You are not limited to uploading only music videos on YouTube.
As a musician, you will have more to share than only your songs and latest album.
By doing so, you increase your channel to be found on YouTube AND on Google!
If you use topics that are often searched by fellow musicians and possible fans, you will greatly increase the chance of your channel ranking higher in search results.
Here are some video ideas that can help you to create a wide variety of content, while remaining on the topic of your style and genre.
Test out what works best for you, but above all, keep doing what you like to do most.
Composing music!
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1. Live shows
Aside from your live shows that you do in a local pub or on stage, you can also go live on YouTube. This is an excellent chance to show people how you perform live.
It will also create an opportunity for beginner musicians to have their first live shows ever. Promote it online before you go live to attract the most viewers possible. You could even go as far as using online ticket tools like Eventbrite.com and organize a live show where people can buy tickets for. Then send out the live show link and have people attend. It will give you the extra bonus of earning some cash on the side.
2. Behind the scenes
Have you ever noticed the credits roll after a movie, where they show the behind the scenes of how it is done? This gives an excellent insight into how everything is planned and set up to create perfect results in the end.
In somewhat of the same style as vlogging, you can share your routines in the studio or on tour. Consider topics like recording an album, how many tries it takes to record a solid guitar solo. You can include interactions with other people, show how you set up your gear and equipment, or give your audience simply a basic vibe of your studio or practice session.
3. Tutorials
In addition to behind the scenes, you can also create tutorials.
With tutorials, you can show people how you record your instruments, or how you set up your YouTube videos. You can get as detailed as you want.
Check with a simple YouTube search what people are looking for in terms of studio tips or musicians tips.
Some popular searches include: recording your instrument with a certain type of microphone, connecting all your gear to your computer, or setting up a pedal-board for guitar/bass players.
These are excellent things that people actually search for, and they can help you to get more people to your YouTube channel.
4. Gear reviews
Another golden video format that attracts new viewers to your channel is gear reviews.
There are many videos that show how certain pieces of gear work and how you can/should use them. If you go in depth with a certain tech item, you can share your honest opinion and help your viewers decide if it is the ideal piece of gear for them.
You will probably have something lying around that you use every time you record your instruments.
If you are good at this, you can also decide if you want to buy gear just to review.
You can also reach out to certain brands to ask if you can review their product.
Do a review on an instrument of choice, a piece of software you like to use, or a piece of gear that you are planning to use. Don’t forget to do a quick YouTube search to understand what people are looking for. What types of gear reviews are getting a lot of views, and what can you add to that to make a difference?
5. Top ten videos
Have something that could fit in a top ten? The top ten instruments you like, top ten musicians that inspire you, top ten live concerts that you have visited or want to visit.
You do not have to stick with ten of course, but the idea of a list can work wonders as they are very often searched on YouTube.
If you find enough topics to make top 10 videos about, then go for it!
6. Music lessons
Not only is this an excellent option for music teachers, teaching what you already know can really help other musicians. An magnificent tutorial can be as valuable as an honest video of your progress, even if you make mistakes.
Many beginner musicians have captured their progress on video from day one. This makes for a wonderful video series that a lot of people want to watch. It shows the genuine struggle to master an instrument and can generate a lot of new and interested subscribers.
7. Music play-throughs
A music play-through is exactly what the name suggests. You do a play-through of your favorite songs or your own songs. Your own songs can be entertaining if people are studying on how to play a certain solo in a song, but doing a play-through on a song that is popular in your genre can also work wonders, as people are searching for that.
You can do a mix of both to understand what attracts the most people to your channel. Stay in your own music style as much as possible if you are just starting out, but feel free to do some out of the box songs that can surprise your audience!
8. Cover songs
In the line of play-through, you can also do cover songs.
The main difference here is that you give your own “spin” to an existing song, that is preferably trending on YouTube.
Not only cover them in the original version, but add some of your own flair. Playing a classical version of a metal song can attract a lot of views.
Add some creative editing and you are good to go!
9. Comedy
Many comedy channels on YouTube do really well. Depending on your style as a musician, it might work wonders. Double check to see if it connects with your ideal audience and try out some comic sketches. They usually work best if they are somewhat relatable, but sometimes the silly ones can give some perfect results too.
Some good examples of musicians who add comedy to their content are:
10. Reaction videos
There are tons of reaction videos online, and you either love them or hate them. Depending on the type of videos you want to react to, it can give you positive results and attract a lot of new viewers.
Some types of reaction videos are actually helpful, like the “music teacher reacts to an artist” series. Give feedback on a piece of music being performed and explain what is happening from a technical standpoint.
Another option is to react to instruments you have never seen or heard, or songs in a style that is new to you.
Maybe you have never heard a classical piece of music (shame 🙂
Show everyone your reaction when you hear it for the first time.
You can also react to entertaining music videos or even react to your past live-shows.
Make it as entertaining as possible, instead of simply watching a video for 10 minutes with no reaction from you. Add some value!
With these types of videos, trends are a valuable source of new ideas.
Bonus: Combination of some
In the end, it is up to you what you want to create on your channel.
You can mix and match the examples I talked about in this post.
It will always be a combination of what you like to create and what attracts your ideal audience. If you find the right mix, you enjoy your journey to grow on YouTube!!
Keep creating awesome music, and share it with the world!
Maurice from Music-Mindset.com
