respond.

The real benefit of batch filming

For me, the biggest advantage isn't simply saving time.

It's removing some of the pressure.

When you've already got several videos filmed and ready to go, you don't have that nagging feeling that you ought to be making something for social media.

You can concentrate on the other parts of your work.

And for an independent musician, that's particularly valuable.

Because your social media content should support your music career, not become the thing that takes all your time away from making music.

So next time you've got a couple of hours free, don't just make one video.

Make four or five.

Get yourself organised, keep things simple and build up a little library of content you can draw on whenever you need it.

You might be surprised how much easier the whole thing becomes.

And you might even have time left to make some music.

How I Made This Video: EM Kane - Wasted Time

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 19:12:41 GMT

3 scenes, 3 shots. 2 days filming. And 1 rather chilly barn.

That's what went into making the music video for Wasted Time, the debut single from EM Kane, otherwise known as Eleanor Kane.

The idea was to create a video that told a story without lots of complicated camera work or special effects. In fact, the whole thing would be filmed in just three continuous shots, with Eleanor's face connecting each scene to the next.

Simple enough on paper. Getting it to work was another matter .

Take a look at the finished video first.

The competition

In 2023, I ran a competition to give an emerging musician the chance to have a fully produced music video made for free. It's something I've done to support new talent, particularly artists who have brilliant music but don't necessarily have the budget to give it the visual treatment it deserves.

The winner was Eleanor Kane.

Her song, Wasted Time, stood out immediately. A powerful, bluesy ballad, beautifully produced by Ali Robertson, with a voice that made me sit up and pay attention.

The remarkable thing was that this was her debut release. Not a bad way to introduce yourself.

Finding the story

Eleanor already had an idea for the video when she approached me.

But first, here's how she described the song:

"'Wasted Time' is all about showing your ultimate vulnerability with someone intimately but then still not being able to love them emotionally, wishing you could love that person as much as you want them and all the weird feelings that come about as a result. The song says 'woman' a lot, and in the time since I wrote it I've gone through some gender identity stuff, so I want to explore that side visually."

Her original concept involved one continuous shot revolving around her. During the middle eight, when the music breaks down, the video would reveal a more vulnerable version of Eleanor, wearing minimal make-up, nude shorts and a crop top.

I liked the simplicity of it, but I felt the song had more storytelling potential.

There were some wonderfully visual lines in the lyrics, particularly about watching someone get up to leave and being unable to tear your eyes away from them. They gave me something to build on.

So I took Eleanor's idea and developed it into three scenes.

The first would take place in a bedroom with a man. The second would move to a kitchen, the morning after the night before, with a woman. And the final scene would strip away those relationships and characters, leaving Eleanor alone and revealing a more personal side of her identity.

Rather than spelling everything out, I wanted the images to leave room for the viewer to interpret the relationships and emotions for themselves.

We met in a little café near Waterloo Station, talked it through over coffee, made a few tweaks and agreed on the approach.

Now I just had to work out how to film it.

Three scenes, three locations

The bedroom scene was filmed at Eleanor's home in South London. For the kitchen scene, a friend kindly offered us their rather posh kitchen nearby. That left the third scene.

I needed somewhere large, dark and empty. With a conventional production budget, hiring a studio would have been the obvious answer. But this was a competition video, so I had to be a little more inventive.

Luckily, I live on a farm with several enormous barns. The farmer, Daniel, was happy to let me borrow one. Glamorous music video locations don't come much better than a freezing agricultural building in December.

We filmed the barn scene first.

The challenge was making the space disappear into darkness. Any unwanted daylight coming through gaps in the building had to be blocked out.

Kyra, our lighting director, followed me with a single small light as I moved around Eleanor with the camera on a gimbal.

It took a few attempts to get everything right, but the result was exactly what I wanted. In the edit, I was able to darken the remaining background light and make the scene feel even more dramatic.

The other two scenes were relatively straightforward, with Jake and Dima playing the two love interests.

By the end of two filming days, I'd captured the entire music video in three shots.

Which sounds impressively efficient until you discover what I had to do next.

The tricky bit: matching heads

This was the part of the idea that had been keeping me awake.

I wanted each scene to end with a close-up of Eleanor's face, then have the next scene begin with her face in exactly the same position. I also wanted her eyes to open with the first beat of the bar to add a little more drama.

The location would change, the relationship would change, but Eleanor would remain the visual constant.

No elaborate digital face replacement. No spectacular CGI. Just some very precise camera work and an awful lot of planning. The difficulty was that each shot had to be choreographed around the transition.

I needed to know exactly where Eleanor would be at the end of one scene and where she'd be at the beginning of the next. Her head position, the framing and even the lighting needed to work together.

It was a process of trial and error, making small adjustments until I had a take that would match the next one.

And because each scene was one continuous shot, getting the ending wrong meant doing the whole thing again.

It's the sort of detail most people will never notice when watching the finished video.

Which, of course, is rather the point.

The result

I wanted Wasted Time to demonstrate that you don't need to throw the kitchen sink at a music video to make something powerful.

There are no huge sets, complicated visual effects or dozens of different camera angles.

Just three scenes, three shots and a visual idea that supports the song.

We filmed everything over two days and I completed the edit within the same week. That was only possible because I'd worked out how the scenes needed to fit together before we started filming.

And while the transitions were technically the trickiest part, I think the real success was how Eleanor's original concept developed into something that gave the song another dimension.

That's one of my favourite parts of making music videos. An artist arrives with a song and an idea, and together we find a way to turn it into something neither of us would have come up with alone.

Sometimes that involves elaborate locations and big production plans.

Sometimes it involves three shots and borrowing a barn.

Personally, I rather like the barn approach.

Every music video has a story.

Some involve big ideas. Others involve tiny budgets, happy accidents or problems nobody saw coming. Here are a few more stories from behind the camera.

Nate James – Chasin' The Sun

How I turned a freezing Scottish beach into Ibiza, directing the whole thing from 300 miles away.

Nate James – 1Kind

Making a music video from 300 miles away with a phone, a bedsheet and a big idea.

Anthony Hughes – Body Sayin'

A nightclub, a cast of dancers and the decision to throw away an entire opening sequence.

How I Made This Video: Anthony Hughes - Body Sayin'

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 11:14:51 GMT

A secret nightclub, a cast of dancers, a disappearing opening sequence and the chance to fulfil a rather special personal ambition.

Making the music video for Anthony Hughes' Body Sayin' was memorable for quite a few reasons.

Professionally, it was an opportunity to make something unlike anything I'd tackled before, with choreographed dance routines, elaborate costumes and a nightclub full of characters.

Personally, it gave me the chance to do something I'd wanted to do for years.

But I'll come to that.

First, here's the finished video.

The competition

Back in 2022, I launched a competition offering an emerging musician the chance to win a fully produced music video.

I've always enjoyed working with new talent, and this was an opportunity to give an artist something they might otherwise struggle to afford.

There were plenty of strong entries, but one track stood out.

Body Sayin' by Anthony Hughes was a ridiculously catchy slice of disco-house that practically demanded a dancefloor.

And that was rather exciting because I'd never made a music video quite like the one I was already imagining.

A nightclub, a dream and a lot of dancing

When I first met Anthony, it quickly became clear that we were thinking along similar lines.

He wanted something bold, theatrical and full of movement. I was imagining a steamy nightclub dream sequence, with dancers, dramatic lighting and a slightly surreal atmosphere.

Anthony also had a background in dance, which was a considerable advantage.

He brought in Pineapple choreographer Claire Street, who assembled a brilliant group of dancers to help bring the routines to life.

I put together a storyboard, we developed the idea and everything started falling into place.

Until our original venue fell through.

Not ideal when you've got dancers, choreography, costumes and a production schedule to coordinate.

Fortunately, I had a Plan B.

I'd filmed regularly at the Looking Glass Cocktail Club in Shoreditch, and the team were happy to let us use the venue for the day.

And what a venue.

Through the looking glass

The Looking Glass Cocktail Club had a rather wonderful feature.

From the front, it looked like a fairly conventional bar. But at the back was a floor-to-ceiling mirror that doubled as a secret door, leading into a hidden speakeasy.

You can probably see why I liked it.

The original idea was to use the mirror as the transition between reality and fantasy.

Anthony would begin in the ordinary world, pass through the mirror and find himself in this extravagant nightclub dream.

It was a lovely idea.

Unfortunately, lovely ideas don't always survive the edit.

But more on that in a moment.

Lights, camera, choreography

The main nightclub sequence was the biggest production I'd put together for a music video at that point.

We had dancers, a choreographer, a drag queen, make-up, wardrobe, runners and a whole collection of people working together to make the thing happen.

And, of course, lighting.

The choreography was particularly important because the video needed to feel as energetic as the track.

We filmed multiple takes of the dance sequences, giving me plenty of options to cut between performances in the edit.

The idea was to make the movement feel tightly synchronised with the music, particularly during that ridiculously infectious chorus.

It was a busy day, but we got what we needed.

And for me, there was something else that made the experience rather special.

A little personal ambition fulfilled

My daughter Kyra grew up sharing my love of music and film.

For years, I'd quietly entertained the idea that one day we might get to work together on a music video.

It was one of those things you imagine happening but never really expect to.

By 2022, Kyra was 21 and had completed three years studying film and digital art. She'd developed a particular passion for lighting, which made her rather useful for a video set in a dark nightclub.

So I asked her to take charge of the lighting. And she did.

Watching her transform that gloomy space into the nightclub I'd imagined was a genuinely lovely moment.

I was directing the video, she was creating the atmosphere, and for the first time we were working together on a proper music production.

There are plenty of professional milestones I'm proud of, but that one's pretty high on the list.

And the footage looked fantastic.

Which made what happened next all the more frustrating.

Sometimes the best decision is to start again

Once filming was complete, I began putting the video together.

The dance sequences worked beautifully. The performances were strong, the lighting looked great and the whole thing had exactly the energy I wanted.

But there was a problem.

The opening didn't work.

Remember that clever idea about Anthony passing through the mirror into a fantasy nightclub?

Well, it turned out the contrast between the two worlds wasn't nearly strong enough.

The transition was supposed to feel dramatic, but instead it felt a bit underwhelming.

And with more than 30 seconds of music before the main chorus arrived, the video needed an opening that would hold people's attention.

I could have tried to make the original footage work. But sometimes the best thing you can do in an edit is admit that something isn't working and find a better solution.

Even when you've spent an entire day filming it.

So I went back to the drawing board.

An early morning in Wapping

The new idea was to tell the story backwards.

Instead of watching Anthony enter a nightclub dream, we'd meet him arriving home after a big night out.

Still buzzing from the evening, he'd make himself a cup of tea, collapse onto the sofa and drift off to sleep.

As he did, we'd begin seeing flashes of the nightclub sequence, gradually pulling the audience into the events of the previous night. It gave the opening a much stronger narrative and made the transition into the dance sequences feel more natural.

So we arranged to meet at Anthony's flat in Wapping early one Sunday morning to catch the sunrise.

Not exactly the rock-and-roll lifestyle I'd signed up for.

But it worked.

The new footage gave the video a proper beginning and helped the whole story fall into place.

And, rather wonderfully, it meant the finished video was stronger than the one we'd originally planned.

The result

Body Sayin' ended up being a considerably bigger production than I'd anticipated when Anthony first won the competition.

What started as an opportunity to make a dance-led music video became a production involving choreography, elaborate costumes, multiple locations and a fairly substantial crew.

It also taught me something that's stayed with me.

You can plan every shot, storyboard every scene and convince yourself you've got the perfect idea.

But until you see everything coming together, you don't really know whether it works.

And if it doesn't, you have to be prepared to change it.

That's not a failure of planning. It's part of the creative process.

Sometimes the best ideas arrive after you've already filmed the first ones.

And sometimes a project gives you something far more valuable than another video for your showreel.

In this case, I got to make a music video with my daughter.

I'd call that a pretty good result.

Every music video has a story.

Some involve big ideas. Others involve tiny budgets, happy accidents or problems nobody saw coming. Here are a few more stories from behind the camera.

Nate James – Chasin' The Sun

How I turned a freezing Scottish beach into Ibiza, directing the whole thing from 300 miles away.

EM Kane – Wasted Time

Three scenes, three shots and a freezing barn. How simplicity became the video's greatest strength.

