Building a Professional Network in the Music and Audio Industry

It is never too early to start building your music and audio network, which will be a foundation for working while and after you attend Abbey Road Institute Los Angeles. In fact, if you’ve studied music and audio production, are actively playing music, or have had any music and audio-related jobs and gigs, you’ve already started to build your network.

In this blog post lets consider three key areas to focus on:

1. Who You Know
2. Professional Associations
3. Social Media

Who You Know

I’ve been working in music and audio technology and education for more than three decades now and have had full-time and contract gigs throughout playing music, working for music industry companies, teaching, and as a senior education and nonprofit executive. In all my years working, only one job didn’t come from a referral or connection to someone I knew before I got the job.

Everyone you meet, whether it is playing in a band or a recording session, mixing in the studio or front of house, working at a music store or for a production company, matters later. Always present yourself professionally, be prepared, show up on time, network with the people you are playing, recording or working with, and ask them about things they are doing and have done. If you are actively looking for full or part time work, always work that into a conversation when you can.

Every time you play well or do a great job in the studio, during and after a session, every independent project—basically every time you show up to work—is a reflection of you and what you can do. Leverage those experiences into networking conversations, more work, and great relationships. Some of the people you work with will bring other gigs to you, and some will end up being critical personal references for you over time, from references to study at a campus like Abbey Road Institute, to the jobs that you’ll get after you complete your diploma.

Professional Associations

Consider joining major professional organizations related to your career in music and audio production right away. Not only is this also a great way to build your professional network, you’ll learn about the types of jobs and careers that appeal to you, and find valuable professional development resources and opportunities. Here are a few organizations that are particularly important.

• The Audio Engineering Society: AES is the primary professional organization for studio and front of house audio engineers around the world. It publishes industry standards, holds annual conventions nationally and regionally, and offers student membership opportunities. Check out student membership and education resources and the AES Job Board, and consider becoming a member.
• The National Association of Music Merchants: NAMM is the primary professional organization for the music products industry, including retailers and manufacturers in the United States. Its annual convention in Anaheim, California each January is a great place to look for jobs and network, and for professional development in its NAMM U sessions at the convention. While NAMM doesn’t have specific student memberships, attending the show with faculty from Abbey Road Institute Los Angeles is a regular opportunity. Becoming an individual NAMM member also gives you access to great learning materials from world-class speakers through NAMM NeXT.
• The Recording Academy: The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which is the organization that awards GRAMMYs and the  awards and show each year, has a an excellent studio organization called GRAMMY U. As a student, applying to GRAMMY U is a great initial industry professional development and networking step that ultimately can lead to you becoming a voting member of the Academy some day. GRAMMY U  provides opportunities for emerging music industry professionals and creatives through events, networking opportunities and more.

Each of these associations helps you build credibility while building your music and audio network in tangible, career-boosting ways.

Social Media

While it may seem like mentioning your social media presence goes without saying, there are some important things for you to think about how you present your professional brand online. You always need to differentiate your personal social profiles from your personal presence. They are two distinctly different things.

As a musician, audio engineer, or producer, your professional brand on social media will be one of your most important marketing tools. Posting the music you write, mix and produce to the work on socials provides an opportunity to present yourself as a pro, clarify and showcase what your role in any musical collaboration is. Don’t worry about going viral with posts, but be consistent, posting many times each week, tagging the people you create with and the places your work is performed and presented. And be sure to secure collaborative posts with artists, producers, labels, and venues you work with.

Of course you post to Instagram, TikTok, YouTube Shorts and X. Don’t forget that you also need a LinkedIn profile. Maintain a professional looking and detailed LinkedIn profile and look for and connect with everyone you meet and work with there. Once connected you can keep your professional circle up to date on what you are doing, learn about projects your colleagues are working on, find job opportunities, and more.