Resources for podcasters
I love sharing knowledge with my fellow creators, in music as in podcasting. Below you'll find the tools that I use the most in my podcasting work. I hope that they will be helpful to you in your podcasting journey. Some of the links are affiliate links, which means that I would get a tiny commission if you were to buy their subscription. It's a free way for you to thank me for sharing what I know, as it does not add to your costs if you decide to buy those products.
WORKFLOW MANAGEMENT
In a year and a half, I have recorded, edited, published and promoted over 40 episodes of my podcast mostly on my own (I had a co-host who helped with social media for one season). The only way I was able to keep all the balls in the air was to have an extremely streamlined workflow that minimized the amount of work I had to do for each episode I release. It takes some work upfront to design and set up a workflow that is optimal for you, but it's so worth it. If you'd like some advice on how to optimize your workflow, Work With Me!
- Airtable is my control center. I use it to receive guest forms, plan out episodes, auto-generate show notes, send pre-formatted emails, plan social media posts and more. You can do quite a bit with the free plan!
- I also use a free email template chrome extension to standardize my frequent email workflows and spend as little time writing emails as possible.
RECORDING SETUP
Since I have a recording studio in my home, my setup might be more than most podcasters need. So I will recommend some alternatives that are cheaper too.
Combo:
- This interface/mic combo would be perfectly fine.
Microphone:
- I strongly suggest you avoid using condenser microphones unless you have a treated space. Pick a dynamic microphone.
- USB mics avoid the need for an interface (make sure it's a dynamic microphone).
- I use the Shure SM7B
Interface:
- If you go with a mic that is not a USB one, you'll need an interface to connect it to your computer. I recommend M-Audio's entry level interfaces.
- I use UAD's Apollo x4.
CAPTURING & EDITING
All-in-one solution: Descript acquired Squadcast recently, so you have an all in one solution. A subscription to Descript gives you access to both! Squadcast captures interviews at the highest quality by recording each participant locally, then uploading to the cloud. No more glitches or degraded sound quality from stream recordings (e.g. Zoom). Descript provides automatic transcription, and powerful tools to reduce long pauses, eliminate filler words, create clips for social media and more. There is a free trial available!
MARKETING
- Use a social media publishing tool to schedule out your posts. Some platforms, like Facebook, have their own scheduler. However, I prefer to use one scheduler for everything. I use this one.
- I also use my own Canva templates for designing social media posts.
Resources for musicians
I am only recommending resources I actually read/buy/use and like enough to regularly tell friends about. Some of the links below may be affiliate links. This means that clicking them could potentially earn me a small commission for referring you. This commission is at no extra cost to you and is a free and easy way to thank me for the recommendation. I would never recommend something I haven’t tried or wouldn’t buy again.
PRODUCTION & MIXING
EAR TRAINING:
SoundGym.co – Ear training game. Think of it as DuoLingo for mixers.
FREE PRACTICE STEMS:
Mixing Secrets Multitrack Library from Mike Senior/ Cambridge Music & Technology.
Puremix.net – Watch how the top engineers and producers do their thing. You also get to download some of the stems and remix them for a contest! Winners get cool plugins. Some free material available
YOUTUBE TUTORIALS:
Mixing with the Masters – Seminars, tutorials and interviews with the industry greats.
Pensado’s Place – All things audio + interviews with industry greats.
Musician on a Mission – Concise and well-produced short tutorials on mixing, mostly in Logic.
Make Pop Music – Mostly indie/pop production.
Andrew Huang – Production in various genres.
Yuri Wong – Recreating songs/scores using only stock Logic sounds.
Produce Like a Pro – Production, gear, mixing, interviews & more
Produce Like a Boss – Production for the total beginner.
Aubrey Whitfield – Some mix/production tutorials, but also has her music.
Logic Pro Help – Free tutorials on how to use Logic Pro X. They also have paid courses.
“Home Studio University” by Musician on a Mission
I learned a good chunk of the mixing foundations by going through this course and receiving monthly feedback on my mixes. Material is concise, well organized and well produced. There’s also a private FB group with a very supportive community. When I joined I was one of a few women. Now there’s quite a few more and that’s super cool. Free tutorials on their YouTube channel below.
SYNC RESEARCH
IMDBPro – Research what supervisors are working on. Not always up-to-date.
TuneFind – Research songs that appeared in TV shows and films.
iSpot.tv – Research songs that appeared in major ad campaigns.
TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS
CATALOG MANAGEMENT
DISCO – Catalog management & pitching.
Airtable – Spreadsheets on steroids. Not quite as flexible as an old-school relational database but quite powerful.
BACKUP & CROSS-DEVICE SYNC
Dropbox – Cross-device sync + backup recent files for quick access.
BackBlaze – Online backup of all my system files, including my backup drive. If my drive fails, they’ll send me a drive with all my files intact. Totally worth it for less than $10/mo.
I also use TimeMachine on Mac. For more info about how to set up your multi-layer backup system, read: Wrap your head around backups – musician edition.
ACCOUNTING & TAXES
TurboTax – Tax software, integrates seamlessly with Quickbooks
Quickbooks – Accounting software. Automatically track your business mileage, receipts & more.
PRODUCTIVITY
MailButler – Email templates, link tracking & more.
HarvestApp – Tracking your time if you do contract work.
MARKETING
Canva – Create artwork.
Bandzoogle – Website creation tailored to music artists. I use it for 23rdhr.com.
Mailchimp – Email marketing tool with a reasonably powerful free tier.
bit.ly – Link shortening & tracking.
odesli.co – Link to song/album on all available streaming platforms/online stores
SONGWRITING
“Shortcuts to Great Song Lyrics (self-paced)” by Robin Frederick.
Robin’s course is hands-down the best lyric course. In addition to being a true music industry veteran, she’s articulate, to the point, practical, analytical, up-to-date, and passionate about helping you develop your lyrical artistry. For only $95, you even get access to her office hours where you can get your song reviewed. It’s the biggest bang for your buck you’ll ever get.
BOOKS | READING LIST
MIXING
“Mixing Secrets” by Mike Senior
Excellent book explaining the fundamentals one needs to know to start mixing.
SONGWRITING
“Shortcuts to Songwriting for Film & TV” by Robin Frederick
This is by far my favorite because it is most relevant to my goal, concisely written, up-to-date, and simply full of great techniques. I have the this one the most for my exercises. Robin recently updated the book and split it into 3 volumes, Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3. I have a slightly older edition that’s just one book.
“Song Starters – 365 Lyric, Melody & Chord Ideas” by Robin Frederick
Short prompts to jumpstart your songwriting session. Great to have on an uninspired day.
“Writing Better Lyrics” by Pat Pattison
An industry classic. A bit more on the academic side, and not as nuanced when it comes to the particular purpose of the song. It’s about the craft in a vacuum, unburdened by industry needs or trends. In-depth exercises with various songwriting tools and techniques. Very meta.
“Songwriting Without Boundaries” by Pat Pattison
In-depth exploration of metaphors, object writing, meter and rhyme. Definitely worth going through. Again, very meta.
MUSIC BUSINESS
“The Plain & Simple Guide to Music Publishing” by Randall D. Vixen
“How to Make It in the New Music Business” by Ari Herstand
“Break the Business” by Ryan Kairalla
“Crowdstart: The Ultimate Guide to a Powerful & Profitable Crowdfunding Campaign” by Ariel Hyatt
OTHER MUSIC-RELATED BOOKS I LOVED
“The Song Machine” – John Seabrook
“The Art of Asking” – Amanda Palmer
“Tribes” – Seth Godin
“The Practice: Shipping Creative Work” – Seth Godin