Nate James – 1Kind

Making a music video from 300 miles away with a phone, a bedsheet and a big idea.

Stop Chasing Spotify: Why Musicians Need Fans, Not Just Streams

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 08:54:19 GMT

I'm not anti-Spotify.

I'm anti the idea that getting more streams is the same thing as building a music career.

Don't get me wrong. I love having practically every song ever recorded available in my pocket. It's a remarkable thing, even if it means I can spend 20 minutes deciding what to listen to and eventually put on something I've owned since 1987.

Streaming isn't going anywhere. And nor should it.

But if you're an independent musician, I think it's time to reconsider just how much importance you place on those streaming numbers.

Because there's a rather big difference between somebody listening to your song and somebody becoming a fan.

And that's where things get interesting.

How did we get here?

To understand why Spotify has become such a dominant force in music, it's worth rewinding a little.

Back in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Napster and LimeWire helped turn the music industry upside down.

Suddenly, millions of people could download songs without paying for them.

And yes, I'll hold my hands up. I did it too.

Although I continued buying CDs, I also discovered the questionable delights of downloading MP3s that occasionally turned out to be something entirely different from what I'd requested.

The music industry wasn't particularly thrilled about any of this.

Then Apple came along with iTunes and offered a legal alternative. Instead of buying an entire album, you could buy individual tracks and download them.

That was revolutionary in itself.

But streaming took the idea even further.

Why buy one song when you could have access to millions for a monthly subscription?

Spotify launched, other services followed, and gradually the way we listened to music changed.

For listeners, it was brilliant.

For musicians, things became a little more complicated

The problem isn't streaming.

It's what musicians expect from it.

According to the IFPI's Global Music Report 2026 , streaming accounted for 69.6% of worldwide recorded music revenue in 2025.

That's an enormous amount of money.

But here's the important bit.

Just because the music industry is making billions from streaming doesn't mean your music is going to make you a fortune.

And it certainly doesn't mean that getting lots of streams will automatically build you a sustainable career.

There are millions of songs competing for attention.

Your latest release might appear on somebody's playlist, get played a few times and disappear into the great musical abyss.

You might never know who listened.

And they might never think about you again.

Which is a bit depressing when you've spent months writing, recording and producing something you're incredibly proud of.

Streams don't necessarily mean fans

Imagine you've just released a new single.

It gets picked up by a playlist and suddenly you're seeing thousands of streams.

Brilliant.

But what happens next?

Do those listeners know your name?

Have they followed you anywhere?

Would they recognise another of your songs?

Would they buy a ticket to see you perform?

Would they even notice if you released something new next Friday?

If the answer to most of those questions is no, then you've got listeners, but you haven't necessarily got fans.

And that's an important distinction.

I'm not suggesting streaming listeners are somehow less valuable. Plenty of genuine fans listen exclusively through Spotify.

But a stream tells you somebody listened. It doesn't tell you how much they care.

And caring is what makes people stick around.

It's something I've explored in more detail in How to Turn Your Followers Into Fans , because attracting someone's attention and building a relationship with them are two very different things.

The uncomfortable truth about streaming royalties

Then there's the money.

Spotify doesn't pay artists a fixed amount every time somebody listens to a song. Its recording royalty system works by distributing a pool of revenue according to the share of eligible streams.

How much an artist eventually receives depends on their agreements with labels, distributors and other rights holders.

And since April 2024, Spotify has required tracks to achieve at least 1,000 streams in the previous 12 months ,

alongside a minimum number of unique listeners, to qualify for recorded music royalties.

That doesn't mean every streaming service has the same rule, and it doesn't affect publishing royalties in the same way. But it does underline something important.

For many emerging artists, streaming income alone isn't going to pay the bills.

Of course, if you're generating millions of streams, that's a different conversation.

But most independent musicians aren't.

And that's why I'd be careful about making Spotify the centre of your entire marketing strategy.

Meanwhile...

...something rather interesting is happening to physical music.

Remember when everyone said vinyl was dead?

Well, somebody forgot to tell the people buying it.

According to the BPI's latest UK recorded music figures , UK vinyl revenue grew by 19.9% in 2025, while physical music revenue overall increased by 12.8%.

Globally, physical recorded music revenue grew by 8%, according to the IFPI .

And I find that fascinating.

Because while streaming gives us convenience, physical music offers something different.

Ownership.

Something tangible.

Something to put on a shelf, collect, give as a present or proudly show off.

And for musicians, it offers another way for people to support what they do.

But I don't think the lesson here is that every independent artist should immediately order 500 vinyl albums.

Please don't do that just because I mentioned it. I don't want an angry email when your spare bedroom disappears beneath boxes of unsold records.

The real lesson is that fans are often willing to support artists in ways that go beyond pressing play.

That might mean buying vinyl.

It might mean merchandise.

It might mean coming to a gig, joining a membership or supporting a crowdfunding campaign.

And for some fans, it might simply mean listening to everything you release and telling their friends about you.

All of those things matter.

Stop treating Spotify as the finish line

This is where I think independent musicians need to change their thinking.

Rather than asking, "How do I get more streams?", try asking:

"How do I turn the people who discover my music into people who want to hear more from me?"

It's a subtle change, but it can completely alter how you approach your marketing.

Spotify can be an important part of that journey.

Somebody discovers your song through a playlist, an algorithmic recommendation or a friend sharing a link.

Lovely.

But what reason have you given them to take the next step?

Can they find you on social media?

Is there something interesting to discover when they get there?

Can they learn about the person behind the music?

Is there a mailing list they can join?

Are you giving them reasons to come back between releases?

Because if the only thing you're doing is repeatedly telling people to stream your latest single, you're missing an opportunity.

This is where video comes in

And no, I'm not about to tell you that every musician needs to spend thousands of pounds making a music video.

Although I do happen to know a bloke who makes them .

The point is that music isn't the only interesting thing about a musician.

There's the story behind a song.

The personality behind the performance.

The things that inspire you, frustrate you, make you laugh or make you different from every other artist fighting for attention.

Video is a brilliant way to share those things.

A live performance can demonstrate what you're capable of.

A music video can bring a song to life.

A behind-the-scenes clip can show people how something was made.

A simple conversation to camera can help somebody feel as though they're getting to know you.

And none of those things needs to involve a huge production.

What matters is giving people more reasons to connect with you.

I've written more about this in Why Musicians Need to Be More Than Their Music , particularly why showing different sides of yourself can be just as important as showing people what you sound like.

Because somebody who likes your music might listen once.

Somebody who likes your music and feels connected to you is much more likely to stick around.

Build an audience you can actually reach

There's another problem with relying entirely on streaming platforms.

You don't control how you reach the people listening to your music.

Spotify might recommend your latest release to someone, but you can't simply send every listener a personal invitation to your next gig.

The same problem exists with social media.

You can build a sizeable following and still find that only a fraction of those people see what you post.

That's why I'm a big believer in encouraging musicians to build direct relationships with their audiences.

A mailing list is an obvious example.

It might not sound particularly glamorous compared with a million Spotify streams, but having a few hundred people who've actively asked to hear from you can be enormously valuable.

You can tell them about a new release, offer early access to tickets or share something they won't find anywhere else.

And, crucially, you're not entirely dependent on an algorithm deciding whether they should see it.

Of course, you still have to give them something worth opening.

Nobody wants another email that simply says, "STREAM MY NEW SINGLE" in increasingly large capital letters.

So should you stop worrying about Spotify?

Not entirely.

I'd still encourage musicians to release their music on streaming platforms, pitch to relevant playlists and make it as easy as possible for people to discover their songs.

But I wouldn't judge the success of an entire music career by a streaming dashboard.

I'd be asking different questions.

Are more people coming to your gigs?

Are they returning for the next release?

Are they signing up to hear from you?

Are they buying your music or merchandise?

Are they telling other people about you?

And, perhaps most importantly, are you building something that can continue growing even when you're not releasing a new song?

Because that's where the real opportunity lies.

Streams are lovely. Fans are better.

I don't think Spotify is the enemy.

It's an extraordinary platform that has changed how the world listens to music, and it can help independent artists reach people they might never have reached otherwise.

But I do think musicians can become far too obsessed with the numbers.

A thousand streams might look impressive on a dashboard.

But a hundred people who genuinely care about your music, turn up to your shows and look forward to your next release?

That's something worth building on.

So by all means, keep putting your music on Spotify.

Just remember that getting somebody to press play is only the beginning.

The real challenge is giving them a reason to come back.

How I Made This Video: Nate James - 1Kind

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 09:52:32 GMT

Producing music videos during the Covid pandemic was a bit like cooking with half the ingredients missing—you had to get creative, or go hungry.

I ended up making three music videos during the Covid pandemic and with each attempt the projects got braver, stranger, and more ambitious.

This one might just be my favourite. Not just because of the finished video, but because of the problems I had to solve to make it.

The Problem

2021. Remember it? Bad haircuts, scheduled outside time and, if you worked in video production, an endless headache.

At the time, I was in Essex while my client, soul singer Nate James , was over 300 miles away in Stirling, Scotland.

Not exactly a quick hop on the train.

Not that we could hop anywhere - except maybe in our own gardens.

Filming him in person for 1Kind was just not possible. But here's the thing: I really wanted Nate on camera for this because the song is so personal.

Nate is many things ( MOBO-nominated artist , soulful powerhouse, all-round lovely bloke) but he's no filmmaker. So If I wanted him on camera I had to get creative.

The song

Nate’s song 1Kind is brimming with lyrical imagery—it’s his very own What’s Going On moment.

The track digs into humanity’s biggest flaw: we just don’t seem to get along. Wars of opinion, battles over ethnicity, clashes about sexuality. But as Nate so eloquently puts it: underneath it all, we’re the same.

We are, quite literally, one kind.

Although written years earlier, the release landed perfectly in 2021—right in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests and the global outrage following the murder of George Floyd.

Suddenly, the song felt particularly relevant.

That gave me a lot of emotional material to work with. Dark, thought-provoking visuals were a given.

But I still needed Nate’s face in the frame to make this work and he was 300 miles away.

That's where things got interesting.

The inspiration

Two of my all-time favourite music videos became my guide:

Godley & Creme - Cry

By 1985 when this song came out, Kevin Godley and Lol Creme were already successful musicians (they were half of 10cc in the seventies). But they were also award winning video directors.

Their treatment of their own song Cry has always been a favourite. A simple close-up performance using multiple faces morphing seamlessly into one another. Remember, this was pre-digital. It was all made and edited using real film and they still nailed it.

Later, Michael Jackson and John Landis did something very similar with Michael's 'Black Or White' video but with some help from the latest CGI technology.

Sinéad O’Connor - Nothing Compares 2 U

The beautiful song is Sinéad's 1990 cover of a Prince original and a rare moment where the cover is way better than the original (although Prince nailed it too).

The video was directed by John Maybury and is pretty similar to the Godley and Creme video in that it was just a simple close image of Sinéad performing to camera cut with a few (in my opinion) shots of her walking through the Parc de Saint-Cloud in Paris.

The video closes with a beautiful and equally devastating moment where Sinéad cries on camera. The emotion was genuine, connected to thoughts of her mother, who had died in a car accident in 1985.

I wanted to fuse all of these influences into Nate’s video—keeping the raw emotion front and centre while using face-morphing to amplify the message.

The DIY technique

So, how do I film a professional-looking music video featuring an emotive, well lit performance against a black background from 300 miles away.

A smartphone, a bed, and a very patient partner.

Here’s the hack:

I asked Nate to lay on his bed against a black sheet wearing a black top.
His partner, Gerad, held the phone directly above him.
The secret sauce? Don’t move the camera. At all. Not even a sneeze.

It took a few tries (the lighting nearly drove us mad—daylight and domestic lamps aren’t exactly cinematic), but we managed to get the raw performance footage I needed.

And this is probably the bit I like most about the whole thing.

I didn't have a studio.

I didn't have a crew.

I didn't even have the artist in the same country, let alone the same room.

We had a phone, a black sheet and a very specific idea of what I wanted the footage to look like.

Sometimes that's enough to get you started.

The edit

In post-production, I mixed Nate’s footage with carefully chosen stock video that reflected the song’s themes. During the chorus, I layered in those face-morphing effects pioneered by Godley & Creme.

