Getting Back Into Music
Coming into college with a hobby was difficult and overwhelming. As someone who loves music, I felt like school was getting in the way of my passion and the fun I had. It was hard to take time out of my day to listen to music and write lyrics as I got ready to sing. This is because of the different pace of lifestyle I started living. In high school, I had little to no work and had all this free time to put into things I wanted to do like singing. Getting back into my craft is important because it allows me to balance my life while helping my mental health. One way I can do this for myself is by getting back into music through social media. I started a TikTok account where I show my progression of getting back into music by singing a song each day.
TikTok is so easy to record your progression as an artist because of how easy it is to access and how you can share it with others in seconds. To record my TikTok I chose a setting that was great for singing. This means that I had to be in a place where my phone could hear me, not many people were there, and a place that could kind of fit the vibe of the song. As a college student with limited space, I chose the best option out there, the stairway. The stairway barely has people walking by while having a beautiful echo for singing.
The next step taken to record this TikTok is to choose a subject. For my singing TikTok I chose 2 different songs: Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen and Just the Two of Us by Grover Washington. Choosing these songs was a long process as I was on my bed singing along to many different karaoke songs to see which ones were the best. It wasn’t until I had sung 14 songs was when I finally chose the 2 songs that I liked the best. To get the best TikTok you need to choose the best subject for yourself to produce the best video you can.
The last thing I made sure I did was to have a helping hand. Recording TikToks isn’t too difficult but when you have help from friends then recording any type of video should be daily easy. While I was standing and singing my friend held the phone that was playing the karaoke video essentially the main audio of the video while giving me the lyrics at the same time. While that is happening he also has my phone where he is recording me as clearly as he can to get me to be. After all this happens he then needs to prepare himself to pick up the 2 phones and do those steps all over again so that we can have multiple takes and pick our favorite songs. After this is done my friend goes to my dorm and puts our video in a program where we take some time to edit the video. In these edits, we put the lyrics in the bottom and put a filter on the camera making it look a little more of a vibe. Recording your craft on TikTok isn’t much work especially when you have people who can offer support and help.
In my podcast instead of doing a regular one where you sit down and talk I chose to take a different approach. Growing up podcasts to me were a waste of time because I couldn’t stand to listen to people talk for hours without seeing anything. For me, one thing that was way more interesting was listening to music. In my podcast, I tried to do a voice memo of my practices to show what it is like to practice my craft with musicians and other singers as well.
In order to make a TikTok to demonstrate your craft there are 5 simple things that can be done.
- Finding a setting- Finding a place where you can record in important for the vibe of the video and the difficultness while in the processorrecording.
- Choose a subject- No matter what you want to show off to TikTok you need to figure out a way to produce it and create the best version of it. This can be singing, dancing, or anything with craft.
- Have a helping hand- Recording TikToks is very easy but it can be way easier when you have someone with you helping you. Having someone hold the camera, help you edit or even be there for just moral supports can make the difference between a good and bad TikTok
- Don’t be afraid to share- As an artist, I understand how. hard it is to press that post button as you get insecure or start questioning yourself a whole lot. Don’t allow this to ever consume you. Record your video, edit it , and share it with the world. Post with your head high and with your whole heart in it