How to Release Music (Actually)

I was visiting a friend the other week and talking about my upcoming release show and how hard it was to promote and keep talking about my music. I bemoaned the struggle of putting work into the world and he chuckled. 

"Wait, this is hard for you?" He smiled. "Didn't you write a whole book on the topic?" 

YES! (And, yes.) Despite the fact that Kat and I wrote and published a book on "How to Release Music," and despite the other fact that I've released music many times in my life, it's still hard to put myself out there and share work that I've spent so much time and energy on. 

So, in the spirit of continuing to encourage others to release music, I want to share a bit of my process in releasing my latest album, "The Tree EP," and how it aligns with the recommendations in our book. 

1. Write Songs

This step might seem obvious but I bring it up here because the songs for this EP date back to 2020. Sometimes I write songs for a clear project: This will go on the upcoming release for my band. Other times, I just write songs to write songs. Most of these will live in my voice memos or Google Drive forever. Some will see the light of day. The point is to keep writing songs, not just for a specific output but to continue digging into your craft and for the joy of it all! 

2. Curate Songs

For this release, I pulled together a group of songs with a cohesive theme. Every song told a different story through the imagery of trees and nature. Before I ever recorded these songs, I tried playing them as a set at a few different shows to see how they felt together. Once I solidified which songs I wanted to include, I made plans for recording. 

3. Record! 

In How to Release Music, we share many different ideas for recording your music. From professional studios to bedroom production, there's no "right" way to record. It truly depends on your budget, goals, and abilities. Most of the recording I've done for my band has been in professional studios. For this project, I knew I wanted something more homegrown and affordable.  I worked with a friend of mine, Kenan Salazar, who is a fantastic engineer and producer. Most of the tracks were recorded in my basement and Kenan mixed/mastered everything in his home studio. This meant that I could take my time with the project, work on it over the course of many weeks, and have a ton of creative control. 

4. Create Artwork 

As we mentioned in the book, most of these steps happen simultaneously, not always in a specific sequence. While I was recording the album, I was also developing a release plan and figuring out album artwork. I've worked with a few artists on projects in the past and I knew that I wanted to work with my dear friend, Haley Harmon, on this album release. 

I asked Haley to make four unique images for each of the singles off the EP and then to create one final album image that connects all four. Haley was inspired by quilts and paper cutouts, and you can read about her full process here.  During the artwork phase, we also decided that one of the album covers would also be a perfect T-shirt for my merch table!  (Peep my friend Kimberly wearing the final "Love me like a Mangrove Tree" design and check out the final album cover). 

5. Create a Release Plan 

For this final step, I had to zoom out and think about my overall goal for this project. Why did I want to record and share these songs? What type of release plan would serve my overall "why" best? I thought about how each song told the story of a strong woman in my life and how I wanted this release to celebrate women in community. I cared less about getting folks to stream the recordings than I did about connecting with humans in real life. 

This led me to create an entire interdisciplinary show based on the music from the EP. I worked with local artists, artisans, and aerialists (how is that for alliteration??) to create a one-hour show called "Rooted" that celebrated women in community. I got to sing with the two women who provided background vocals on the album and also included acoustic guitar, violin, and cello. 

Reflections

Now that these songs are in the world, my brain is already moving toward the "what's next" question and I'm trying to remember to celebrate wins and reflect on this project. There were some big highs (like performing the song "Roots" to a packed room last weekend, or arranging cello parts in my basement that brought the songs to life), and some big lows (like questioning if we'd sell enough tickets for the release show or whether the songs would resonate with anyone).

But as I've talked to folks who have listened to the album and heard what's resonated, I'm reminded that putting out art is a gift, and letting people experience it is an even greater gift. 

So, if you've been thinking about recording and releasing a project but needed a little nudge, let this be it!

You can stream "the Tree EP" here or wherever you stream music.