The Best Music Video Creators In Colorado

colorado music video makers creators videographers

Let’s face it, there’s a different caliber of people in all professions. Some are just hobbyists and then you have your experts. Your professionals who have dedicated countless hours to perfecting their craft.

When it comes to making music videos, you have countless options, but only a few of those options can do more than just point and shoot. As an artist, you should want and need a videographer who knows how to turn your song into a visual story that appeals to the masses. Anything less is probably just a waste of time and money.

Of course, you can work with whoever the hell you want, but considering the odds are already stacked against you, it would be advantageous to your career to release visuals that enhance your image and make some random bloke in Canada replay your video 10 times before he finally realizes he’s hooked.

There are countless videographers and video production studios in Colorado for you to choose from. But, we made it easy for you to pick. Here’s an ongoing list of who WE plan on working with to create music videos for the artists we partner with in the near future.

None of these people are our friends or cousins, they’re just dope people who do dope work. So, if you think we left someone out, post a link to their work in the comments so we can add them.

DeadLit Studios

https://youtu.be/KS2HPoRrXkk

Video God Visuals

https://www.facebook.com/VideoGodVisuals/

Digital Myle

https://vimeo.com/365708401

https://www.facebook.com/digitalmyle/

Noble Bison Productions

https://www.noblebisonproductions.com/portfolio/shady-oaks-home

Leland Schmitt

Ryan Paxton Productions

Kevin Lee Kirchner

J Angel Visuals

Chris Kittrell

11 Resources That Every Musician Should Be Using (2020)

11/23/2020 – We’ve learned about a lot of cool new tools So we’ll be adding those shortly. Post in the comments so you’ll receive an update.

Everyone out there who makes music knows “the struggle”. The daunting and unforgiving task of making a name for yourself in the music world. On your road to fame, two things will make your journey that less arduous: one, being organized, and two, being resourceful. In our opinion, the later of the two, along with your raw talent, will ultimately determine your growth factor.

So, in an attempt to make your job a little easier, we’ve compiled a list of resources (that you could start using today) which we truly believe can be instrumental in helping you achieve success.

If you have a suggestion you think should be added to this list, please leave a comment down below and if we add it, we’ll send you a $10 iTunes gift card as a thank you for your contribution.

Enjoy!

1. Buffer

buffer

Website: buffer.com

Cost: FREE (for basic features)

Why you should use it:  With so many social media accounts available today, it’s hard to stay on top of them all. Using buffer will allow you to schedule automatic posts to your Facebook fan page, Twitter, Google plus, and now Pinterest account too. You can customize different post times for different accounts. It really comes in handy if you don’t have a dedicated social media manager.

2. Next Big Sound

nextbigsound

Website: www.nextbigsound.com

Cost: FREE (for basic features)

Why you should use it: Ummm, because Pandora just bought it or to put it simpler, Next big sound allows you to track your growth across multiple platforms, including, soundcloud, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Wikipedia.

3. NoiseTrade

noisetrade

Website: noisetrade.com

Cost: FREE

Why you should use it: Noise trade allows you to release your music without requiring people to pay for it. What makes it different from other music hosting platforms (band camp) is that it gives people the option to leave you a tip in an aesthetically pleasing manner. And trust us, a lot of people do! One more thing, you’re still able to collect an email in exchange for a download regardless of whether your fans leave you a tip or not.

4. WIX

wix

Website: www.wix.com

Cost: FREE (for basic features)

Why you should use it: Wix.com allows anyone to create a free website. Businesses and artists miss out on potential fans when they don’t have a dedicated place for people to find out all they want to about them. Keep in mind that a Facebook page is NOT a website. With Wix you can send people to one single place to hear your music, watch your videos, subscribe to your newsletter, find your social media accounts and see when your next show is.

5. MailChimp

mailchimp

Website: mailchimp.com

Cost: FREE (up to 2,000 subscribers)

Why you should use it: Relying solely on social media to reach your fans is a pretty bleak marketing strategy. Every artist NEEDS a mailing list by which they can reach their fans directly. You provide the emails and Mail chimp provides the convenience of messaging them.

6. AUDIAM

audiam

Website: www.audiam.com

Cost: FREE (25% administrative fee if it gets you additional money from other people using your music on YouTube.)

Why you should use it: How many home videos or even “professional youtubber” videos have you seen that have a song playing in the background? Chances are they just put that song in their video without acquiring a sync license let alone permission. If that was your song being used, Audiam would automatically find it and place ads in that video which the revenue generated from it would go to you. It’s free to use and Audiam only takes a small cut when they collect money on your behalf. Side-note: The guy you created TuneCore is the same guy who created Audiam.