And that opening in black and white?

It was also a sneaky way to hide some of the less-than-perfect lighting we had from Nate's footage.

Sometimes necessity is the mother of... clever fixes.

The result

What we ended up with was a music video that looked intentional, emotional, and powerful—despite the constraints of filming during lockdown.

Nate’s performance, combined with the morphing effects, brought the song’s central message to life.

Plus it was a great way for me to honour two music videos that remain amongst the greatest ever made. It proved something I come back to again and again: you don't necessarily need a huge budget or a pile of fancy equipment to make something memorable.

You need an idea.

Then you need to work out how the hell you're going to make it happen.

Sometimes that takes money. Sometimes it takes very little.

Often, it takes a bit of problem-solving.

And occasionally it takes a bloke lying on a bed in Scotland while someone holds a phone over him.

This was certainly a challenge. And I loved it.

HOW I MADE THIS VIDEO

I've made quite a few music videos over the years, and they all have a story behind them.

Some involved big ideas. Some involved tiny budgets. Some involved technology. Some involved making things up as I went along.

How I Made This Video is where I pull apart some of those projects and show you what actually went into making them.

More from the series:

Every music video has a story.

Some involve big ideas. Others involve tiny budgets, happy accidents or problems nobody saw coming. Here are a few more stories from behind the camera.

Nate James – Chasin' The Sun

How I turned a freezing Scottish beach into Ibiza, directing the whole thing from 300 miles away.

EM Kane – Wasted Time

Three scenes, three shots and a freezing barn. How simplicity became the video's greatest strength.

Anthony Hughes – Body Sayin'

A nightclub, a cast of dancers and the decision to throw away an entire opening sequence.

Before You Make a Video, Know Who You're Talking To

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 11:06:37 GMT

You've got a new song.

You've got a video idea.

You've got your phone, your camera, your mate who reckons they're pretty good at filming stuff...

You're ready to go.

Except there's one thing you should work out before you hit record.

Who is this actually for?

Not “everyone”. Please don't say everyone.

I know your mum likes it. Your mate Dave likes it. The woman who lives three doors down thinks you've got a lovely voice. That's lovely. But if you want strangers to discover you, you've got to think a little harder.

It's not about you... well, it is, but it isn't

This sounds slightly contradictory because, obviously, your music is about you.

Your songs are your stories, your experiences, your ideas. But marketing them isn't. Marketing is about the person on the other side of the screen. What will make them stop? What will make them think: “Hang on... what's this?”

And what will make them care enough to stick around?

That's the bit you need to understand. You're not trying to reach everyone

One of the biggest mistakes I see musicians make is trying to make content that appeals to absolutely everybody.

It doesn't work.

Imagine you're playing a gig and someone tells you: “Tonight you're performing to anyone who happens to be within a 50-mile radius.” Helpful.

Are they 18 or 80?
Do they like soul, metal, indie, country or electronic music?
Have they got kids?
Do they go to gigs?
Do they discover music through friends, radio, TikTok, YouTube or carrier pigeon?

You'd have absolutely no idea what to say.

And that's exactly what happens when you try to make content for “everyone”.

So who actually is your audience?

Start with the people who already like what you do.

If you've got an existing audience, look at them.

What other artists do they listen to?
What gigs do they go to?
What else do they talk about?
What sort of content do they respond to?
What do they have in common?

You might discover that the people who really love your music aren't necessarily the people you originally imagined.

That's useful information.

And if you're starting from scratch, look at the artists you sound like. Not because you want to copy them. Because their audience might give you some clues about who is likely to connect with your music.

Now think about the video

This is where it gets interesting.

Let's say you've written a song about losing someone. You could make a video of yourself standing in front of the camera saying: “Here's my new single. Out Friday. Link in bio.” Or you could tell the story behind the song .

Maybe it was written after a relationship ended.
Maybe it was about losing someone close to you.
Maybe there's one particular lyric that took you six months to get right.

Suddenly you've given me a reason to care. And that's the difference.

You're not just promoting the song. You're giving me a way into it. Think about the person scrolling

Here's a useful exercise.

Before you make a video, imagine the person you're trying to reach is sitting on the other side of the screen.

They're not waiting for your video. They're not sitting there thinking: “I wonder what that lovely musician I don't know yet is posting today?”

They're scrolling.
They're looking at football.
They're watching somebody restore a rusty old toaster.
They're watching a dog fall off a sofa.
They're doing literally anything except waiting for you.

You've got about three seconds to give them a reason to stop.

So ask yourself: Why would they care?

Not:

“What do I want to say?”

That's an important distinction. Your audience isn't just a demographic. This is where marketing can get a bit dull.

“Female, 35-54, lives in the UK, household income £45,000.” Fine. That's useful data.

But it doesn't tell you much about why somebody might become a fan.

I'd rather know:

What makes them tick?
What music do they love?
What do they care about?
What makes them laugh?
What annoys them?
What sort of stories do they connect with?
What sort of gigs do they go to?
What makes them feel something?

Because those things give you ideas. And ideas are what you're going to need.

Make content for the person, not the platform

This is another trap.

People spend an enormous amount of time asking: “What does Instagram want me to post?”

I'd start somewhere else. Ask: “What does the person I want to reach want to see?” Then worry about the platform.

Because platforms change. Algorithms change. Formats change.

Apparently we're all going to be making videos in vertical hologram format from our kitchen cupboards next year.

Who knows? But people don't change quite so quickly.

They still want to be entertained.

They still want to discover things.

They still want to feel something.

And they still want to connect with other people.

Here's the really useful bit

Once you understand your audience, making content becomes much easier.

Instead of sitting down and thinking: “Right... what the hell am I going to post today?” you've got somewhere to start.

If your audience loves the stories behind songs, make more of those. If they love seeing you perform, give them performances. If they respond to your sense of humour, let them see it. If they love the process of making music, take them into the studio. If they're fascinated by your live shows, show them what happens before, during and after the gig.

You're not creating content because somebody told you that you need to post three times a week.

You're creating things your particular audience actually wants to see.

That's a much better place to start.

One final thought

You don't need to know exactly who every single person in your audience is.

You're not building a dossier on them. You just need to understand enough about the people you want to reach that you're no longer shouting into a crowd and hoping somebody turns around.

Think about one person.

What do they like?
What do they care about?
What would make them stop?
What would make them stay?

And most importantly...

What would make them want to know more about you?

Because that's what you're really trying to achieve. Not another view. Not another follower.

A person who stops scrolling, discovers your music and thinks, “I like this. I want to hear more.”

That's where a follower can start becoming a fan.

And that's a much more interesting target than “everyone”.

Are Music Videos Dead in 2026?

Wed, 16 Sep 2026 11:03:31 GMT

A musician messaged me recently and said I was wasting my time making music videos.

Apparently her manager told her not to bother because “no one watches them anymore.” Which is always a fun thing to hear when a big part of your job is… making music videos.

Now, before you think I told her the manager was clueless, I didn’t. Because here’s the thing.

He’s kind of right. And also completely wrong.

Why He’s Not Entirely Wrong

The music video we grew up with? The one that lived on MTV, played in full, and made artists feel larger than life, that version has definitely taken a hit.

Back in the day:

You’d hear a song on the radio
You’d watch the full video on TV
You’d go out and buy it

Nice and simple.

Now?

You hear 15 seconds of a track while scrolling. You see a clip before you even know the artist’s name. And if it doesn’t grab you instantly… you’re gone. No second chances. No build-up. No patience. That’s the bit a lot of people are struggling to accept.

But Here’s Where He’s Completely Wrong

Music videos haven’t died. They’ve just… moved house.

They’re no longer the main event. They’re the starting point.

How Music Discovery Actually Works Now

In 2026, the journey looks more like this:

You’re scrolling through TikTok, Instagram or YouTube Shorts
��
You hear a hook, see something interesting
��
You stop (this is the important bit)
��
You go and find the full track on Spotify or YouTube.

That middle step, stopping the scroll, is everything. And that’s where video still does its job better than anything else.

The Real Problem With Most Music Videos

Most artists are still making music videos like it’s 2005.

They spend thousands on a polished, four-minute piece. Upload it to YouTube, share it once on social and then wonder why nothing happens.

It’s not because the video is bad. It’s because it’s been built for the wrong job.

What Needs to Change?

This isn’t about ditching music videos. It’s about using them properly.

1. Your Video Isn’t the Product Anymore

It’s the source. When I film a music video now, I’m not just thinking about the final cut.

I’m thinking:

What moments will make people stop scrolling?
Where’s the hook visually?
How many short clips can we pull from this?

Because that one video should give you weeks of content , not one post and a hope.

2. You’re Not Competing With Music… You’re Competing With Everything

Your video isn’t just up against other musicians.

It’s up against:

Comedy clips
Football highlights
Someone making a sandwich in a weird way

So the question becomes:

�� Why should anyone stop for you?

That answer has to come through visually first. Not musically. That’s the uncomfortable bit.

3. Most People Won’t Even Hear Your Song (At First)

People consume an enormous amount of content while scrolling, often in situations where sound isn't the first thing demanding their attention. So if your video only works when someone hears the song, you're relying on them stopping for a reason they haven't been given yet.

That’s why text, visuals, and context matter so much now. You’re not just showing a song. You’re giving someone a reason to care about it.

4. One Video, Multiple Formats

The full-length video still matters. It still has a place on YouTube, your website, and for your core fans. But it’s no longer enough on its own.

You need:

Short vertical clips for social
Hook-driven edits
Content that works in silence
Content that makes people curious

Think of it like this: Your full video is the film. Your short clips are the trailers.

And right now, trailers are doing all the heavy lifting.

So… Are Music Videos Dead?

No but the have changed jobs.

They’re not necessarily about getting millions of people to sit down and watch four minutes of your video.

They’re about giving people a reason to discover you, stop scrolling, watch something, hear the song and then want to know more.

The Bit Most Artists Miss

The point isn't necessarily to make a bigger, more expensive or more impressive music video.

It’s to make one that actually has a job beyond sitting on YouTube looking pretty.

It needs to give you something to release.

Something to share.
Something to cut up.
Something to talk about.

Something that keeps working after the first post has disappeared into the Instagram swamp.

Final Thought

If you’re putting time, money and energy into a music video make sure it’s actually working for you. Not just sitting there looking nice.

Because if you're going to spend the money making the thing, you might as well make the thing earn its keep.

Want Help Making This Work?

If you’re releasing music and it’s not getting the attention it deserves, it’s usually not the music.

It’s how it’s being presented.

Take a look at how streaming and promotion fit together here: �� https://www.monokimedia.co.uk/spotify

Or get in touch and we’ll figure out how to turn your content into something that actually builds an audience.

Why Musicians Should Stop Freaking Out About AI (Yes, Really)

Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:17:29 GMT

Let's face the elephant in the room

If you’re a musician thinking, “AI is going to make me irrelevant”, pull up a chair.

I'm about to drop a few truth bombs - in fact a lot of truth bombs!

We've been here before ... lots of times

You’re not the first generation of musician to get sweaty palms about new tech.

Every time a new bit of technology has turned up in music, someone has looked at it and thought: “Well, that's probably the end of us.”

Recorded music changed the relationship between musicians and audiences. Radio changed it again. Tape changed how we recorded and shared music.

And then came the bit where you could record your mate's album onto a cassette (you know, that album we didn't want recorded a few decades back and didn't want on the radio) (just saying). Youy could record your own copy for the cost of a C-90 (look it up) and you don't need to buy your own!

We're doomed!

We weren't doomed.

Then there were all the innovations when it came to making the music!

Roger Linn's electronic drum kit made every drummer fear for their future. The first workable sampler, the Fairlight (well, it didn't always work) (and it did cost as much as a house) meant you could get a convincing orchestra without hiring ... a convincing orchestra!

And here's the important bit.

The technology didn't make musicians disappear. It changed what musicians could do.

When Sampling Was Witchcraft

The Fairlight CMI (Computer Musical Instrument), created by Peter Vogel and Kim Ryrie, was an absolute game-changer.

