Transcription
The top DJs in the world have the biggest productions, the largest audiences, make very good money, and have the resources to bring their creative visions to life. What if I were to tell you that you could live a life exactly like them, potentially just by making this one choice?
In this video, I'm going to lay out exactly how making this one choice could change your entire path as an artist, and how the artists I work with, my clients who make millions of dollars a year and headline shows all over the world, use this exact method. But what that method is might surprise you, and maybe far more simple than you think. So let me explain.
But before I do, who am I to even discuss this topic? So I won't take too much time here, but I'm Chris Alba. I own a creative agency called The Cult Creatives, where we've done tens of millions of dollars in business over the last decade. We've worked with some of the top artists in the world, specifically in dance music, many of whom get anywhere from 25 to 100K plus per show to perform. We work with many of the biggest established dance record labels. Before I started a cult, I was a DJ producer myself, and I was also a talent buyer programmer for an event called Control in LA that ran from 2008 to 2018. That event was responsible for giving many of the now household names in dance music their first big gigs, artists like Skrillex, Slander, Major Lazer, ARL, Grime, Marshmello when he was.com, and I think the first time DJ Snake even came to the United States, he played for us with no sunglasses on. So I'm dating myself with all this, but I've been in dance music in some capacity for the last 20 years.
So back to the one choice. There's a quote from Kobe Bryant that reads like this: "You wake up at 3:00 AM. Train 4:00 AM to 6:00 AM. Come home, eat breakfast. Now you're back at it again, 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM. Relax. Back at it again, 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM. Now you're back at it again, 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM. By year five or six, it doesn't matter what kind of work they do in the summer, they're never going to catch up." He's saying this as his hypothesis because nobody else in the NBA is willing to log those hours. And to my understanding, what I've heard about Kobe is that he expected that when he got to the NBA, that everybody in the NBA wanted to be the best player in the world. But he was actually surprised that a lot of people, just by making it to the NBA, that the dream that they had had come true, and all they wanted to do was stay in the NBA. But for Kobe, he wanted to have a legacy similar to Michael Jordan, and he wanted to be the best in the game. So he was asking a better question: "How can I be the best in the game? How could I be the next Michael Jordan?" And this was his answer to being the best in the world. So it wasn't a short-term hack trying to beat the other players in the NBA and eventually become the best. It was a long game thinking on how he could become the best version of himself.
So after having his hypothesis, he made one choice. A choice that consists of extreme commitment, and a choice that influences many of his other choices. Because of that one choice, there was a lot that he wasn't able to do. He couldn't stay out late, he couldn't eat foods that didn't give him the energy to train the way that he was, he couldn't attend all of the events that he wanted to for friends and family because he was committed to this one choice. He was committed to the regiment. He was deeply committed to getting better.
So art and music aren't the same as sports. They're two completely different things. But how could you apply this idea to your music and your artist career? Some artists listening to this may think that this means just sit in the studio and make music only all day, every day. And if I log more hours than everybody else, then ultimately I'll be the biggest artist in the world. Maybe. But to me, that mentality would be like Kobe only working on his three-point shot when he was doing these four-a-day practices, which would make him an incredible three-point shooter, but the rest of his game would lack. He used those extra practices to round out the other parts of his game. He was able to get exponentially better than a lot of the other players in the NBA at the five key aspects to the game of basketball.
So what are the key aspects to the game of basketball? The best basketball players in the world have a combination of these five skills: offense, defense, scoring, ball movement, just dribbling, passing, rebounding, and then mindset, which also falls into leadership and an overall sense of the game. So it may not be five exactly, but what are the main aspects of the game of being a music artist or having a music project?
First off, the actual music is a crucial part of the game, and it has to be there. But this is like shooting, it's just one aspect and one element of the game. To me, the next most important aspect is the consistent story, the branding, and the positioning of what the music and the music project is all about. This is a lot of my world, and how we work with clients creating content that tells a cohesive story, shows a consistent position, gets the audience interested in what the artist and the project is about outside of the music. So it's script writing, scene writing, copywriting for your voice, it's becoming a master storyteller. If you've watched any of my other videos, you know my big thing is I look at brands as movies or shows, and outside of the music, what is your movie about? Is it interesting? Will it keep people coming back?
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So then the next important aspect is producing. And this doesn't mean producing music. Music is a part of it, but it's producing in general. It's all of the content and all the things that go along with the music project. How are you producing those things? The content, executing the vision, telling the story, the actual act of bringing that to life, producing. That's why movies have producers. It's a skill set all in its own.
So then the next is awareness. Another word could be advertising, but I know a lot of creative people and people in music, they don't like the word advertising. But awareness is a very important aspect of getting your music heard and getting people familiar with the project. So this is understanding the psychology of human behavior, understanding different platforms, ways that people are communicating with one another. How are you showing up in the world of your fans? Would they find value in the thing that you're presenting, so much so that they would share it with one of their friends, colleagues, or family members? And then once you have a level of awareness, what are you doing with that awareness? What's the interaction like between the artist and their fans? How are the fans being nurtured?