7. Dropbox

dropbox

Website: www.dropbox.com

Cost: FREE (up to 2gb)

Why you should use it: In the music business being organized can save you a lot of time and frustration. Enter Dropbox – It’s the one place you can store press photos, press kits, MP3s, show flyers, and any other essential material you could possibly need to send someone while you’re on the go. They have an app for every platform, so if you add a file via one, they’ll all update at once.

8. Eyedea Worx

eyedeaworx

Website: www.eyedeaworx.com

Cost: Prices Vary

Why you should use it: Image is everything in this business. Eyedea Worx is your one-stop-shop for quality CD printing & duplication, album cover printing as well as all your marketing paraphernalia like key chains, lanyards, thumb drives, t-shirts and more through their off shoot NotionWorx.com.

9. Sound Exchange

soundexchange

Website: www.soundexchange.com

Cost: FREE

Why you should use it: With rise of streaming music services like Pandora and Spotify, it’s essential you sign up for sound exchange as your music could be playing across one of these platforms and you not even know it, but what’s worse is that you could be getting paid for the streaming of your music and not even know it. While ASACAP and BMI collect payments from terrestrial radio, Sound Exchange is a performing rights organization with the sole purpose of collecting royalty payments from streaming music services. It’s a different realm, with a different payment structure.

10. Legal Zoom

legalzoom

Website: www.legalzoom.com

Cost: $10 – $30 per document

Why you should use it: By now you’ve either heard the rumors or experienced it for yourself – there are some shady people in music industry. Handshake deals and trusting some of these people to do the right thing might be the wrong mindset to have. Legal zoom gives you the means to protect your interests through the means of standard legal agreements and contracts. Most of which are less than $20. It’s important to put everything in writing so all parties will know what’s expected and what will be expected should someone not hold their end of the deal.

11. PledgeMusic

pledgemusic

Website: www.pledgemusic.com

Cost: 15% commission on each pledge

Why you should use it: Releasing a quality project can get pretty expensive, especially if you make no comprise when it comes to quality. Pledge Music can help you raise the funds to finance your next project by leveraging your loyal fan-base. It’s like kickstarter but for people who make music.

12. Suggestions???

If you found this article helpful, please share it with your music buddies so they can benefit too!

Top 12 Ways To Promote Your Music

First off, let’s be realistic, not all music is good music, so the results may vary for those who have not quite honed your craft. However, if you have the ambition and the know-how, you can take your career to new heights with less effort than you think. For those of you who with raw talent, your music just needs to be heard by as many people as possible, and the rest will be history. To help you out on your journey of taking over the music industry we’ve compiled a list of what we think are the top 12 ways to promote your music. If you think we’re missing something please feel free to comment below. Enjoy, and good luck!

 

*In no particular order*

1. Ask your friends to help promote your songs via social media.
We all have those people who say they support us; if that’s the case it’s time for you to initiate a roll call. Find at least ten (10) friends who really support you and ask them to commit to sharing your music on a designated interval. Even with just 7 people you can designate one day of the week for each person to share your music on Facebook or Twitter. That way you have all 7 days of the week covered. If each of those people share your music with someone they actually know there’s a better chance that your music will get heard.

2. Independent Music Blogs
There are literally thousands of music blog sites out there, that I’m sure would be more than happy to promote your music in exchange for you promoting their site. Do a Google search of say “indie music blog” click on all the credible links that pop up and find their contact information. If they don’t happen to have a dedicated music submission form make sure you send them an initial email introducing yourself & ask how to get your music on their site.

3. Flyers
When you walk around your city I’m sure you notice all the concert flyers posted on poles, bus stops, in coffee shops, clothing stores and anywhere else you can think of. Well why not get flyers made promoting your new release and post them up around the city as if it’s the biggest thing to hit the town? If they stay up long enough and are visually appealing people will get to asking, “Who the F%^& is [Enter Band Name Here]”. People won’t listen to your music if they don’t even know it exists…

4. Stickers
Who doesn’t love an awesome sticker?! In fact our Sales Manager is a sticker Hoarder! [view photo]. Before you go about getting stickers made, make sure you have an awesome logo designed first. People will be much more willing to hold onto a sticker than anything else. Also, If you’re wondering who to have print your stickers, check out this company: InkMonstr.com

5. Shows
What better place to find music lovers to market your music to than at a concert??? Start contacting the promoters and music venues in your city and find out what you need to do in order to get added to the ticket. In my opinion, if you’re not booked as the headliner you should be asking for nada, except for the opportunity. You’ll have 30+ minutes to put on a killer show and show the 100+ people in the audience why your band deserves their ears. If you’re as good as you think you are, you’ll leave with some new loyal fans who can find all your music via the website on the stickers you gave them or the CD you sold them after the show *hint hint*.