It was one of the first commercially available samplers and sequencers, which meant you could literally record a sound — like a cash register or a piano — and play it back across different pitches. ( Wikipedia)

This wasn’t gear just for geeks — big-name artists like Kate Bush, Peter Gabriel, and Trevor Horn used it to build iconic, futuristic soundscapes. Those breaking glass effects at the end of Kate Bush's Babooshka: Fairlight. Those orchestral stabs, drum fills and much much more on Owner Of A Lonely Heart by Yes (produced by Trevor Horn): Fairlight.

The Fairlight helped shape modern music production. If you want to really nerd out: the National Science and Media Museum has a really cool playlist and breakdown of how the Fairlight shaped so many genres. National Science and Media Museum blog

Drum Machines: Robots on drums!

Let’s talk Linn for a second. The LM-1 drum machine, made by Roger Linn, was one of the first to use actual drum samples, not synthesized ones. reverb.com

Musicians were understandably nervous, drummers were crapping themselves. What if real drummers are obsolete? — but in reality, it became another tool. A powerful one, but not a replacement for real talent.

But for a time in the early 80's that Linn Drum sound was everywhere. Human League's massive Dare album - all Linn Drum. Even early goth shoe gazers Cocteau Twins were using it!

That Linn sound went on to influence chart-topping music. It wasn’t a cheap gimmick — it shaped pop, electronic, and hip-hop in ways people are still copying today.

But, crucially, drummers are still doing okay. After a while (in fact it was only a few years) we started longing for real drummers again. Hell, one of the biggest musicians in the 80's was Phil Collins , a drummer (and he used a Linn Drum on In The Air Tonight).

AI = Just the Next Tool

Here's where I think we need to separate the scary stuff from the useful stuff.

AI is massive , and yes, a little scary.

We're past the shiny new toy stage now. AI is becoming part of the way music gets made, marketed and consumed.

That's why every idiot with less musical talent than my cat is dropping prompts and drowning streaming services in sub-standard muzak. Because they can.

Eventually? It’s going to be just another tool, another way for you — the musician — to make stuff that sounds good, looks good, and reaches people. Think: more creative freedom, not less.

At the end of the day, the quality of the output is always dependent on the quality of the input.

Want AI to help generate melodies? Cool.
Want it to clean up vocal takes? Go for it.
Want it to write a “fake” piano line so you can spend more time on the hook? That’s valid.

None of that invalidates your skill. If anything, it amplifies the kinds of things you can do.

Embrace and Use It — Or Get Left Behind

Here’s the blunt truth: AI isn’t going anywhere. It’s not a fad — it’s part of the ecosystem now, like tape, samplers, drum machines. So you’ve got two choices:

Hunker down and resist.
— You’ll spend a lot of time worrying, but you’ll also risk being outpaced.
Embrace it, learn it, and use it.
— Use it as a creative partner . Use it to make better demos, better marketing content, better songs.

I’m firmly in camp #2. Because I want you to be empowered , not anxious.

And honestly? I think the musicians who understand the technology and decide how they want to use it will be in a much better position to take advantage of what it can do.

Note I said musicians there and not any idiot who can type.

Bottom line: Yes, AI is big. Yes, it’s going to change stuff. But it’s not your enemy — unless you refuse to learn how to use it. And if you’re ready to lean in, I’ve got your back.

Hell I'm using it. AI helps me to edit my videos, add captions. I even used it to help me write this blog!

And that's probably the most important point. I'm not telling you to use AI while standing on the sidelines waving a little flag. I'm using the bloody thing myself.

If you liked this, drop me a comment or share it with a musician mate who’s freaking out about AI.

How to turn followers into fans

Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:55:18 GMT

It doesn't matter what kind of business you run. If you're using social media to promote what you do, you could be missing something important.

Turning followers into fans.

Independent musicians, in particular, can be guilty of this.

You post the song.
You post the video.
You post yourself performing it.

And then... nothing.

There's nothing wrong with posting performance videos. They're an important part of showing people what you do.

But if every post is you performing at people, eventually you're just broadcasting.

If you want followers to become fans, you need to give them a reason to get involved.

Not just watch you.

Here are three simple ways to get your followers talking, rather than just scrolling past.

Show off your songwriting chops

If you're a songwriter, why not ask your followers to suggest inspiration for your next composition?

You could invite them to come up with:

A title for you to work from
A subject for your next song
Key words or phrases you could include

Now you've got a conversation.

But you've also created something else that's really useful. A reason for people to come back.

Let's say someone suggests the title for your next song. You could then post an update showing how you're getting on. Maybe you've written the chorus. Maybe you've changed the subject completely. Maybe their brilliant idea turned into something absolutely terrible. It happens.

Keep them involved. You could even invite them to a concert or live stream where you perform the finished song for the first time. Suddenly they're not just watching you make music. They're involved in it.

And that's a very different relationship.

Musical knockout

Ask your followers to suggest a song for you to cover.

You could just pick your favourite and leave it there. Or you could make it more fun.

Put two songs up against each other and ask your followers to vote.

Then promise to post a video of yourself performing the winning song at the end of the week.

Maybe even do it live. Then take the winner and put it up against another song.

Round two. Then round three.

Before you know it, you've created your own little musical knockout tournament.

The important bit isn't really the voting.

It's the reason to come back. Someone has picked a song. They now want to know whether their song won. So they come back to find out.

I actually use a similar idea for a radio station I manage. They put two songs, artists or albums head-to-head and ask people to choose their favourite. Then they have a reason to tune in at a particular time to find out which one won.

That's the trick.

Don't just give people something to watch. Give them something to look forward to.

Collaborate

I have to give full credit here to my Instagram friend Semaj Dee who does this regularly.

Gary Barlow also made plenty of collaborative content during the Covid-19 lockdowns, giving people another reason to come back and see who he'd be working with next.

The principle is simple.

Ask another musician to duet, collaborate or play with you on a video. It doesn't have to be complicated. A cover version will do.

For starters, you're meeting new musicians.

But more importantly, their followers get introduced to you and your followers get introduced to them.

That's potentially two audiences discovering something they didn't know existed.

Instagram's Collab feature makes this even easier. You can invite another account to co-author a post or Reel, meaning the content can appear to both audiences if they accept. And suddenly your content isn't only being shown to the people who already know you.

Stop chasing followers. Start building fans.

Here's the bit I really want you to remember.

A follower is just a number until there's a relationship behind it.

If you want those followers to start buying your music, coming to your shows or telling their mates about you, you need to give them a reason to care. And that starts with talking to them.

Ask their opinion.
Let them influence something.
Give them a reason to come back.
Show them what's happening behind the music.
Let them feel like they're part of the journey.

Because when somebody has helped choose a song, suggested a title or watched something develop, they're no longer just watching a random musician on the internet.

They know a little bit about you.

And that's where a follower can start becoming a fan.

I love helping independent musicians turn attention into actual fans.

If you'd like some help figuring out what to post, how to use video or how to build a marketing plan around your next release, come and have a chat.

Your Social Media Strategy Starts With One Word: Why

Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:46:47 GMT

Ask Yourself This One Question Today ��

Why are you doing this?

No seriously.

Why are you posting stuff on social?

Because the answer to that will tell you exactly how to create your marketing strategy. It’s that simple.

If you don't know why you're posting, you're basically throwing stuff at the internet and hoping something sticks.

Let’s Get Real for a Second

If your goal is simply to get as many followers as possible, so you can bask in those juicy big numbers that make you feel like an influencer, then honestly — post whatever you want.

Cat videos? ✅
Trending sounds? ✅
A CapCut masterpiece of you leaping over a building or diving into a wine glass? ✅✅✅

Go wild. Chase the dopamine hits.

But if your why is to build a career in music , then sorry — that stuff can quickly become noise.

Because the people who become genuine fans don't necessarily care how good you are at CapCut. They care about your music, your story, what you stand for and whether they feel something when they find you.

That’s the start of every great marketing strategy:

�� Figure out why you’re doing it.
�� Then figure out who it’s for.
�� Then figure out what you want them to do next.

Simple. Not easy — but simple.

Why This Matters More Than You Think

Posting on social is marketing — whether you mean it to be or not. Any successful campaign starts with clarity.

Why you’re doing it (to be discovered, build an audience, sell tickets, promote a release)
Who you’re talking to (and no, “everyone” doesn’t count)
What you’re offering (and why they should care)

Once you know those, the rest — your content ideas, your tone, your posting schedule — becomes a whole lot easier to work out.

Example Time

Let’s say you’re a musician (which, let’s be honest, most of my followers are). Your marketing strategy shouldn’t be “post random stuff until something goes viral.”

It should be about persuading your audience that your music is exactly what’s missing from their life.

Share your songwriting process.
Show what your gigs feel like.
Talk about the stories behind your songs.

Then point them toward the thing that helps them get more of it — your vinyl, your tickets, your merch.

Because your goal isn't likes for the sake of likes.

It's people who actually care about your music.

Some of those people might buy your vinyl. Some might come to your gigs. Some might join your mailing list. Some might simply listen to every new song you release.

That's what you're trying to build: not just followers, but people who give a damn.

Why Am I Talking About This?

Someone on TikTok called me out the other day. They asked: “How can you be an expert in social media marketing with such a small following?”

Fair question.

Here’s the answer:

I don't need a shitload of followers. My business doesn't depend on having 100,000 people watching what I do. It depends on finding the right people.

That keeps my diary full — and my sanity intact.

Now, if you're a musician, your maths looks a bit different. A £20 gig ticket or a £30 vinyl means you probably need more people than I do. But you still need the right people.

People who actually want to hear what you've got to say.

The Takeaway ��

The next time you’re planning your content, start with this one question:

Why am I doing this?

Because once you know that, you’ll know everything else:

Who you’re talking to
What to post
And when to stop wasting time on cat videos (sorry, Mittens ��)

If you’re ready to build a strategy that actually gets results — not just likes — let’s chat.

�� Get in touch or drop a comment below and tell me your why.

Is the music industry broken?

Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:45:22 GMT

I’ve worked in the music industry on and off since I was 16 (which was over 40 years ago). In that time, I’ve seen some massive changes.

Formats have come and gone (and come back). Entire genres have been invented. But now, for the first time, it feels like something has properly broken.

So… where did the wheels actually fall off?

Where did the wheels fall off?

In 1989 Karlheinz Brandenburg , a postgraduate student at the University of Erlangen in southern Germany was part of a team that developed the MP3 audio format.

MP3 compression made digital audio dramatically easier to store and share. It was one of the technological building blocks of the digital music revolution that followed.

We all know what happened next.

Music became files. Files became shareable.

First illegally via platforms like Napster , then “legitimately” via streaming platforms like Spotify and iTunes.

(Although depending on who you ask, there’s still a faint whiff of robbery in the room.)

Now streaming is the dominant format. And streaming isn't just dominant. It's now the engine of the recorded music business. In 2025, streaming accounted for 69.6% of global recorded music revenue, while physical music actually grew by 8%. So physical isn't dead. Far from it. But streaming has fundamentally changed how music is discovered, consumed and monetised.

This, combined with other technological advances has created something close to a perfect storm for musicians.

Because here’s the part that sounds like progress… but isn’t entirely: Releasing music is now easy.

Anyone can write, record, and publish a track from their bedroom. What used to take months and serious money can now be done in a few hours for free.

Which sounds brilliant.

Until you realise what happens when everyone can do it.

Here's the problem

What happened next was we didn’t just democratise music creation. We flooded the system. Spotify itself says more than 100,000 new songs are released every day. That's not just competition. That's an extraordinary amount of noise for any artist trying to get noticed.

So now, it doesn’t matter how good the music is. An artist isn't just competing with other artists. They're competing for attention against an enormous catalogue of music, an endless stream of content and algorithms trying to predict what each listener wants next.

And that's the bit I think we've got wrong.

We've made making and releasing music easier. We haven't made getting people to care about it easier.

With the ability to self-release, musicians no longer need to rely on a record label for their music to reach an audnence. Back in the days of physical sales, there were countless record labels. Big ones, small ones, weird ones.

Now there are three:

Sony Music Entertainment,
Universal Music Group,
Warner Music Group.

The major labels still have enormous influence, but the modern music market is more complicated than simply "three companies own everything".

Major-label market share also varies depending on whether you're measuring recorded-music revenue, streams, distribution or another part of the business.

The bigger change, for an independent artist, is this: you can now get your music out without anyone's permission.

The problem is getting anyone to notice that you've done it.