So the next aspect is quality control. This element is the art of putting out high-quality content, both visually and sonically. There's many artists that I see out there that are actually pretty good at staying consistent, but the quality of their content often lacks. You can tell with the juggle of all the other things that they're doing, that they did a quick post, threw it together, tossed it up. There's no real intention behind it. It was just posting to post. That post probably wasn't very valuable to the audience, so the audience may not have engaged with it, and they probably lost interest pretty quickly. The top artists in the world make sure that whatever it is that they're putting out is quality.
So again, I want to be clear. Art isn't sports. They're two completely different things. But the thing that they have in common is that if you're trying to be the best in the world, extreme, almost obsessive commitment can be applied to both.
All right, so now based on this line of thinking, now let's actually get tactical. So now let's go through each of the key aspects and I'll give you a few different ideas of things that you can do with these additional practices.
So when I was learning how to produce music, I think I had a level of extreme commitment, and I was definitely very obsessive about it. So what I did is I broke it up into years. I think a lot of times music artists, especially when they first get into the game, they have expectations around quick results. But I've always kind of been a long-game thinker, and I thought to myself, it was probably going to take me at least five years, if not more likely eight years, to get really good at producing electronic dance music. So what I did is each year I gave myself a focus. So I would do extra practices, but I had a very specific focus. So the first year, my focus was on, uh, synthesis and sound design. So I was learning all the other aspects of electronic music, but that was my focus. So that entire year, all I was doing was watching YouTube videos, doing sessions with friends and mentors and people who I deem to be these amazing sound designers, trying to pick things up from them. And then I would take the knowledge and the things that I was learning, and I would make sure that I sectioned out time just to twist knobs and mess around and apply those new learnings.
So then the next year, my focus was drums. So I spent the entire year learning how to record, design, and build really strong-sounding dance music drums. And at the time, when I first got into learning how to produce, that was really the thing that I was the most interested in music-wise, was stuff that had really interesting sound design and really strong drums. So that's why I chose those two things as my main focus out of the gate. I knew that I was going to need to learn more about music theory, I knew that I was going to need to learn about songwriting and structure, but with the music that I was interested in, that's what I wanted to learn first. And every artist is different. They may not want to have one singular focus for an entire year. That's just something that worked for me. I like when things are simple and it's not super complex, and I can just focus on learning one thing really, really well, and then moving on to the next thing.
So if you want to be one of the best in the world and you're thinking about your music, you're asking yourself, "How could this be better? How could I get stronger? How could I be a better producer?"
So then the next aspect, story and brand. Say, for example, your project was comedic, or your brand was centered around comedy, like Dylan Francis. You could consider taking courses on comedy writing or comedy performance. You could read books on the art of comedy and how jokes are built. You could actually schedule practices where you're watching comedic movies or shows, and then you're analyzing the jokes around what worked and what didn't work. Don Diablo, who I've known from back in the day, taught himself graphic design because he knew he wanted his brand to be extremely visual and design-oriented. So he wanted to be able to communicate the ideas that he had in his head. So he took the time, he sectioned out that time to learn a skill set that he could apply to his game and his music project.
Another thing that you could do with your practices is you could read books on story, you could read books about branding, you could read books about script writing and storytelling. This is an incredible skill set to have. And even for me, being in the game for 20 years, I'm still trying to read as many books as I possibly can on story, marketing, script writing, character, so that I can be better whenever I go to work and serve the clients that I work with. And another thing that you could do as a practice is hiring a designer or a creative director. But before you hire them, you have a conversation with them, asking them if they'll teach you as you're going through the process. That part of your interest in contracting them is learning, and learning how to design, or learning how to art direct, or learning how to creative direct. Some creatives will absolutely be weird about this, but the good ones and the confident ones may be more than happy to teach as you're creating and collaborating together.
So next, we have awareness or advertising. Advertising is the megaphone telling people about what you've made. In my experience, the most creative people don't generally like advertising. The reason that they got into making whatever art they're making is because they love the medium and they want to contribute to that world of art. Most artists fantasize about just being able to make the art only, not having to deal with telling people about the art, and definitely not having to deal with selling the art. It's the music business, and so the business part of it, the sale part of it, goes hand in hand with the art. And if nobody knows about this great thing that you've created, it'll never get seen and it'll never get heard. If more creatives could embrace the idea of advertising to let people know about what they've created, instead of fighting against the idea, there'd likely be a lot more beautiful art in the world. There's so much incredible art and music out there that will never find an audience because the artist turns their nose up at the advertising component of trying to get their music out. But if they were to embrace this, what would that do for their game? And then ultimately, what would that do for the art?
So here's what you could do with your extra practices in terms of advertising and awareness: You could watch YouTube videos on advertising tactics and marketing trends. Read books or take classes on the psychology of advertising and consumer behavior. You could work with mentors and coaches who come from the advertising world, and you make sure to vet them and do your research. Make sure they're actually qualified to be giving you advice. But this can be a great method to really learn how to reach people through advertising and awareness.
