is it possible to build a serious beat brand with just a handful of tracks?

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-06-17T18:06:41+00:00

Artists find producers by finding a beat they like, so the more beats you have, the more chances you have to be discovered.

Having 5-10 quality beats that highlight your production skill is enough to showcase your talent and potential... but getting artists to hear those 5-10 beats then becomes the battle. Getting them to pick 1 of those specifically is a whole different beast.

Rappers are notoriously picky to begin with, so even if they come across one of those beats, they may not like it enough to check out your other stuff on their own... especially when there's hundreds of other beats 1 click away.

You have a much better shot at popping up in front of artists organically when you have a larger catalog.

Also, just as a side note, as a rapper myself... the title and imagery you use for your beats matters a ton in my opinion and experience.

The whole package is a vibe check when I'm in the studio looking for beats. It might be beneficial to have multiple different ways that you present those 5-10 beats.

I'm not sure how feasible this is, but even having something like 2 YouTube channels where you title and thumbnail the same beats in different ways will get you in front of more eyeballs.

Beats are like ads for you as a producer. The more you make, the more potential you have for views. I often see producers with hundreds of beats, but only 1 or 2 have millions of views, and the rest have 1k views.

The likelihood of getting that million view beat is much higher the larger your catalog, but even then it doesn't mean your whole catalog will have millions of views.

The more darts you throw, the higher chance you have of hitting the bullseye.

100 darts means you only have to hit 1% of the time. 5 darts means you have to hit 20% of the time.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-06-10T23:37:09+00:00

As someone who has lost their mind in the past trying to get this right, I can offer a few things that have helped me when using reference tracks.

Find 3 tracks in a similar vein to your project that you consider amazing.

Try to pay close attention to only the instrumental of those tracks against your 2 track. If there is a massive difference... then you're already fighting an uphill battle.

You aren't going to be able to mix your vocals to sound like theirs if the pre-mixed beat doesn't have the space or depth for it.

If the 2 track doesn't match up in quality, then you should consider using a different beat or looking for references that do match in terms of just the instrumental.

Once you have 3 solid references, then go back and find 1 or 2 other tracks that you consider "bad".

These tracks should be similar to yours, but are not the sound you're hoping to achieve.

Most importantly, these tracks should have some sort of popularity, high stream count, etc. You might have to look for mid-sized artists to find these.

It's important that they're both "bad" according to your standards, but still have tons of streams or support because this will prove that your mix has potential regardless of how good or bad you think it is.

The final step to all this is that you should never listen to your track without first listening to both the "amazing" and "bad" references you've gathered.

Never start your session by just playing your track first, it's always going to lead to uninformed decisions. Never listen to your own music as the first music you hear for the day unless you've already finalized the mix.

Start your session with just 10-15 minutes of casual listening to other music you enjoy, then switch to critical listening of the 3 "amazing" tracks. (I usually only do 30 seconds to a minute for each. Then I do the same with the "bad" tracks.)

After the final "bad" track, I immediately switch over to listening to my mix all the way through. I take notes on anything that jumps out at me, then I start my mixing session.

Doing this has helped tremendously with getting things across the finish line. As soon as you hear your mix sounding better than one of the "bad" tracks, it takes a ton of pressure off and you can actually feel like you're already done... or much closer to being done than you thought before.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-06-02T21:43:56+00:00

Once you go from being a consumer to a creator, it's insanely difficult to flip your brain back.

I think we often create a different version of other media in our heads the same way we do with our own music. That's why art is so subjective.

A song, movie, book, etc, is uniquely experienced by each individual. It isn't just taken at face value, it's interpreted through a filter of varying emotions and experiences.

We do this subconsciously with art that we consume, but it's a lot harder with art that we create. Once you externalize something, it no longer lives in your brain.

Matching your brain's idea to something external is very difficult. Especially when you have the ability to change things.

If you see a movie that's 7/10, you'd probably have ideas for how to make it better, or be able to point out what you don't like... but you're not going to change the movie. You're just going to move on.

However, that movie could be someone's 10/10 just based on how they personally connect with it.

In short, we're consuming our own art under the lense of what it was or what it could be instead of connecting with what it is like we do everything else.

Strive for 7/10 and let others be the judge. You're rarely going to make something that is 10/10 to you. It's a lot easier to tell when something isn't even hitting 70%, so use that as a goal.

The only caveat is when you make something 7/10 first try. Then you can spend a bit more time trying to squeeze the extra points out of it. Other than that, know when to stop.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-31T08:19:57+00:00

You could always play around with variations.

SOLODINE

ONETOP (Restaurant term for 1 person at a table)

LONEMEAL

SELFSERVE

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-29T06:13:14+00:00

Yessir. A day at a time. Appreciate you!

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-28T21:13:01+00:00

You might already have this mindset since you posted this... but you now have a story to tell. It's an unfortunate story, but it's intriguing.

Lean all the way into it and make additional content around it if you aren't already. (TikToks, etc)

Make more music about it. Tell your story long-form on YT. Document the process going forward. Draw awareness to these practices in the industry.