Let's talk about the money

Brace yourself. This is where it gets really 'icky'!

The first thing to understand is that there isn't actually a fixed "Spotify pays X per stream" rate. Spotify says royalties are calculated using streamshare, and the money flows to rights holders before it reaches artists and songwriters according to their individual agreements.

Which makes the economics rather less tidy than the internet's favourite "$0.00-whatever per stream" calculation suggests.

There is another wrinkle. Since April 2024, a recording needs at least 1,000 streams in the previous 12 months, along with a minimum number of unique listeners, to qualify for Spotify's recorded-music royalty pool. Spotify doesn't publish the unique-listener threshold.

So yes… technically you can earn money from your music. In the same way you can technically fill a swimming pool with a teaspoon.

But can't musicians earn money in other ways?

Well, yeah - good point but in reality, that's a bit of a patchwork quilt held together with hope.

Merchandise

T-shirts, vinyl, tote bags, the occasional questionable hoodie. It can work, but only if you already have an audience that cares enough to buy that stuff.

No audience, no sales. And even when it does work, margins aren’t exactly life-changing unless you’re shifting serious volume.

Performing live

Traditionally the safety net. The place where artists could actually earn something resembling real money.

Except the grassroots live sector has been under enormous financial pressure.

Grassroots spaces, the kind that build careers from the ground up, face rising costs and other pressures, and the issue has become a serious concern for the people trying to build careers at that level.

Which leaves most artists in a slightly surreal position:

They’re not full-time musicians.

They’re full-time people with jobs… who also make music.

The reality for a huge number of independent artists is that music isn’t their income stream, it’s their second shift. Evenings, weekends, spare hours stitched together between everything else.

Passion-funded rather than profit-driven.

And then there’s this

If you are one of the few who gets signed, you might find yourself in what’s known as a 360 deal.

The label doesn’t just take a cut of your recorded music, they take a slice of everything. Touring, merch, brand deals, the lot.

From the label’s perspective, it makes sense. If they’re investing in building you, they want a return across the board and frankly just relying on making money from the recorded bit just isn't enough anymore.

From the artist’s perspective… it’s a bit like finally getting a seat at the table and realising you’ve brought the food, cooked the meal, and still owe rent on the chair.

So yes, there are other revenue streams.

But most of them either rely on having an audience you don’t yet have… or sharing the income once you finally do.

The death of innovation

There is incredible music being made right now. I hear it all the time. Even in my 50's I still get that buzz when something genuinely new hits my ears.

But here’s the uncomfortable question

When was the last time a genuinely new musical movement completely changed the mainstream?

Hip hop? That’s over 40 years ago.

And yes, there are plenty of counterexamples. But it can feel as though mainstream success increasingly rewards what is already recognisable.

Take Ed Sheeran. Hugely successful. Clearly knows what he’s doing. His music sits comfortably within traditions that would be recognisable to someone 50 years ago.

How many big artists can you name that are pretty much doing what Ed does? It works. That’s the point.

That doesn't mean there isn't innovation. It means the most interesting innovation isn't necessarily happening where the biggest audiences are.

The big three labels who own the lion's share of the market are just playing safe and selling what sells.

Meanwhile, the real risk-taking is happening elsewhere.

Independent artists, with less to lose, are experimenting more, pushing harder, making genuinely interesting work. I’ve heard it firsthand.

Through projects like The Jam , the live music project I run, I’ve filmed over 90 independent artists in the last year alone. Every year I produce a music video for one of them for free ( see one here ).

And this is the bit that keeps coming back to me.

There is no shortage of talent. There is no shortage of ideas. There is no shortage of brilliant music. What there is a shortage of is attention.

This is where things are actually evolving. The concern is… it’s happening way too quietly.

My worry is that the real innovators don't disappear because they lack talent, but because they lack visibility ... and eventually money.

What about artificial intelligence?

Oh yeah! Just as things weren’t complicated enough, along comes AI.

We’re now at a point where music can be generated, styled, and even performed without the artist ever stepping into a studio. Which means talented musicians aren’t just competing with other musicians anymore… they’re competing with an explosion of AI-generated content as well.

And in some cases, they’re competing with versions of themselves too!

AI models are already being trained on existing artists, cloning voices, styles, even entire sonic identities.

The legal and creative arguments around training data, imitation and consent are still evolving, so I'm not going to pretend we've got all the answers yet.

To be clear, this isn’t all bad. There’s potential here. Tools like this could open up new creative directions and lower barriers even further. But it does add another layer to an already crowded space.

I’ve gone deeper into this in another post (worth a read if you want the full rabbit hole), but for now it’s enough to say: The game didn’t just change. It’s still changing.

What's the solution?

In theory it's easy but in practice much harder. Independent artists have to do everything that a record label would have previously done for them. They have to operate like a small business.

So they have to step up and learn all the things they didn't need to know 20 years ago.

Marketing

Content

Audience building

Distribution

Management

Finance

Not just creating music.

Because in a world driven by algorithms, visibility isn't a byproduct anymore.

You can argue that the industry itself needs to take more risks. But independent artists can't sit around waiting for someone else to fix the system.

There is a future for new music but it's a very different one to the world we were living in when I had a wall of CDs in my living room.

Is there a future for new music?

It certainly doesn't look like the music industry I grew up with.

If you're a music lover

Start digging. Don't rely on Spotify's algorithm to serve up music for you There are more ways to discover music than simply waiting for an algorithm to hand it to you.

Get out there and start looking for new music. Visit small venues and support unsigned artists. Follow them on social media and encourage them. Pay them for their talent and start supporting them.

If you're a musician

The job has changed whether you like it or not. Making great music is still the foundation, but it’s no longer enough on its own. You have to think like a creator and a distributor.

And you have to think about the bit that comes between "I've released my song" and "people care about my song."

That means understanding how attention works, building an audience, showing up consistently, and giving people a reason to care before you ask them to listen.

Because followers aren't automatically fans. Views aren't automatically fans. Streams aren't automatically fans.

The real goal is to turn attention into people who actually give a shit about what you do.

It’s not about selling out, it’s about not being invisible.

There is still an incredible amount of brilliant music being made.

The problem isn't finding music. The problem is making sure the right people find yours.

And that, more than anything, is what I think is broken.

Why Musicians Need to Be More Than Musicians

Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:33:18 GMT

Why Musicians Need to Be More Than Their Music

You're a musician. You write songs. You record songs. You play songs. And if you're really lucky, people actually listen to them.

Brilliant.

So why on earth should you have to do anything else?

Well... because these days, being a musician isn't just about making music. It's about giving people a reason to care about the person making it. And that means you might have to do something terrifying.

You might have to... talk.

Don't panic. Put the kettle on.

Be more interesting

This is the bit I think a lot of musicians get wrong.

They quite rightly think their music should be the thing people care about. Of course it should.

But imagine you've just discovered an artist you've never heard before.

They've got a brilliant new single.
You watch the music video.
Then you see another clip.
They're performing the song again.
Then another.
They're performing a different song.
Then another.
They're... performing.

At some point you might quite reasonably think:

“Yes, I know you can sing.”

The problem isn't the music. The problem is that you're only showing people one side of yourself.

And people don't just become fans of songs. They become fans of artists.

Sing for your supper... but don't stop there

Performance video is obviously important.

If you're a musician, people need to hear you play. A great live performance can be incredibly powerful. A stripped-back acoustic version can stop someone scrolling. A proper music video can create a whole visual world around a song.

But those videos are mostly showing me what you do .

What about who you are?

That's where the other stuff comes in. Here are some examples.

Talking head

Yes, I know. You've just read those two words and thought: “Absolutely not.”

You don't have to become a motivational speaker in front of a ring light. Talking to camera can simply mean telling people something interesting.

Why did you write the song?
What happened when you were recording it?
What does that lyric actually mean?
What's the weirdest thing you've ever seen at one of your gigs?
Which song do you wish you'd written?
What's the piece of equipment you couldn't live without?

Or just:

“This is what I'm doing today.”

It doesn't have to be polished. It just needs to give somebody a little more of you .

Because the person watching doesn't know you yet.

You're trying to change that.

Behind the scenes

This is one of my favourites. Because people love seeing how things happen.

Show me the recording session.
Show me the rehearsal.
Show me the studio.
Show me the ridiculous pile of cables you've somehow accumulated.
Show me the moment you finally nail that vocal.
Show me the bit where everything goes horribly wrong.

Actually, definitely show me that bit.

Nobody expects musicians to be perfect. And watching something being made can make people feel like they're part of the journey. That's powerful.

You're not just saying:

“Here's my new song.”

You're saying:

“Come and see what I've been doing.”

That's a very different relationship.

Actuality

This is where video gets really interesting. And it's something I use a lot in filmmaking.

You don't always need somebody sitting down and explaining themselves directly to camera.

Sometimes you just need to let the camera watch .

Walking into the studio.
Chatting to the band.
Getting ready for a gig.
Soundcheck.
The five minutes before you go on stage.
A conversation with your producer.
A laugh between takes.
Something going wrong.
Something unexpectedly brilliant happening.

That's actuality.

And it can tell you an enormous amount about someone without them ever saying:

“Hello, I'm going to tell you about my personality now.”

Which, let's be honest, would be slightly grim.

Tell the story

Your songs have stories behind them. Or at least some of them do.

Maybe a relationship inspired one.
Maybe you wrote another after something happened to you.
Maybe you've been carrying an idea around for ten years.
Maybe there's a completely ridiculous story behind the recording.

Tell us. Because context can change the way somebody hears a song.

A lyric that means nothing to me at 10am can suddenly hit differently when I know why you wrote it.

That's not about selling. It's about giving the audience another way into the music.

And yes, you can be funny

This gets overlooked.

You're allowed to have a personality.
You're allowed to be stupid.
You're allowed to take the piss out of yourself.
You're allowed to tell a terrible joke.
In fact, please do occasionally tell a terrible joke.

Because if every piece of content you make is carefully polished, perfectly lit and designed to promote your latest release, it can start to feel a little... corporate.

And you're not a brochure.

You're a person.

If you're funny, be funny.

If you're serious, be serious.

If you're slightly odd, congratulations, you've found your niche.

Don't manufacture a personality. Let people see the one you've already got.

Different videos do different jobs

This is the bit I'd really like musicians to take away.

You don't need to make endless videos just because someone on TikTok told you that consistency is king.

You need different types of video doing different jobs.

Performance shows me what you sound like.

A music video gives the song a visual identity.

Talking head lets me hear what you think.

Behind the scenes lets me see how things happen.

Actuality lets me experience a little bit of your world.

Storytelling gives your music context.

Live video shows me what happens when you're in front of an audience.

And the more of those pieces you use, the more complete the picture becomes.

Not every musician needs to do all of them.

And certainly not every week.

But if every single piece of content you put out is you standing there singing into a microphone...

I already know you're a musician.

Give me something else.

You don't need to become a content creator

This is important. I'm not suggesting you spend your life making videos instead of making music.

And I'm definitely not suggesting you turn into one of those people who films themselves brushing their teeth because apparently the algorithm needs to know about it.

Your music is still the centre of this. It should be. But think about the difference between:

“Here's my new single.”

and:

“Here's the song I wrote after that breakup.”

Then:

“Here's what happened when I tried to record it.”

Then:

“Here's the first demo.”

Then:

“Here's us playing it live for the first time.”

Then:

“Here's the completely ridiculous thing that happened during the video shoot.”

Same artist. Same song. But now there's a story. There's a journey. There's a person.

And that's what people can connect with.

People need something to come back for

Ultimately, this isn't really about video. It's about relationship.

Someone might discover you because they like a song. They might stick around because they like you .

That's why I think musicians need to stop thinking about social media as a place to advertise their music and start thinking about it as a place where people can get to know them.

You don't have to share everything.

You don't have to become an open book.

You don't have to dance next to your record.

And you definitely don't have to point at text appearing above your head unless you really, really want to.

But give people more than the performance.

Let them see the person.

Because you might have the greatest song in the world.

But if nobody cares who made it, you're making life unnecessarily difficult for yourself.

Sing for your supper.

Absolutely. But every now and then, put the microphone down and let people see what else you've got.