So at this point, you're either fired up or you're exhausted listening to all the stuff that I'm saying, and I understand that it seems like a lot of work. But having interacted with many of the top artists in the world and the music industry, I can tell you one thing that they don't do: they don't complain about what it takes to do it. And it's never over for them. The game is ongoing for them, and there's a lot of aspects of the game that they do not like, but the game as a whole, they love. They find the combo of what they're good at and what they love, and they focus all of their attention on getting better at that thing. And they either learn how to accomplish the different aspects of the music game on a high level, either themselves, or they become excellent at hiring people to help them in the different areas that need improving, and then they fill in the rest. And in my experience, many of these top artists, they aren't driven by getting better for others. And to be honest, a lot of times they aren't driven by getting better for their fans. They're driven to get better for themselves, every day. That's the game that they're in. It's a one-on-one game, you versus you. And they're making one choice to constantly keep improving and keep getting better.
All right, last one, quality control. This is an interesting part of the game because art is subjective. Some people think that something is well done, and then others don't connect with it at all and they think it's trash. But to me, how you could get better at quality control is twofold. One, there's taking time to deeply study what you deem to be great, and what are great works of art. You have to know what quality is first to be able to control it. Spend time with the greats. Listen, listen to their stuff, watch their stuff, analyze both. Ask the question: "Why does this move me? What's great about this?" It's likely going to be hard to articulate a lot of the times, but try. Try to really analyze it. Try to really think about it. This would be like Kobe watching old videos of Michael Jordan, seeing what he could steal and what he could learn from him.
And then the second part of this is self-exploration. So we as artists, artists, we're an interesting bunch. Most of us are broken with jagged edges, soft underbellies, and overall, we're pretty sensitive people. That's what makes us good at art. But because of our past traumas, it influences both good and bad the way that we make decisions. Often, when it comes to critiquing our own work, the view is skewed because of these traumas or these scars. So we may be being too hard on a piece of work, so we hold on to it for too long and say, "Like, it's just not there yet," is something that the artist might say, when in actuality, it's been there for weeks. Or on the flip side, because the artist is desperate to get something new out because they need another hit, which affects upcoming gigs and touring, which are the lifeblood of the project, they end up releasing something that they know deep down isn't quality, and honestly, not something that's up to their standard or that they should really be putting their name on.
Now, how you could improve here, or what you could do with your extra practices, is by exploring those traumas. So therapy, meditation, journaling, working with a life coach, reading self-help books. This would absolutely change your confidence and how you think about making decisions around if something's good or bad, and if you should release it or not. In this game, taste is everything, but you have to be confident in your taste and what you deem to be quality and what your standard is.
So back to the beginning. What's the one choice that the top artists in the world are making that the other artists in the world are not? They first identify what will make them great, and then they map a plan that transforms them into the greatest version of the thing that they're seeking to become. It can all happen by making one big choice, having extreme, non-negotiable commitment, and being organized in the execution of that choice. And whether you're a Laker fan or not, Kobe made one choice. That's why if you follow hoops, you may or may not think he's one of the best of all time, but you can't argue that he's in the conversation for most people.
So I just saw my little brother a few weeks ago, and I hadn't seen him all year. He lost 100 pounds in a year, 290 to 190. And I asked him how he went through such an extreme transformation, and he tells me he made one big choice and he committed to that. He decided at the top of the year last year to try intermittent fasting. He tried it for a couple months, he saw really great results from it, and then he just decided to stick with it. And now he looks and he feels like an entirely different person.
And another example, it's going to sound name-droppy and it's not meant to be, but Skrillex was my first music mentor. He was my neighbor, he lived across the street from me. His manager knew my manager, and we first linked up. He wasn't huge yet, but all he was doing was session after session with different established electronic music artists around the world, trying to learn from them and trying to get better. He would spend his own money traveling to work and learn from these artists. I remember when he got back from working with Noisia, and his music felt like it changed light years from the stuff that I had heard prior to those sessions. He had an obsession and extreme commitment to getting better, even from the jump. Instead of taking a vacation, he spent the same amount of money to take a trip to Europe just to learn.
And another example of something like this is, from what I understand, Jerry Seinfeld writes every single day, and he's done that for 40 plus years ever since he got into the game of comedy. He committed to a practice of writing every single day and trying to get better. He had a vision of wanting to be one of the best out there, and he made one choice, followed by extreme commitment.
So these are all examples of people who used one choice, and that one choice affected everything. Keep in mind, your life and your career is long. There's no door closing on you. And if you think that there's a door closing on you, you're probably the one closing the door. You have time to craft your game and become undeniably amazing, remarkably amazing, one of the best in the game. But likely, that will be through making a few very big choices with extreme commitment.
And if you're looking to up your game around story, brand, awareness, I have a bunch of videos on this channel about those particular areas that we will link in the end. But good hanging, hope this helps. See you next time.