How To Create When You Don't Feel Creative

For many new artists the spark of creativity is never that far away. The high when they get on the stage for the first time fuels them for very long stretches. And it’s this spark and this high that puts inside their heads, “This is my future, music is my life.” From that point on every moment is spent pushing towards the goal of becoming an emerging artist. But it doesn’t happen if you burn out. It doesn’t happen if the pipes freeze. This is why learning to create when you don’t feel creative is key to keeping the engine running and continually moving towards your goals.  Here’s three tips for the drip. 
 

1. Return To The Basics: Very few artists take the time to brush up their craft once they’ve reached a certain level of proficiency. Go back and run exercises from your beginner lessons. If this doesn’t feel productive to you, consider mentoring someone else who’s eager to learn the basics themselves.
   

2. Play A Game: Sometimes we take creativity way too seriously. Turn your creative time into play time. “Write a song using these three words…”. Bonus points if you bring other creatives into the game with you.
   

3. Escape Your Prison: Your own mind is a prison cell for new inspiration. Your perspective on your own experiences will always be one sided. Reach out to connect with other people who maybe aren’t creatives, ask if you can help tell their stories in some way.

If you keep the creative routine, even when the creativity is slow itself, eventually the ice will thaw. Lastly, if you can be vulnerable and share these challenges with your audience and your team you will quickly find that there is more support and understanding than you might have expected. Even if you’re in the middle of a project with deadlines and expectations. 

For more tips and tricks follow AGD President Nathan Dohse on Instagram and TikTok

Special Note: Sometimes a lack of creativity is a symptom of a mental health issue. If you’re struggling with low motivation, negative self talk, or depression please consider professional mental health support.

How to rethink your song introductions.

The best way to avoid  chasing trends and doing dances as a content creator is to become a master storyteller. Songwriting is a form of storytelling, but many artists are missing the most important part of the story; the introduction. 

Songwriters often start with an assumption that the listener actually cares what the song is about... And so that is more often than not how they deliver the plot of the song; "This song is about [blank]".  The truth is that music listeners only care what a song is about if they already like the song. So the introduction to a new song is critical even with existing fans. Here's three tips to introduce your song in a more engaging way.  

1. Set the mood. Start by saying something like, "picture that you're..." or "have you ever felt...". By inviting the audience into the mood or feeling you create a bridge between your creative mind and theirs. It asks them to use their imagination to connect to what's about to happen. But, it's grounded in something relatable to everyone. After you've built that bridge, connect to the song quickly by saying something like "I sing this song when ever I feel..." or "I wrote this song in a..."
   

2. Tell the real story first. "When I was sixteen I met..." or "One time I..." or "This one summer there was a...". Rehearse the opening line and make sure it is a very intriguing start to the story. Then make sure that it can move through the intro, plot, conflict and resolution in under 60 seconds! Finish by saying, "this song is about that summer." Bonus Points: Make the song the resolution.
   

3. Connect it to Pop Culture. "Do you remember that scene where..." or "I'm a big fan of...". Fans need to quickly investigate if your music and themes will resonate with all the other things they enjoy. So making the connection between what you like and what they like helps them quickly realize you are an artist that will resonate with them.

Really working on your introduction to your songs will go a long way for your live performances, but what does it have to do with content? Short form video content relies heavily on hooks and layers for keeping the viewers attention. Putting the work into your song intro's will double as copy for your captions, hooks in your TikToks, and text layers over your videos.

For more tips follow our President, Nathan Dohse onTikTok orInstagram; here's a recap of last months videos.Post your thoughts or responses in our new Zero To 60 Facebook group.

5 Moves to Make as You’re Starting out as an Artist

So you’ve decided to take the plunge and give all you’ve got to your artist project- that’s dope! That decision will most likely be the easiest part of the whole process. Sometimes, it can definitely seem like an impossibly daunting feat at first to make sure you’re doing all the ‘right’ things in the right order and getting all your ducks in a row. While there are a lot of things to do in order to jumpstart your career as an artist, you should spend most of your time and efforts at the beginning stages diving into these 5 areas.

1. Write, write, write.

Dolly Parton is notorious for writing at least one song every day. Now, while this may not be attainable for everyone, it’s a great goal to work towards and is a wonderful habit to get into as an aspiring artist. Showing up for yourself and your career by doing the deep work of sitting down and practicing creativity for a set amount of time every single day can really pay off. And who knows, maybe you’ll have a ‘millions of dollars day’ like when Dolly wrote both “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You” on the same day. The more you write, the better you’ll get. This is a great way to get in those 10,000 hours!

2. Find your ‘thing’- and own it.

Before anything is ready to be released, it is crucial that you take the time to figure out what it is you are trying to say through your music and brand. While that may change as your artistry grows and develops, it is important to at least have something about you that stands out. This might look like focusing your message as an artist around a particular cause you are passionate about, or being rock solid in your brand identity. A great example of an artist completely owning their brand is AGD Artist Manny Blu. Whatever your ‘thing’ is, you need to make sure that it is authentic to you and then own it.

3. Find your people.

As a developing artist, almost nothing is more important than the team that you surround yourself with. From your producer to your co-writers, it is absolutely crucial to find people that you vibe with. An easy way to find these people is to show up to live shows in your area or join some Clubhouse chats and put yourself out there! For Nashville locals, we love using the YEP Facebook group to connect with all kinds of people in the industry-it’s a fantastic resource. Whatever methods you use, it is highly encouraged that you get outside of your comfort zone and get to know your music community. Most often, those natural connections will lead to the best working relationships!

4. Receive quality + diverse feedback.

Your friends will (hopefully) be your biggest fans. They will also most likely be your biggest “yes” people. It is crucial in the early stages of your artistry to test out your music to different crowds and get quality feedback. You might accomplish this by trying out some songs at a writers round in town, asking your producer, or simply sending demos of your music to some other artists in your community and asking them what you could improve upon. However you receive your feedback, it is crucial that it is from several unbiased sources that will take the time to really listen to your work and help you out.

5. Grind.

You should be willing (and wanting) to work harder than anyone else if you truly want this. For at least some portion of your career, this may mean that you need to burn the midnight oil after your day job or even work an extra job to pay for recording expenses. It is important to set S.M.A.R.T. goals and to do whatever it takes to achieve them.

This is such an exciting (and most often overwhelming) stage of your artist career. It’s so important at this stage to take the time to celebrate even the smallest of wins + learn to pivot when your efforts aren’t very fruitful. Enjoy the journey. Trust the process. Work really hard. But most of all, enjoy it!