How to make a talking head video

Thu, 14 May 2026 09:58:25 GMT

How to Make the Perfect Talking Head Video

(From someone who’s spent far too much time staring into a lens… and helping others do the same)

Let’s get one thing straight. A talking head video is not just “you talking to camera.”

It’s you holding someone’s attention in a world where attention spans are basically goldfish with WiFi.

The good news? You don’t need a fancy studio, a £3k camera, or a voice like a late-night radio host. You just need to get a few key things right. I’ve worked in film production and spent years coaching presenters, and the difference between “scroll past” and “hang on, this is good” usually comes down to a handful of simple tweaks.

Let’s break it down.

Before we dive on in, this is not a blog about how to present on camera. We're talking technicals here. If you want to know how to speak on camera with confidence, click here.

1. Set Up: where does the camera go?

Where you place the camera isn’t a technical detail… it’s the difference between looking confident and looking like you’ve accidentally FaceTimed someone from your chin. Let’s fix that.

Use a Tripod (Or Something That Pretends to Be One)

A tripod is your quiet little production assistant - if you don't have one, go get one.

It lets you position the camera properly
It gets you further away from the lens (goodbye, distorted close-up, hello editing options)
It frees up your hands so you can actually present, not just exist

No tripod? Stack of books, shelf, anything stable. We’re not fussy, we’re just not balancing it on a cereal box and hoping for the best.

Top tip: Frame yourself so your upper body is visible. Not just your face. This becomes important when you start using your hands to emphasise points and add a bit of life to what you’re saying.

Oh and while we're talking about being hands free...

that goes for micrphones too. If you don't have to hold one don't hold one. Especially if it's one of those tiny Bluetooth mics that are designed to be pinned to your top. Pin that thing to your top and you have your hands free to express yourself.

Look People in the Eye (Yes, Even Through a Lens)

Think about how you naturally talk to someone. You don’t stand over them like a headteacher. You don’t shout from across the room. And if they’re smaller than you, you instinctively lower yourself to their level.

Why? Because eye level feels human. It feels comfortable. It builds trust.

That doesn’t magically disappear when a camera turns on.

If your camera is too low, you look dominant and slightly intimidating. Too high, and you look diminished, like you’re apologising for existing. Neither is the vibe we’re going for.

Top tip: Get the lens at eye level. Always.

And remember… the lens isn’t a piece of glass. It’s your viewer. That’s who you’re talking to.

A Quick Sense Check

Before you hit record, ask yourself:

Am I at eye level?
Can we see more than just my face?
Do I look like I meant to set this up?

If the answer is yes, you’re already ahead of most people.

Take a gander at the image below. Hands free, lots of me on screen and I'm looking right at you!

2. Framing: where do you sit on screen?

Now we’ve got the camera sorted… where do you actually put yourself?

Because this is where people either look like a polished presenter… or someone who’s accidentally wandered into frame.

Shoot for the Screen You’re On

If this is for social, you’re filling a vertical screen.

So:

Film in portrait
Fill the frame properly
Don’t leave loads of empty space doing nothing

You want to feel present, not distant.

Rule of Thirds (Without Making It Sound Complicated)

There’s a principle in filming called the Rule of Thirds. Sounds technical. It’s not ( read more here ).

Turn on the grid in your phone settings. You’ll see lines dividing your screen.

Now:

Place your eyeline along the top horizontal line
Keep yourself roughly centred left to right

That’s it. You’ve just gone from “random framing” to “intentional.”

Furniture (not the stuff in the room)

Take a look at this screen shot from Instagram. You'll see there's a lot on screen besides me.

All that stuff (icons, text, reshares) we call that furniture and you don't want to be hiding anything important behind it.

Youll see here that everything I want people to focus on is exactly in the right spot. I use a handy little template to make sure I get that right when I edit my videos and add text. It looks like this.

3. Background: don’t let it steal the show

Your background should support you, not audition for its own spin-off series.

Good options:

A clean room with a bit of depth
Something relevant to what you do (gear, books, subtle personality)
Natural light if you can get it

Avoid:

Mess (unless your brand is “chaotic genius”)
Bright windows behind you (you’ll turn into a silhouette)
Anything that makes people go “wait… what is that behind them?”

Think of your background like a bass player. If it’s doing its job, you notice it. If it’s overplaying, it ruins everything.

3. Lighting: nothing fancy, just flattering

You don’t need a full lighting rig. You just need to not look like you’re telling ghost stories.

Face a window if possible (free, soft, flattering light)
If using artificial light, keep it in front of you, slightly off to one side
Avoid overhead lighting — it creates shadows that make you look permanently tired

If your lighting makes you look like you haven’t slept since 2007, fix it.

4. What to Wear: dress appropriately

This isn’t about fashion. It’s about clarity.

Wear solid colours (busy patterns flicker on camera and act as a distraction)
Avoid light coloured tops (you'll want contrast for captions to stand out)
Dress one level above your audience’s expectation

If you’re teaching musicians, look like someone they’d trust to give advice. Not like you’ve just popped out for milk.

5. The Secret Most People Miss

Here it is. The best talking head videos don’t feel like videos.

They feel like someone who knows what they’re talking about… explaining something useful… in a way that’s easy to follow.

That’s it.

Not perfect lighting. Not cinematic camera moves. Not a viral hook formula. Clarity beats cleverness every time.

Final Thought

You’ve already got an advantage most people don’t. You understand presenting. You understand production. You’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. So don’t overcomplicate it.

Stop Posting Random Stuff: A Musician’s Guide to Content That Cuts Through

Mon, 06 Apr 2026 08:55:55 GMT

�� How to Build a Content Plan

Instagram isn’t just a stage anymore. It’s a sorting machine, a taste engine, and occasionally a ruthless bouncer deciding who gets seen and who gets quietly ignored.

So let's get down to the nuts and bolts. The things you need to do if you want to create a content plan that works, contains all the elements you need and, ultimately saves you time and stress.

At the end of this blog, look out for a special offer to help you build a bullet proof content plan.

Before we talk about content plans, let's look at the ground you’re standing on.

Which platform is right for you?

Before you try to “win” social media, it’s worth asking a simpler question: where should you actually be showing up?

This blog focuses on Instagram not because it’s the only platform that matters, but because it’s one of the few places where music, visuals, and storytelling collide in a way that can genuinely grow an audience.

With over 2 billion monthly active users, Instagram alone is already a crowd bigger than most artists could reach in a lifetime. You don’t need to be everywhere. In fact, trying to succeed on every platform at once usually leads to burnout and blurry identity. There are enough people on one platform alone to give you an amazing career.

The real move is focus. Pick one or two platforms where your audience lives, learn how they work, and show up consistently enough that people start to recognise you. It's much better to build a strong signal in one place than scatter noise across five.

The rules of the game

Social platforms shift constantly. What worked six months ago can quietly stop working overnight, which is why staying up to date isn’t optional, it’s part of the job.

One of the easiest ways to keep your finger on the pulse is to follow Adam Mosseri ( @mosseri ), he's the head honcho at Instagram and regularly shares how Instagram is evolving straight from the source.

But before we dive into the latest changes, it helps to understand the basic rules of the gam e. Instagram’s goal is simple: keep people on the app for as long as possible. It pushes content that holds attention, gets rewatched, shared, or saved, and clearly signals what it’s about. In other words, the platform rewards content that’s easy to understand, quick to hook, and satisfying enough that people want more. Once you understand that, the updates start to make a lot more sense.

Five Instagram changes you need to know

Instagram started 2026 with a lot of important updates. I've picked the top five here that I feel are important for you to know as a musician and artist aiming to grow a fan base.

1. “Your Algorithm” = Fans Choose What They See

Instagram has handed users the steering wheel. People can now filter out what they don’t like and double down on what they do.

Why this matters:
If your content is vague or inconsistent, fans might unknowingly filter you out.

�� Your move: Be unmistakably clear about your sound, vibe, and identity.

2. Topic Clarity Is Now Brutal

Instagram categorises your account based on your last 9–12 posts.

What that means:
If your content is all over the place, your reach will be too.

�� Your move: Think of your profile like a radio station , not a chaotic playlist. Pick a lane and stay in it.

3. Watch Time Is King (Shorter Often Wins)

A fully watched 30-second video beats a skipped 60-second one every time. You can actually post a video that's up to 3 minutes long but it will have to be bloody good if you want people to make it to the end.

What that means:
Your videos need to grab attention and keep it.

�� Your move:

Start with the hook
Lead with your strongest moment
Ask yourself: would someone replay this?

4. Longer + Episodic Content Is Back

I'm about to contradict myself but long reels have a place too. In fact Instagram is encouraging series-style content. This is called episodic or benchmark content. You could break this up into a 'what will happen next' format or have a theme for one day of the week. For example look at my Friday reels where I shout about an artist I love.

What that means:
This is where content planning really works in your favour.

�� Your move:

“Making this song” episodes
Studio diaries
Song breakdown series

5. Goodbye #

Hashtags are fading. Keywords are rising. Think about what words or phrases define you and work those into all of your captions.

What that means: Instagram is now basically a search engine.

�� Your move:
Write like a human, but with intent:

“UK indie artist”
“afrobeats love song”
“live acoustic performance”
Take a look at my captions. They all end with a couple of sentences that describe me for people new to my channel. I've written that as a pocket explosion of keywords.

�� Building a Content Plan as a Musician

A content plan isn’t about posting more. It’s about posting with purpose. Think of it like designing a world your audience wants to step into again and again.

1. Choose Your Lane (Platform Focus)

Trying to dominate every platform is like playing five gigs at once. You’ll just sound bad everywhere. So focus on one or two. Think about where your audience might actually live. For example if your music appeals to Gen x you won't find many of your people on TikTok. Don't forget YouTube either - after all it's the second biggest search engine after Google (who own YouTube).

2. Choose Your Identity (Your “Channel”)

You should be able to describe your content in one sentence. If you can’t, Instagram definitely can’t.

Think of this as your mission statement. If someone asks you what you do and you have one sentence to mail the answer, what are you going to say?

Then make sure every single thing you do on your channel fits with your mission statement.

That means all these are important:

All of your posts and captions
How you reply to posts and the people you DM
The people you follow and who follows you

�� Rule: Instagram looks at every aspect of your behaviour and bases it on how you show up in the Insta world. If you have other interests outside your channel, start another channel and do that stuff there. I have a private channel for that very purpose. Anything not related to Monoki happens there.

3. Set Clear Goals

Without goals, content becomes noise.

Break it down:

Long-term (1 year): Audience size, income, recognition
Mid-term (6 months): Growth milestones, releases
Short-term (1 month): Content output, engagement targets

4. Pick a Sustainable Posting Rhythm

Consistency beats intensity. You don’t need to post daily. You need to post reliably. If you post good quality content it will still be getting engagement 24-48 hours later or even longer! The longer your post remains active the more people Insta will let in the door. So give each post room to breathe.

The algorithm doesn’t “punish” older posts outright, but it prioritises showing people newer content from accounts they follow. If you post daily, your newest post will generally get the first push in your followers’ feeds, which can reduce the reach of yesterday’s post unless it continues to get engagement (likes, shares, saves, comments).

Bottom line: Posting every day isn’t inherently bad, but if every post is vying for attention, some may get “lost in the shuffle.” It’s better to focus on quality, strong hooks, and strategic timing than just posting for the sake of daily consistency.

5. Plan Around “Drop-Off Points”

Think of your plan like going on a long journey. What are the important places you want people to see along the way? Your 'drop off points' are gigs, releases. All the things you put in your regular work diary that are worth shouting about.

�� Example:

Let's say you're releasing 8 songs as a mini album. You might want to think about releasing that over time rather than all at once (called a waterfall release). Maybe you'll release 3 songs, one a month on DSP and whilst making the whole album available on physical formats. Suddenly you have 4 things to talk about over the course of 3 months.

Add to that any promo gigs or appearances you might be doing to push the album. Suddenly you're building a content plan.

�� Your Content Toolkit

Think of your content like a setlist. You need variety, but it all fits the same vibe.

Types of Content

Passive vs Active
Easy-to-watch vs requires engagement
Promote Old Music
New fans haven’t heard your old songs
Repeatable Formats
Same idea, different execution or just content you can repost again and again.
Benchmark / Episodic Content
Series people come back for
Talking Head Reels
Build connection, not just sound

Stories v feed posts

Your followers are much more likely to see your stories - the feed can often be clogged up with ads and suggestions. Therefore don't forget to share your feed posts to your stories. If your reels are less than 60s long, the whole thing gets seen in a story.

