At 9/5/14 12:32 AM, ZipZipper wrote:
All of that paints some awkward undertones...or should I say undercurrents...ah ha ha ha. I mean, what really makes you different from the other "certified" people who have come here to sell their "knowledge"? Sure, it's such a secret to tell somebody that they're biggest hope for being "successful" is hashtag facebook soundcloud youtube get signed look pretty wear makeup rent a studio and follow the rules of capitalism. I suppose it is a science that I cannot completely wrap my head around, so I guess you're in the right...these things can be taught.
But my point is, there have been so many people who casually pass by here trying to "teach" and never appear again. Then, there are some members on this site who have given their valuable advice for FREE and participate on this site regularly AND the proof is in the music they post and the stories they share.
So...yeah oops. Take some time to know the community before professing you have the powers to help the community.
Not another one of these "I'll make u rich and successful" threads... >_<
I will be honest to say that I agree with Zip 100%. We have here what is called a "community". That means, you put in what you take out. If you want to make a business here, you need to take some time to first research, and then try to win over your audience (music business tip no. 1, which I guess you forgot about).
While it is very nice to see you are enthusiastic and have had found some degree of success like most of us, there are dozens here (Camo, Step, Skye, Breed, etc etc) who, instead of asking for a charge, provide their feedback and thoughts, open and honest, and answer questions about anything. Instead of teaching people, people post their questions and an open dialogue ensues between all the members, both those whose resumes read like a shopping list for a billionare with 10 kids and those who picked up LMMS last week. This open and public dialogue is the foundation of this website, and it's the reason why people like it here and aren't really interested in your "services" you sell. We openly discuss the topics which you want to "secretively" and "divinely" grace the minds of the uninitiated.
If you want to stay and chip in, like many have chosen, then I invite you on behalf of the community to provide your time freely and openly like those who also have countless gigs and projects do (I am not the busiest of them, but I am working on no less than three scoring gigs, one of which I have been touring conferences with, one gig on the back burner too, not to mention sampling, building, testing, and selling virtual instruments, redesigning my website completely, attending college full-time, judging the largest contest on NG and providing a pile of reviews for that, running my own contest, organizing and preparing for an upcoming game expo I will be presenting a game at, and having a semblance of a social life). We have people on here from teachers to doctors and salespeople to professional gigging performers who all donate their free time to go and review works of new composers/producers or go and put in their thoughts on a topic in the forum.
IMHO and from all the people who have posted literally exactly what you posted and then turned out to just be here to make a buck and lack the true desire to teach and share their knowledge, any class, lesson, or teacher which promises or even suggests they will make you "successful" is a, for lack of a better word, fraud. You cannot teach success. What you can teach is the building blocks of understanding and offer pathways into new and interesting inspirations that help supply a composer with the tools he or she needs in order to be successful. You could post in a discussion on orchestration, or a thread asking about mixing techniques for pop music, or a discussion of orchestral sample libraries. All of these would be considerably more useful to a person than "lessons" where you tell about how you single-handedly defeated the Dragon of Agnar and won a gig with some random indie startup like everyone else does in normal every-day business.
The only "lessons" I have taken in my life are on instruments or orchestration. My orchestration "teacher", if you could call him that, was a 60 year-old polytonal composer with dozens of concert works, performances, and decades of experience with the orchestra under his belt. I paid a flat rate per lesson, which consisted of anywhere from a hour to an entire evening spent exploring and discussing a large range of subjects from string writing to signal paths and the evolution of sampler technology. We would share pieces, influences, and ideas, and a sort of synergy came up. It wasn't a lesson as anyone would want you to believe... it was two composers geeking out over how awesome music is. That is the exact same as the truly "successful" lessons I have had. Payment was a tip for a good time and some building blocks, and no one ever promised success, just effort, companionship, and a honest, reliable service. That is what goes on here on Newgrounds. A crudload of musicians geeking out about how awesome music is. Here your payment is the satisfaction that you made a difference with someone, and often times, not just one person, but dozens.
The only truly poor lessons I have received are those given with great dogma and zeal. I've read to date three books promising "success" and found every single one to not be worth the paper they were written on. I've also attended two lectures by "famed" individuals who had great success. Both were to me, complete wastes of time and money. The mask they wear is so painfully clear when you stop believing the fairy tale they are weaving before your eyes. They really DON'T know how they succeeded. They're just making it all up in a human attempt to rationalize their success, just as you are.
The reason you are successful is not because of what you did, but because it was inevitable. It is a mathematical constant that eventually if you try hard enough, almost no matter the conditions and qualifications, you will succeed, and that is really all that anyone will ever truly need to know on the subject, as said by the successful (may I add award-winning and awesomesauce) Elspeth. The real trick is how to improve your personal craft and style, and for that, there is absolutely guaranteed nothing better than PRACTICE and FEEDBACK, and it is wrong that anyone should be asked to pay for the latter.
Every day, hundreds of composers, producers, and even non-musicians leave thousands of pieces of feedback via reviews on pieces on Newgrounds. We have a whole CLUB here devoted to giving reviews to anyone who asks, and a whole thread with the same purpose too. We don't need people coming in here and promising success and money and feedback when ALL OF THESE THINGS ARE FREE AND READILY ACCESSIBLE TO THOSE WHO HAVE THE MOTIVATION TO DO SO.
If you still want to charge money for this stuff, then I suggest you bring your "work" elsewhere, and study your audience first next time! Maybe you should send personalized e-mails to 500 prospective "students" you find on Soundcloud or bandcamp something. Even on there, most people give feedback completely free.
Peace out.