6. Features
For the MC’s and Singers out there, if you’re good then people will surely ask who you are when they hear you on their friend’s new song. It’s FREE promotion! Consider all the mainstream artists you hear all over the radio on other people’s songs, but have yet to release a new project. Doing features is an easy way to stay relevant, as well as grow your fan-base.

7. YouTube
YouTube is our generation’s A&R. GhostTown, Justin Beiber, Iggy Azzaela, and who knows how many others have and will gain success because of YouTube. Singing a cover to a popular song alone and uploading it to YouTube will likely garnish you one-thousand or more views. If you Rap, find the hottest rapper out right now, memorize the lyrics to one of his most popular songs, Rap it on video and then upload it to YouTube. If you’ve never done it before, you cannot say, “It doesn’t work” or that it doesn’t achieve what you’re trying to accomplish. If you’re ambitious enough to try it out, please don’t make the mistake of forgetting to add links to your personal music and social media pages in the video description.

8. Business Cards
You’re in the music business right?

9. Website
Unfortunately a Facebook page is Not your website. Facebook IS a website but it is not your website (it’s Zuckerberg’s). So find a cool domain name like www.MeganBurtt.com and turn it into something you’re proud of. Not to mention, when someone Googles your band name, your website will usually be at the top of the list.

10. Twitter
Twitter is a very powerful tool for any musician. When you can grasp the concept that almost everyone and anyone in the world is just a tweet away, you’ll understand the true power of Twitter. Don’t make the mistake that so many rookie artists make of tweeting random people links to their music. How annoying is that? Instead use Twitter to make friends. People like conversation, but more importantly people like ATTENTION. So give people what they want, and they’ll give you what you want – their Attention right?

11. Music Publisher
I’m sure you’ve been watching your favorite TV show and just so happen to notice that awesome song playing in the background, right? Well, if it wasn’t for that band’s music publisher you might have never heard it. Music publishers make money only when you make money so they have every reason to promote your music to the fullest extent and utilize every connection they have to get it featured in a TV show, Commercial, or Video Game. In case you’re wondering how music publishing works, check out our Q&A with Denver based music publishing company Lyric House.

12. Giveaways 
Now who doesn’t love free S$%t?? For a giveaway you can utilize Facebook or Twitter and post a photo or a song. Let people know that you’ll be selecting one of the people who share it to win a  T-shirt, signed copy of your album, a free ticket to your show, or whatever else you can think of. There’s multiple ways to conduct a giveaway, and some will garner better results than others, so get creative.

 

 

If there’s anything you can think of or that you know works please leave it in the comments section below!!

Lyric House: The Fundamentals of Music Publishing

For those of us who are not very familiar with the many facets of the music business; Music publishing is often one of the most confusing aspects of the industry. In the print world, one might regard the act of “publishing” as taking a writers literary works, turning them into a full fledged book and making it available for distribution to retail outlets. Music publishing is somewhat similar- A songwriter transfers ownership of his or her song to a music publishing company which then goes about trying to monetize it through various channels.

However, it’s not that simple. Luckily we were fortunate to have a few questions answered about the business by the Founder and President of  Lyric House Publishing, Jessica Cole. Jessica, a Graduate of CU Denver is more knowledgeable on the subject than some of us might ever be. So if your’re a singer/songwriter who’s looking for another opportunity to get your music heard, as well as get a return on your investment then take a minute to find out how music publishing integrates in to the industry.

Also, if you have any questions on the matter, please leave them in the comment section below, and Ms. Cole will answer them at her her earliest convenience.

What made you decide to start a publishing company?

Jessica: It initially started with my personal songwriting and music business background. I
attended the University of Colorado at Denver for music business and was fortunate
enough to experience a great internship in Nashville. I loved the songwriting/music
community there in Nashville, it really sparked an interest in me to create something
similar in Denver. After moving back to Denver, this interest grew into putting together a
collective, or association for area songwriters. As the songwriter association began to
grow, I was amazed at the various talent that would join our association or visit the
association as guests. I started to build upon the idea of adding licensable songs to a
catalog from the songwriters/artists I was working with. Soon after, it culminated into the
idea to start a publishing company so there could be an even bigger and more proactive
creative outlet to pitch the songs and various talent we signed. One of the first
goals was to make our music available and pitch it to licensees/artists all over the world.
It’s amazing how much has happened in just a years time. We now have over 50 artists
and have sub-publishing partners pitching our catalog in all major territories all over the
world.