Don't overwhelm your followers with stories. Aim for a max of two or three live stories at a time.

⚙️ Content Must-Haves (Non-Negotiable)

Every post should tick these boxes:

A strong hook (first 1–2 seconds)
Keyword-rich captions (not hashtag spam)
Built for full watch-throughs
Potential for replays and shares

Longer videos are fine, but only if they earn attention. Otherwise, keep it tight.

�� How to Actually Measure Progress

Instagram gives you clues. Most artists just ignore them.

Pay attention to:

Follower vs non-follower reach
Who watches your Stories consistently
Completion rate on Reels

�� Stories = nurture your fans
�� Feed = find new ones

�� If You Remember Only 5 Things

Be consistent in style and genre
Hook attention in 1–2 seconds
Optimise for shares, not likes
Use keywords, not hashtags
Build repeatable content formats

�� Need more help?

The goal isn’t to “beat the algorithm.” It’s to become the kind of artist people actively choose to see.

When your content is clear, consistent, and addictive in small doses, the algorithm doesn’t feel like an obstacle anymore. It starts behaving like a very enthusiastic tour manager, quietly putting you in front of the right crowd night after night.

But I understand all this can still feel pretty daunting so how about you and I sit down and work this out together?

In a content planning session we'll:

Establish a system to make planning easy.
Define your channel identity.
Set clear goals and drop off points.
Build a posting schedule to include all the elements that will help you grow.

Special offer: Book a two hour content planning session for just £60

Click below to book or find out more.

Stop Announcing. Start Talking. Social Media for Musicians

Wed, 08 Nov 2023 14:50:13 GMT

Here's a little experiment.

Take a look at the last ten things you posted on social media. How many of them were actually about your audience?

If you're an independent musician, I'm willing to bet there were a few familiar faces.

New single out Friday.
Tickets on sale now.
Here's a clip from last night's gig.
Listen to my latest song.

And, of course, the occasional reminder that your new single is still available, just in case everybody missed the previous seventeen announcements.

There's nothing wrong with any of those posts.

But if that's all you're sharing, there's something missing.

A conversation.

And I think this is one of the biggest opportunities independent musicians overlook when it comes to social media.

Active vs passive content

I find it useful to divide social media content into two broad categories.

Passive content tells people something. Active content invites them to participate.

They're not official marketing classifications, and plenty of posts fall somewhere between the two. But they're useful ways of thinking about what you're putting out into the world.

Let's start with passive content.

Imagine you're a musician announcing a new single.

You post the artwork with the caption:

"My new single is out now. Listen on Spotify!"

Perfectly reasonable.

You're telling people something they might want to know.

But you're not giving them much of a reason to respond.

Now imagine posting a short video explaining that the song was inspired by a conversation you overheard in a café.

You tell the story, then ask:

"Have you ever overheard something you really wish you hadn't?"

Suddenly, you've given people something to get involved with.

They don't even have to know your music to join the conversation.

That's active content.

Constantly talking about yourself

I work with independent musicians, and one thing I see quite regularly is a social media feed that looks more like a noticeboard than a place where people gather.

Every post is an announcement.

A new release.

A gig.

A review.

A playlist placement.

Another reminder about the gig.

Now, all those things matter.

But imagine meeting somebody at a party who spends the entire evening telling you what they've achieved.

They tell you about their job, their holidays, their new car and how terribly busy they are.

They never ask you a single question.

Would you want to spend another evening with them?

Possibly. If they'd brought decent biscuits.

But you get my point.

People are far more likely to develop a connection with you when they feel involved rather than simply informed.

And that's particularly important for musicians.

Because you're not just trying to get somebody to listen to a song once.

You're hoping they'll remember you, listen again, follow your journey, buy tickets and perhaps even tell their friends about you.

That takes more than a steady stream of announcements.

How to turn passive posts into active ones

The good news is you don't necessarily need to create more content.

Sometimes you just need to approach the content you're already making a little differently.

Here are a few examples.

1. The new single announcement

Passive: "My new single is out now. Here's the link."

Active: "I wrote this song after somebody told me I was making a terrible mistake. Turns out they were right. Have you ever ignored advice and regretted it?"

You've still got an opportunity to introduce the song, but now there's a story people can relate to.

2. The rehearsal video

Passive: "Rehearsing for Saturday's show."

Active: "We're trying two completely different versions of this song for Saturday. Which one would you rather hear live?"

Now your audience gets to have a say.

And if you actually use their feedback, even better.

3. The behind-the-scenes photograph

Passive: "Back in the studio today."

Active: "We've been arguing about whether this song needs a guitar solo. I say yes. Everyone else says no. Help me out here."

Just make sure it's a genuine debate.

Nobody wants to discover they've spent twenty minutes defending a guitar solo that was never in danger.

4. The live performance clip

Passive: "Great gig last night. Thanks to everyone who came."

More active: "Something happened during this song last night that completely threw me. Watch the drummer's face at the end. Has anything ever gone spectacularly wrong when you've been performing?"

This one works particularly well when there's a genuine story to tell.

The point isn't to tack a question onto everything you post.

It's to find opportunities for your audience to become part of what you're doing.

Not every post needs a question

This is important.

I've seen plenty of advice suggesting that every social media post should end with a question to encourage engagement.

And that can become incredibly tedious.

"Here's my breakfast. What's your favourite breakfast?"

"Here's my guitar. Do you like guitars?"

"Here's a picture of a tree. Have you ever seen a tree?"

Please don't.

People can spot a forced attempt at engagement a mile away.

Sometimes the most effective way to encourage a conversation is simply to tell an interesting story.

You might share an embarrassing moment from a gig.
An unexpected encounter with another musician.
Something you learned while recording your album.
Or an opinion that people genuinely want to discuss.

If the content is interesting enough, people may respond without being asked.

And sometimes it's perfectly fine to post something without expecting any response at all.

The goal isn't to manufacture engagement. It's to make your audience feel that they're part of something.

What about the algorithm?

There's a common belief that social media platforms automatically reward posts that ask questions or generate lots of comments. It's not quite that simple.

Platforms use a variety of signals to decide what to recommend, and those signals can vary depending on the type of content and who's watching it.

A post with loads of comments isn't necessarily going to reach more people than one that viewers watch all the way through or share with friends.

And a conversation between you and five genuine fans might be more valuable to your music career than a hundred comments from people who'll never listen to another song.

So I wouldn't create active content simply because you think the algorithm wants it.

I'd do it because building relationships with people who enjoy your music is a good idea regardless of what Instagram decides to do next Tuesday.

Nurturing the conversation

Here's something else musicians sometimes overlook.

Creating content that invites a response is only half the job.

You also need to respond.

If somebody takes the time to leave a thoughtful comment, acknowledge it.

If they ask a question, answer it.

If somebody shares a story that relates to yours, show an interest.

And don't feel you have to turn every interaction into an opportunity to promote your music.

Sometimes a conversation can just be a conversation.

I know. Revolutionary stuff.

The same applies when you're interacting with other people's content.

Find musicians, music lovers and communities that genuinely interest you.

Join discussions.
Share your opinions.
Be helpful where you can.

Not because you're hoping everybody will immediately follow you, but because you're becoming part of a community.

And communities are where some of the most valuable relationships begin.

Turning followers into fans

This is where the whole thing starts to become particularly important.

Getting somebody to follow you is relatively easy compared with getting them to care about what happens next.

They might follow you because they enjoyed one song.

Or because they saw a funny video.

Or because a friend shared something you posted.

But what makes them stay?

What makes them listen to another song?

What makes them buy a ticket?

I think a big part of the answer is connection.

The more somebody feels they know you, understand your music and have a place in your world, the more reasons they have to stick around.

I've explored that idea in more detail in How to Turn Your Followers Into Fans.

And that's why I think active content deserves a place in every musician's social media strategy.

Not because it guarantees more likes.

But because it creates opportunities for relationships that go beyond a single post.

Try this with your next ten posts

Go back and look at the last ten things you've published.

How many simply announced something?

How many told a story?

How many gave people an opportunity to contribute, share an experience or express an opinion?

There's no magic ratio to aim for.

You don't need five active posts and five passive ones.

And you certainly don't need to start asking strangers what they had for breakfast.

Just look for opportunities to make your content a little less one-sided.

The next time you're about to announce a new song, think about the story behind it.

The next time you post a rehearsal clip, consider whether your audience could have a say in what you're working on.

And the next time somebody leaves a comment, see whether there's an opportunity for a genuine conversation.

Because social media isn't just somewhere to tell people what you're doing.

It's somewhere to get to know the people who might want to come along for the ride.

Stop treating your followers like an audience waiting for announcements. Start treating them like people worth talking to.

Who's behind Monoki?

Fri, 11 Nov 2022 16:18:11 GMT

I've been pretty hesitant about telling my story here. Purely because I want Monoki to stand up on its own, a product built on its own achievements.

But the more I speak with business owners and musicians the more I've been asked about my own background and why I've been referred to as 'the man who's lived a thousand lives'.

So this is a very potted history of the time before Monoki.

The man who's lives a thousand lives

I very rarely say no to anything. Sometimes that can be a problem. But the many times I’ve said yes are the reasons why some people are amazed by everything I’ve done in just over half century on the planet.

I'm not going to bore you with the whole list here but these are just a few of the things I've said yes to so far (in no particular order) (feel free to get in touch if you'd like a story).

Played drums on a song in Queen’s recording studio .
Had a book released by the same publisher as JK Rowling.
Presented breakfast shows for the biggest UK radio group .
Produced music videos from 300 miles away and the top of a mountain.
Shared a stage with Westlife, Busted and McFly (although not all at once).
Sold stuff on TV for QVC.
Broadcast on the radio from a plane 1,500 feet above London.
Entered a colleague’s car into a stock car race without telling her.

I’m just scratching the surface but I have said yes to a lot of really cool things. However at the time of saying yes, I didn’t know how to do many of these things or even have a clear idea of what I was really saying yes to.

Currently I'm working out why I said yes to producing and directing a three part documentary for the telly. I'm over a year in and still looking for the answer. More on that below.

So why share?

I am the sum of my parts. Those parts have lead to Monoki Media. As a result of all the things I've said yes to and had to learn along the way (sometimes quite quickly), I am in a unique position to offer you (or anyone else) something a little different.

In fact, with the world becoming increasingly connected through the lens of a camera it seems that all my experiences now have a place ... together.

Graphic Design
Copywriting
Broadcasting
TV presenting
Audio and music production
Marketing
Campaign creation
Video and film production
Presenter coaching

So why Monoki?

A sense of mortality I guess. Video production could possibly be my final big career shift. If I chose to call myself Paul Mumford Media (as I did for a while), that's all on me. I want everything I've learned (and it's quite a bit) to continue without me.

This doesn't mean I'm ready to hang up my many hats, far from it. I'll keep doing this stuff for as long as my body will allow me to. Why would I want to retire to a golf course when I love what I do. I have literally nothing to retire from ... and I can't stand golf.

So I found a name that was bigger than me but a sum of all my parts, MO for my Dad Maurice, NO for my Mum Norma and KI for my daughter and the future ... perhaps.

My daughter Kyra loves all this filming stuff too. She's really only just starting to make a life after graduating with honours as a film maker and digital creator. But she has been my assistant director on several music videos. Regardless of the adventures in store for her, she now has a ready made business that she can take with her.

What's next?

A documentary as it turns out. While chatting with award winning soul singer Nate James , (who I work a lot with) we discussed an idea which has now turned into a three part documentary currently being pitched to all the major TV companies. Amazingly quite a few of them are making some positive noises.

Aside from that I'm still making music videos , filming concerts and producing corporate work as well as managing and marketing for a few musicians and companies,

Beyond that who knows, but I do know it won't be boring. And it definitely won't be golf!

How I Made This Video: Nate James - Chasin' The Sun

Mon, 27 Sep 2021 14:18:06 GMT

How do you make Scotland look like Ibiza in April, during a national lockdown, when you're directing the whole thing from 300 miles away?

That was the rather ridiculous challenge I faced when making the music video for Nate James' Chasing The Sun in 2021.