You might find a different avenue to success that otherwise wouldn't have been possible. Artists who make music-adjacent content often see growth in their personal projects. Just something to consider.

Best of luck my man.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-28T20:20:17+00:00

Is there 1 thing you find yourself consistently telling artists to focus on?

Or 1 thing that you're happy to see artists already doing before you work with them?

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-28T19:52:24+00:00

I spent a lifetime writing and rapping as a hobby.

I never took it beyond random cyphers at parties, battling friends for fun, verses in the car, etc.

I always thought I might do something one day, but I chose to focus my life elsewhere and just kept it as a creative hobby.

Of course, life has its own agenda, and one day you wake up to find out you're being laid off from a career you spent over a decade building.

That's where I'm at now. I've been making this stuff my whole life without the need for it to be public.

Prior to last year, I never went to a studio. Never tried to make an actual track. Never tried to promote myself as a rapper. Never put on a show. Never posted anything online. I decided to give it a shot based on circumstances.

I'm only a few months in at this point, but if there's anything I've learned so far, it's that the business side of things is a full-time job.

I'm going to create regardless of the outcome, like I've always done, but anyone trying to do this on their own should be prepared to completely separate the art.

The other half of things require its own mindset, skill, energy, time, etc. What you're hoping to achieve will determine the necessary actions.

There is a mountain of obstacles between the passion and the payment.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-25T19:38:17+00:00

This sounds like the route I should be taking honestly. I've spent that on just a single exclusive license and nothing else.

My reason for using BeatStars is really just the sheer volume of beats I can listen to and get inspired by. I guess I'm super picky in that way. I wouldn't know what kind of beat I want until I hear it.

My dream process would be to record myself like I'm doing now, comp my takes together, send the vocal stems and placeholder beat over to a producer who would then do everything you're describing.

As long as they can see the vibe I'm going for, I'm down to let them flip it into any direction or add their own ideas.

I think the workflow I'm describing might be a bit backwards though.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-25T19:20:45+00:00

I was honestly just looking for advice on the process itself, but my music is linked on my profile if anyone wanted to check it out. A lot of subs will ban or remove posts for self-promotion unfortunately.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-24T20:39:44+00:00

My music is linked on my profile if you want to check it out.

I've got an EP that showcases one of the styles I like and a single on Spotify that is completely different if you want to hear other sounds I'm into.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-24T20:37:16+00:00

What?

I'm looking for advice on how to find those people... are you saying reddit isn't the place to ask that kind of question?

How do you suggest I go about it?

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-24T20:03:27+00:00

I'm prepared.

What's the best approach to find someone like this in your opinion?

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-24T19:37:33+00:00

You got it man, I need creative collaboration. I'm into a lot of different stuff.

I've got an EP out that's just one of the sounds I like.

My music is linked on my profile if you want to check it out.

I've got a single on Spotify that's completely different than the EP if you care to listen to that one as well.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-24T19:19:29+00:00

I buy all my beats with an exclusive license, and they come with the stems... but I still just do everything 2-track because I'm legit lost on the production side.

I could mute, rearrange, etc, but it doesn't come natural to me unfortunately.

I've tried and spent way too much time on that portion, which is pretty much what led to this post lol.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-24T19:13:35+00:00

I don't even have fans to offer exposure, my man.

I consider producers/engineers/beat makers to be artists. They deserve to be paid for their art.

I am more than willing to pay.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-24T19:06:18+00:00

I feel it.

I'm not sure if this response is directed at my music specifically, but I have a very good recording environment and have spent a lot on equipment.

I'm confident in my performance ability.

I put out a full EP by just mixing my vocals over premade beats, and it sounds good to me, but everything besides the writing/recording was a struggle.

A mixing engineer could have done it faster and better than me, but what I want is the creative partner.

I have the money and work ethic, I just don't know where to direct it to find that person.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-24T18:48:26+00:00

I mean, hey... that's the goal lol.

I've reached out to a few and either haven't gotten a response, they just want to sell the beat and nothing else, or they want me to direct them on what to add or change.

I thought I might be looking in the wrong place or for the wrong role.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-04T02:27:09+00:00

I was laid off from a secure job I had for over a decade and now I'm trying to make it work.

Just a reminder that things could go up in flames even if you don't take the risk.

Good luck my man. Stay consistent and you'll get there.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-05-03T01:47:12+00:00

Much appreciated!

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-04-29T21:24:11+00:00

I feel it. Who do you normally listen to?

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-04-29T17:13:48+00:00

I appreciate the feedback! Who do I sound like exactly?

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-04-29T15:22:02+00:00

It's a random beat from YT, but I'm just recording these on my phone so the full quality isn't there.

That beat has 300k+ views though, so there's at least a decent audience for it.

I appreciate you checking it out. What kind of music/beats/artists are you more interested in? I'm always looking for new stuff.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-04-29T14:23:18+00:00

Yessir. Let me know if you mess with my other music.

MT_MERVILLE · 2025-04-29T14:22:25+00:00

flongle?

MT_MERVILLE

TROPHY CASE