What obstacles did you have to overcome when you were first starting out?

Jessica: The initial obstacle was getting other music friends and colleagues on board for
the idea. Music publishing can be one of the more confusing aspects of the music
business, so it took some time and work to get everyone on the same page – artists,
writers, interns and employees. It’s just like starting any other small business as an
entrepreneur. The difference is that the barriers to entry have their own set of obstacles,
many of which are rooted in music business/publishing knowledge and industry
networks.

What’s the difference between: Composition, Song Sheet, and Master?

Jessica: The composition is the song itself. The song sheet is the written sheet music of
the composition. The Master is the sound recording of the composition.

For those of us less educated in the subject; can you explain how music
publishing works, and how each party involved benefits?

Jessica: Music publishing is all about the song and the songwriter. The songwriter writes
the song and the music publisher works and manages the song. The publisher does this
by pitching the song for licensed uses such as: “cuts” by major label artists, getting the
song placed in TV, film, advertisements, video games, etc. or setting up co-writes with
other well known artists, songwriters or producers. Each party benefits by splitting the
payments when a license is issued for use of the song.

How much does it cost to register a copyright?

Jessica: $35

How did/do you go about finding artists to represent?

Jessica: Word of mouth, industry referrals and artist/songwriter referrals. These are the
top three ways other than our own personal discoveries.

At this point in time, do you feel like there is one particular genre that seems
to be more appealing to people producing TV shows or commercials?

Jessica: It’s all very subjective, but generally TV shows/commercials like the indie pop/
rock genre or bigger recognizable songs for bigger commercials or TV show
promotions.

Is pitching a song to a record label or producer a fairly easy task?

Jessica: No, it’s not an easy task. I suppose you could say pitching (in and of itself) is easy if
you have the connections and the network. However, getting the song heard by the
right people/person and getting that song recorded by an artist, is extremely hard.
Sometimes a label person or producer is the right person, but often times, your
chances are always better pitching directly to the artist.

What must an artist or band have in line before they should even consider
approaching a publishing house?

Jessica: This depends on where they envision their music being promoted and placed. If
they are at the stage in their songwriting career where they are looking to write for artist
placement then I think that should have a strong catalog already built with good quality
demos recorded for the publisher to choose from.

What essential clauses do publishing contracts entail?

Jessica: There are many, but two primary clauses to point out would be – copyright
transfer and warranties/representations.

The copyright transfer means the songwriter transfers the copyright of the song or
song(s), to the publisher. This clause gives the publisher the exclusive rights mentioned
earlier.

The warranties and representations clause means everything the parties are agreeing
to in the contract, is true and factual. For example, if you said you were the sole writer
on the song, then that information should be true and accurate.

Music Publishers, Record Labels, and Performing Rights Organizations – Can you connect the dots for us?

Jessica: The music publisher pitches and manages the song. Record labels sell, promote and
distribute their artist’s sound recordings (CD’s, digital downloads, etc.) and the PRO’s
collect and distribute performing rights royalties and pay them to the music publisher
and songwriters (for example when a song is played over the radio, that is considered a
“performance royalty”). They all connect when, for example, an artist releases a new
single on the radio to promote their upcoming record. This promotes and increases
business for all three!

As far as hip-hop goes, artists generally never own the beat on which they
lay their vocals. Would you say the process of publishing hip-hop tracks is more
complicated than that of any other genre?

Jessica: Yes it can be, especially when it comes to sampling and getting clearance. We
generally do not represent songs that have samples in them for this reason.

What is the price range that licenses typically sell for?

Jessica: Licenses don’t actually “sell”. A “sale” is an actual transfer of ownership. The
licenses a music publisher issues are negotiated and have various terms, stipulations
and often, durations. The price ranges are very subjective depending on the license and
the use. Major advertisement music licenses generally pay the highest fees, while a
small background use in a cable TV show could be licensed for no upfront fee (referred
to as gratis) with the understanding there will be television performance royalties from
the PRO’s. While other TV shows may pay an upfront fee as high as 5 figures.

 

Have you ever heard a song you liked playing in the background of  one of  your favorite TV shows(True Blood, Walking Dead), or what about in that new movie you went to go see last week? Chances are whoever wrote the song received a pretty nice paycheck, as well as some premium exposure, thanks in-part to their publishing house.

 

Don’t forget to like Lyric House on Facebook –>>