I've always been a frustrated musician. I played in bands as a kid, tried my hand at several instruments and was, on the whole, pretty terrible at all of them.

But I grew up in the 1980s, when music videos were becoming an art form in their own right, and I dreamed of finding a way into the music industry.

These days, I get to make music videos instead of making a terrible racket with a guitar.

Which is probably better for everyone.

And while I've worked on plenty of interesting projects, Chasing The Sun presented a particularly unusual set of problems.

First, take a look at the finished video.

The brief: bring me sunshine

Nate had recorded a proper summer anthem.

Chasing The Sun was upbeat, infectious and absolutely crying out for a music video filled with sunshine, beaches and that carefree summer feeling.

Under normal circumstances, the obvious solution would have been to fly somewhere warm, find a beautiful beach and start filming.

Ibiza would have done nicely.

Unfortunately, there were three fairly significant problems.

It was April.
The UK was in lockdown because of the Covid pandemic.
Nate was living in Scotland, more than 300 miles from me in Essex.

So I needed to make a video that looked as though it had been filmed somewhere hot and sunny, without leaving Essex, while Nate remained in Scotland.

What could possibly go wrong?

Finding our own little Ibiza

Scotland has some spectacular beaches. Granted, the temperature doesn't always encourage you to strip down to your shorts and order a cocktail, but visually there are places that can rival almost anywhere.

The trick would be finding the right location and, more importantly, the right weather.

If we could get a clear morning with beautiful light, there was a chance we could make the whole thing look considerably warmer than it actually was.

Of course, that still left the small problem of filming it.

I couldn't travel to Scotland, so I needed someone local who could capture the footage while I directed the project remotely.

Fortunately, Nate knew a wedding photographer called Austin Mitchell who also worked with video.

Austin and I met over Zoom and began planning the shoot.

I put together a rough storyboard and a wish list of shots, but directing a music video this way meant accepting that I wouldn't have the same control I'd normally have on location.

I was relying on Austin to interpret what I wanted, find the best shots and deal with whatever the Scottish weather decided to throw at him.

It could have gone horribly wrong.

An early morning on Silver Sands Beach

Nate and Austin chose the beautiful Silver Sands Beach in Aberdour.

A friend of Nate's came along to help with make-up, and with my shot list in hand, they arranged an early morning shoot. Then we waited for the weather.

And, rather miraculously, Scotland delivered.

They were greeted by a gorgeous sunrise, giving Austin the opportunity to capture some beautiful footage of Nate performing on the beach.

He also captured some lovely drone shots that gave the video a much bigger sense of scale.

Back in Essex, I waited for the footage to arrive.

And that's when my part of the real work began.

Finding the video in the edit

Editing footage you've directed yourself is one thing. Editing footage someone else has filmed, when you weren't even there, is a different challenge altogether.

Before I could start putting the video together, I needed to go through everything Austin had captured and work out how the individual shots could fit the music.

It's a bit like being handed a box of jigsaw pieces without knowing exactly what the finished picture is supposed to look like. Thankfully, Austin had done a brilliant job.

I had some lovely performance footage, beautiful scenery and those sweeping drone shots to play with.

But I wanted the edit to do more than simply cut between attractive images of Nate on a beach.

There was something in the song that had caught my attention.

A little inspiration from The Cure

When I first heard Chasing The Sun, I was immediately drawn to the handclap rhythms.

They reminded me of Close To Me by The Cure, particularly the way the percussion gives the track its character.

I thought those rhythms would make a great visual motif.

So I began experimenting with short, sharp edits that picked out the handclaps, cutting between shots in time with the music.

It gave the video a playful, rhythmic energy and helped break up the longer performance and landscape sequences.

But there was still one rather important problem.

Despite the beautiful sunrise, the footage looked cold.

Because, well, it was.

Bringing Ibiza to Scotland

Colour grading is one of those parts of filmmaking that most people probably don't think about.

But it can completely change how a scene feels.

Austin had captured some gorgeous images, but the natural colours had a distinctly cool, blue appearance. Left untouched, the video would have looked exactly like what it was: a man singing on a Scottish beach in April.

Not quite the Mediterranean summer fantasy we were going for.

So I set about warming everything up.

I introduced richer orange and yellow tones, adjusted the colours across the different shots and worked to give the whole video a consistent, sun-drenched appearance.

I also took some sections close to black and white, creating a stronger contrast with the warmer footage and giving those handclap edits a little extra punch.

It was easily the most time-consuming part of the edit.

But it made an enormous difference.

Suddenly, Scotland was looking rather Mediterranean.

Not bad for a morning when Nate was probably wishing he'd brought a thicker coat.

Did we really film this in Ibiza?

When I showed Nate the first edit, his reaction made all the effort worthwhile.

He couldn't believe how warm and summery the finished video looked.

And since its release, I've had people ask whether we'd managed to travel somewhere hot to film it.

Which is about the best compliment I could have hoped for.

There's just one tiny giveaway. If you watch closely, you can occasionally see Nate's breath in the cold air as he's singing. Apparently, even colour grading has its limits.

The result

Chasing The Sun remains one of my favourite videos I've made with Nate so far.

Not because it was the biggest production or involved the most elaborate equipment.

Quite the opposite.

It was made during a lockdown, with the artist hundreds of miles away, a local filmmaker capturing the footage and me directing and editing everything remotely.

The project depended on good planning, trusting the person behind the camera and knowing what could be achieved in the edit.

And it reinforced something I've always believed about music videos.

You don't necessarily need the perfect location, an enormous budget or a huge crew.

You need a strong idea, people who understand what you're trying to achieve and the ability to make the most of what you've got.

Sometimes that means finding an extraordinary location.

Sometimes it means getting up at an ungodly hour to catch the sunrise.

And sometimes it means convincing people that a freezing Scottish beach is actually somewhere in the Mediterranean.

Just don't look too closely at Nate's breath.

Every music video has a story.

Some involve big ideas. Others involve tiny budgets, happy accidents or problems nobody saw coming. Here are a few more stories from behind the camera.

Nate James – 1Kind

Making a music video from 300 miles away with a phone, a bedsheet and a big idea.

EM Kane – Wasted Time

Three scenes, three shots and a freezing barn. How simplicity became the video's greatest strength.

Anthony Hughes – Body Sayin'

A nightclub, a cast of dancers and the decision to throw away an entire opening sequence.

Why Reading a Script Can Ruin Your Videos

Thu, 15 Apr 2021 06:34:04 GMT

There's a good reason why professional television presenters make reading from an autocue look so easy.

They've spent years learning how to do it.

And yet, when people decide to make videos for social media, one of the first things they often do is write themselves a script.

I understand why.

You want to get everything right. You don't want to forget anything. And you certainly don't want to find yourself staring into the camera wondering what on earth you were talking about.

So you write down exactly what you want to say.

Problem solved.

Except you've potentially just created a much bigger problem.

Because reading a script and sounding like you're having a natural conversation are two completely different things.

And that's something I've learned from years of presenting and helping other people feel comfortable in front of a camera.

1. Reading a script naturally is a skill

Watch a really good television presenter reading from an autocue.

You probably won't even realise they're doing it.

They'll make eye contact with the camera, use natural expressions, vary their pace and deliver everything as though they're talking directly to you.

It looks effortless.

It isn't.

Reading from an autocue convincingly takes practice.

Lots of it.

And there's another skill involved before the presenter even opens their mouth.

Writing the script.

Because the way we write and the way we speak are often completely different.

Think about how you'd explain something to a friend.

You'd probably use shorter sentences, contractions, pauses and the occasional expression that wouldn't look particularly elegant on a page.

But that's how people actually talk.

A script written for somebody to read aloud needs to reflect that.

And ideally, it needs to reflect the personality of the person delivering it.

Otherwise, even a perfectly written script can sound terribly unnatural.

The best presenters understand this. Some are so comfortable with an autocue that they can glance at the words and improvise around them.

But that level of confidence doesn't arrive the moment somebody puts a screen in front of your camera.

2. Your personality can disappear

Here's a little experiment.

Find something you've written recently.

An email, perhaps.

Now read it aloud.

Not silently in your head. Actually say the words.

Notice anything?

There's a good chance your voice changes slightly.

Your rhythm becomes different.

You might emphasise words you wouldn't normally emphasise.

You may even sound a little more formal than usual.

That's because reading and speaking naturally involve different habits.

And when you're concentrating on getting every word right, it's surprisingly easy to forget about everything else.

Your expressions.

Your gestures.

Your enthusiasm.

All those little things that make you recognisably you.

For an independent musician, that's particularly important.

People already have opportunities to hear your music.

But when you talk to camera, you're giving them an opportunity to get to know the person behind it.

Perhaps you're explaining what inspired a song.

Or telling a story from the recording studio.

Or sharing something that happened at a gig.

Those moments are valuable because they're personal.

And the last thing you want is to sound as though you're reading a statement prepared by your solicitor.

3. People can tell when something isn't right

I often say something when I'm coaching people on camera.

You don't have to be an actor to spot a bad actor.

Think about that for a moment.

Most of us have never studied acting.

We don't understand all the techniques involved.

But when we watch somebody delivering a dreadful performance, we know.

Something feels wrong.

And exactly the same thing can happen when somebody reads a script badly.

Perhaps their eyes keep moving from side to side.

Perhaps the emphasis falls on the wrong words.

Perhaps the delivery is just a little too polished, or a little too flat.

You might not consciously notice any of those things.

But you can sense that the person isn't speaking naturally.

And when you're trying to build a connection with an audience, that matters.

Because people don't just respond to what you say.

They respond to how you say it.

So should you never use a script?

Of course not.

There are plenty of situations where a script is absolutely the right tool.

Perhaps you're making a documentary.

Maybe you're recording a carefully structured piece to camera.

Or you need to communicate something where the wording has to be precise.

I use scripts myself.

But I also understand the work involved in making them sound natural.

And that's the distinction.

A script isn't a shortcut to becoming a good presenter.

If you're comfortable reading from one, brilliant.

If you've practised and developed the skill, use it.

But if you're an independent musician making informal videos for social media, you might find there's a much easier way.

Try talking points instead

Rather than writing out every word, try making a few notes.

I generally recommend thinking about three things before you press record.

How are you going to start?

Your opening matters.

You want to give people a reason to stop scrolling and listen.

It might be a surprising statement, an interesting question or the beginning of a story.

What are the main points you want to cover?

Write down two or three things you definitely want to mention.

Not complete sentences.

Just enough to remind yourself where you're going.

How are you going to finish?

Know where the story ends.

Otherwise, you can find yourself going round in circles, trying to remember whether you've already made your point.

Once you've got those three things, put the notes somewhere you can glance at them if you need to.

Then talk.

Imagine you're explaining something to a friend.

Because, essentially, that's what you're doing.

You don't have to get everything right in one take

Here's another thing worth remembering.

You're making a video. You're not broadcasting live to the nation.

If you stumble over a word, stop.

If you forget what you're saying, have a look at your notes.

If you suddenly think of a better way to explain something, try it again.

You can edit the mistakes out afterwards.

And sometimes I'd encourage you to leave a few of them in.

A little hesitation, an unexpected laugh or the occasional "erm" isn't necessarily a disaster.

It's how people speak.

Of course, you don't want every sentence interrupted by a lengthy search for the next word.

But there's a difference between sounding natural and sounding completely unprepared.

With a little practice, you'll find that balance.

And the more you do it, the easier it becomes.

The camera isn't the problem

One of the things I've noticed when working with people who are uncomfortable on camera is that they're often perfectly capable of talking about their subject.

Ask a musician about their favourite guitar, the inspiration behind a song or something that happened during recording, and you might struggle to get them to stop talking.

Put a camera in front of them and suddenly they forget how to construct a sentence.

The knowledge hasn't disappeared.

Neither has their personality.

They've simply become too conscious of the camera.

And trying to remember a carefully written script can make that feeling even worse.

So take some of the pressure away.

Know what you want to say.

Give yourself a little structure.

And then allow yourself to speak naturally.

Because the people watching aren't expecting a flawless television performance.

They're interested in you.

And if you can make them feel as though you're talking to them rather than reading at them, you're already doing something right.

The best thing you can bring to a video isn't a perfect script. It's your personality.