Webster’s dictionary defines the word ‘Story’ as one of the following:
- An account of imaginary or real people and events told for entertainment.
- An account of past events in someone’s life or the evolution of something.
Having a story for your artist project is paramount to finding success in the music industry. Because stories are what we humans relate to, even on a deeper level than the music itself. So while you can have perfect mixdowns, impeccable songwriting, and all the other technical details of music production dialed in, without having the main story for your brand and yourself, your potentials fans will have a lot harder time finding something about you to latch on to.
But the reality is that so many artists emphasize these technical parts that they completely ignore the legwork that needs to be done to find their own story that sets them apart.
So to remedy this once and for all, we invited Franz Hilberath onto the latest episode of the Magnetic Meaning podcast to talk about the word “story” and how that single word can be the one word that defines your career.
Pre-Order Franz’s Publication Which Highlights Some Of The Best and Most Deserving Underground Acts About To Break Through.
Who Is Franz Hilberath?
Franz Hilberath is one of the bass music scene’s leading publicists. He’s worked with Zeds Dead and many others, helping artists at every level of their careers effectively share their stories.
What sets Franz apart is his adoration of narrative and its power on the human race. Having studied literature for most of his adult life, the philosophies of the ancient Greeks and the iconic words of history’s greatest thinkers almost come second nature to him, and his unique way of extracting the logos, ethos, and pathos out of the artists he works with is second to none.
But by applying these timeless narrative qualities to the music industry, he has been able to help break artists’ careers, often connecting with them when their technical chops are second to none but they are still struggling to have their music breakthrough.
Franz’s unique skillset and approach to public relations allow him to help the artist uncover their voice and story to add to the conversation, whether it’s tapping into the origin stories of artists like SuperAve. or highlighting the sounds that Zeds Dead has championed since the earliest days of their career.
Connect With Franz Here
Why Telling A Story Is Hard For Artists
Talking with Franz over the thirty minutes or so we were on the call, it became clear how few artists prioritize storytelling in their music and brand. And it can be easy to see why…
In today’s music industry, artists are told repeatedly that they need to push out content by any means possible. There is such a clamor about what to post, and there is next to no dialogue about WHY you’re posting in the first place. Social media is a tool to communicate with your fans, and if you’re using it to make sure your name is constantly at the top of people’s feeds, the best you can hope for is to be treading water instead of building towards something more significant.
But with a bit of introspection, time, hard thinking, and some meditation about what you have to bring to the unique table, you can help establish your own story that can help be a throughline of your entire career and help guide every post and message you share with the world.
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How Music Producers Can Find Their Story
This is where things get complicated because finding what makes you different from the sea of other producers can be hard. After all, chances are that you see yourself as being pretty similar to most other producers doing the same things you are. When finding your own story as an artist, it’s best to look at your life and passions and use every facet of your life as a resource and stone to be turned to when discovering your own story.
In the podcast, Franz talked about one of the artists he’s worked with before; that is a perfect example of this.
The artist SuperAve. is a bass-music producer who grew up on the street and is infusing a lot of his music with the more laid-back swagger of southern hip-hop. That simple sentence alone is a story with enough legs to define a brand and make a career.
From there, you can see where his super-hero style branding comes from, stylized like that of a comic book superhero. From there, the music is infused with the same sonic qualities of the music he listened to during his upbringing. Super = superhero, and Ave = Avenue: the streets where he came upon.
From there, social media, media coverage, and everything else only worked to help facilitate and communicate that message to the masses. Franz was there to facilitate all of that and help bring that message and story to light.
What Having A Unique Story Is Crucial To Success In The Music Industry
Telling a cohesive story through your brand, music, visuals, and message is not about finding success overnight. It’s the opposite.
Storytelling through music is about playing the long game for your music career; each article, post, song, release, show, and more acts as adding one more brick to the foundation of a job that will ideally last a lifetime.
There is a reason why so many TikTok artists blow up for a season and then are quickly forgotten about; they don’t have a story and narrative to which all the fans who hear them can latch on. But when you take the time to find out what makes you an artist unique and meditate on your logos, ethos, and pathos, everything else will fall into place.
The content you post will be easier and more natural, the music your produce will have more cohesion with the rest of your catalog, and potential fans will be able to relate to you on a human level instead of just admiring your chops in the studio.
We dive into all of this and so much more in the podcast, so be sure to check out the episode with Franz below and come back every other Thursday for fresh episodes of the new Magnetic Meaning podcast.
WHAT IS THE MAGNETIC MEANING PODCAST?
This podcast about words and music is sponsored by Point Blank Music School. Too often, people working or pursuing careers in the music industry get so caught up in the excitement, clout, and daily grind of it all that they forget this whole industry is just about communication.
Magnetic Meaning unpacks this notion and dissects the words and ideas that connect the music and resonate with those who work with it. Each episode will feature different guests from the music industry, each doing amazing things in their own right. These guests will each bring a word to the table that has impacted their life or career in one way or another.
From there, we will tackle that word from every conceivable angle to add a bit more context to the music industry.
Episodes are published on a bi-weekly basis, first thing every other Thursday.
Shoutout to the sponsors of the podcast, Point Blank Music School. At Point Blank’s brand new LA campus, you can study music production and sound engineering, DJing, radio broadcasting, singing and songwriting, and music business, and also benefit from 1-2-1 expert lecturers and a range of exclusive support services, including accessing industry-standard studios all while being supported via Point Blank’s expert team of Studio Assistants, Student Services, Wellbeing, Student Engagement and Events, A&R Mentoring and Careers Advice, exclusive competitions, artist masterclasses and more.
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