Top 10 Blogs of 2020

Although I’ve been publishing weekly blogs on this site every Monday since late September 2014, this is “just” the fourth annual “Best Of” entry, recapping, in this case, the most read blogs that I wrote in 2020.

Let’s face it, there’s a lot of content out there competing for our time.  So, as much as I hope that reading what I post every Monday will be a part of your regular routine, just like I would love listening (and subscribing) to the weekly “Now Hear This Entertainment” podcast to be something you do habitually as well, I realize that there is a chance you might have missed some of what I put out last year.

So, with that, here’s a look back at what got read the most on this site in 2020, written by yours truly.

10. “Performers – Are You Missing the Boat on Receiving More Tip Money?” - Readers who are indie artists were urged to make tipping at live shows available via electronic means, with input included from performers who testified to this AND indicated which apps they're using the most.

9. “Resources for Indie Musicians” - A list is given of what indie artists can be utilizing to get further in their music career, with explanations given as to why each one is helpful and worth investing time (and possibly a little bit of money) into.

8. “What the %*&@# has Happened to Song Lyrics?” - Stats are pulled from iTunes and Spotify to report the alarming percentage of songs marked as explicit, begging the question how and why did we get to a place where profanity in lyrics has become such a common practice.

7. “Congratulations Indie Artists – People ARE Listening to Your Music” - This post offered not only encouragement to combat the negative thoughts that might creep into your mind (likely unsubstantiated) about if people are buying your music, but it also told how you can actually see that sales really ARE taking place!

6. “The Masses are Creating Content for the Masses” - Having just witnessed content being created live, on-location at the Winter NAMM Show in Anaheim, I challenged readers with the question, "If you're not creating some type of content, are you even in the game?"

5. “How I Reached My Podcast's 6-Year Anniversary” - Consistency, showing up, no excuses, no holidays, no days off, and no repeats are all a part of how the weekly "Now Hear This Entertainment" podcast hit its six-year anniversary on February 17, 2020.

4. “The New Economy in Entertainment” - Rather than putting all kinds of pressure on yourself to get 100% of your income solely from the music you're making, this entry gave multiple examples of specific ways that artists (named) are supplementing their income, some of which you can probably try too. The bottom line being, no one is doing just one thing.

3. “Aid for Indie Artists and the Greater Music Community” - As people in a wide array of roles around the music industry scrambled for help as the pandemic put so many out of work and into a real financial struggle, the Recording Academy, in conjunction with a four-star charity under their umbrella, announced a COVID-19 Relief Fund for those in the industry who were affected monetarily by the loss of work.

2. “Where the Money ISN'T Coming from for Indie Musicians” - Thanks to some information from ConsumersAdvocate.org, a wake-up call was issued with regards to how little the major streaming services are actually paying (or not paying) out. To quote this post, "Brace yourself, because the findings are quite scary," as evidenced by a chart at the end of the blog.

1. “20-Plus Ways to Promote” - Applicable to podcasters as well indie musicians and even to authors, this isn't a transcription but is awfully (awfully) close to one of the most popular talks that I give as a speaker, providing the audience with more than 20 ways to promote your podcast, music, book, or other creative projects.

Be sure to come back next week to see which were the most read guest blogs of 2020 on this site.

Meanwhile, which of the above ten resonated with you the most?  Tweet to me via @NHT_tweets or post it on Facebook or LinkedIn.  Alternatively, you can let me know by writing an email.  And if your mind is racing with questions and challenges, take advantage of my more than 15 years in the music business and/or my almost seven years in podcasting and book a private, one-on-one video consultation with me to get confidential assistance as you move into 2021.