\n<\/p>\n
\n\tFor musicians, building a following has become more difficult than ever in the past decade, with social media segmenting fanbases and competition from musicians who might not even be real<\/a>. The organizers of SXSW<\/a>, the annual Austin music festival where boots-on-the-ground record execs see real musicians perform and sign them to labels each spring, have produced a docuseries called The Music Blueprint<\/em> in which artists explain how they\u2019ve found their footing in changing times. (Disclosure: Rolling Stone<\/em>\u2019s parent company, P-MRC, has held a 50 percent stake in SXSW since 2021.)<\/p>\n \n\tThe Music Blueprint\u2019s<\/em> first three episodes are on YouTube now and feature R&B\/hip-hop artist Kaash Paige, alt-rockers the Sophs, and \u201clive code artist\u201d DJ_Dave, who each disclose the secrets behind their own unique paths to recognition. The next two installments, which will feature Fancy Hagood and Shakey Graves, are set to premiere on March 6. Here are the most interesting lessons we learned from the first three episodes:<\/p>\n \n\tKaash Paige started making music in high school. Her father had a background in the music business already, so she asked him to help record her. \u201cShe\u2019d be like, \u2018Dad, Dad, record me, record me,’\u201d her father, Denauld Woolen, said in her episode. \u201cAnd I was like, \u2018You\u2019re going to record every day?\u2019 I could see the fire that she had in her eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tPaige had her music on Soundcloud to begin with but then started diversifying her channels, eventually scoring a TikTok hit. In the clip, Kayvan Daragheh, who works at Genius, described TikTok and Instagram as making the biggest impact for artists right now. \u201cIt\u2019s kind of crazy, because you just need to be on all of them,\u201d he said. \u201cYou could have something pop off on Threads and then you\u2019re in a completely different situation.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tPaige manages herself now, but she has already planned the infrastructure of her music empire. \u201cI\u2019m gonna get a killer booking agent, a dope assistant, and I already have an amazing business management team that manages my finances for me; I met them at SXSW, actually,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd an amazing attorney. When it comes to all those different things, you want to be around people who can teach you what they\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t\tJust start recording as much as possible.<\/strong>\t<\/h3>\n
\n\t\tGet your music on every possible channel.<\/strong>\t<\/h3>\n
\n\t\tOnce the ball starts rolling, assemble the right crew.<\/strong>\t<\/h3>\n