Hello everyone!

I have been learning Indian classical vocals since 8 years and I love to sing classical music especially Ghazals.

In the past 2 years I have been focusing on music production especially in House, Ambient genres.
My production skills are also getting better and one of my track has also been selected on a YouTube promotion channel

I'm not saying this is sort of a very big achievement but from my point of view it is

I also have started DJing in few clubs, private events and have been getting event/show requests for performing.

I have not stopped my classical vocal practice either.
So should I keep practicing and improving on these three skills or should I start focusing in either one of them?

I'm having a self doubt behavior about maybe achieving nothing if I keep doing all the things. I don't want to be jack of all trades and master of none.

Anyone with some guidance can really help me out here. Thanks in advance

 

if a complete dickhead can become president of the USA, anything is possible....

 

I can do everything myself. Make the beat, write the lyrics, record them, mix them, master them. A lot of people do this Hopsin appearently is a pretty good example of this, as he does nearly everything all by himself (at least I was told). It really depends on how much time you have on your hands, and most importantly, how interested you are and what you do with that time.

For me, it can be hard to keep focus and see the "finish line" because there is a lot to keep track of. I'll go back to polishing the beat, rewrite and rerecord something, then back to the beat. Decide the hook needs some other effects and whatever. You get the point. A guy who only sings doesn't have all of these concerns. Neither does a beatmaker or the guy mixing and mastering the track.

If you wanna do all of these things, it's vital that you don't toy around too much. Keep asking yourself; What does this track need? What are my goals? Plan it out a little. It might sound a little boring, but from my experience it's necessary in order to actually produce a finished piece of music

 

im no 80 year old famous manager or producer that had helped out Jimmy Hendrix Janis Joplin and later on with some xp under my belt Kurt Cobain and his crw when they first started playing in their local pubs n bars , but Singer & Producer (Composer - Sound Design - Mixing - Mastering) & DJing sounds like the perfect combo.I mean once you learn everything around mixing and mastering .levels , eq ,compressors,
then synthesis/sound design including lfos and fx delays (and delays children echos reverbs) , and also the fact that you know how to dj and beatmatch , make cue points etc etc ,they are all interwined. I mean learning exactly how a eq and compressor works and getting used to the various frequencies and what changes and how will definitely boost you production skill,recording skills,your editing and such of your vocal takes.

So i wouldnt feel so much overwhelmed or afraid to focus on all three of the above. Plenty of time to learn and hone each and You can definitely master all the above and knowing techniques for each will help the other. Luckily there are plenty of tutorials and videos for almost anything out there.So for example watching 3 different hour long tutorials on compression from three different people using different plugins and in different situations example one is doing the tutorial on a rock band recorded track the other tutorial is explaining compression on an edm track can give a total noob ,someone that has never ever seen a compression become actually knowledgaeble of what a compressor is ,in a matter of three hours and a half.

What i would feel overwhelmed about and i think is what most producers are lacking is management/promotion. Being a producer/composer/mixing & mastering on your own/singer/dj alltogether is perfectly manageable, but what about getting your stuff promoted , beatport,itunes,facebook fanpages,youtube groups,answering fans questions,dealing with royalties,copyright issues,finding places to gig ,contracts and generally lawyer issues etc etc) In that case i think an artist can really feel overwhelmed and finding a decent manager is a good suggestion.

Another good tip would be that even if you master your own tracks , you never lose to have a trustworthy and experienced studio to master your tracks also , just so you can get suggestions , the fresh pair of ears many talk about , and in the end compare their final master to yours and see what you like more.

 

Hey Aviat,
first of all congrats on getting a foot in the door! Also, congrats on "Blade"! Usually not my style, but the drama is great

As for your question: Why do you feel you have to cancel one of your activities in order to be proficient at something else? Couldn't you cut back on singing lessons temporarily (for example) and spend more time on audio production and/or performance for a certain period? After getting to a level where you feel comfortable with your skills, you could re-incorporate singing (or whatever you choose to cut back on) into your routine and see how your newly developed skills influence your perspective on the re-incorporated activity.

I see your point of not wanting to overburden yourself with too many activities, but since in your case they're all music-related, I feel that there will be a lot of shared concepts that make learning multiple things at the same time easier. Also, broadening your perspective might help you identify a useful niche for your musical endeavors. You could, for example, specialize in FOH-mixing and apply those skills to Ghazal-events, maybe even get into event-organization. Then you could offer your fellow singers to also record and mix their music and all of a sudden you've become the "one-stop-shop" for Ghazal-music in your region.
It probably won't be that straight-forward in reality, but you probably get the drift.

Anyway, I wish you all the best on your way!
Greetings from Berlin,
Leander

 

Yo, I am a Desi however, I'm from the other side of the planet. You have an absolutely gorgeous voice, like legit. Your productions are definitely pretty good but seems somewhat bland when considering your a classically trained Indian vocalist.

Tereh gannah acha hai, maggar mereko thodah pheekah lagteh hai. Thodah sah uskai upar gahna gahteh toh BILKUL MAST ho jaiyegah ;)

You've got an absolutely unique skill set and don't squander your gift seriously. Don't dumb down your music because you think classical gheet and ghazals might not go with the image of also being a modern day producer and DJ.

White hippie types over here absolutely LOVE that type of electronic Indian fusion stuff, I'm definitely not kidding.

Although I generally hate the sound of my voice, but I can definitely do all those things. Sing, produce and DJ. Knowledge is definitely one of those things that's compounded on top of each other. Just cause you do one thing, it definitely does not take away from any of those other things. It definitely enhances it. Much love and respect, seriously <3

Feel free to pm me and we can chat a little more.

I'd also look up some of the music of Shpongle and stuff like that, adding glitchy eastern vocals always goes well. Be proud of your culture, you've got a unique skill set that had you grown up in any other part of the world you might not have gotten to for real =)

Other people profit all the time off selling people our culture, through second hand experience. Trust me when I say that you can definitely do the same and provide people with an authentic experience.

Here's one of my favorites from right before Dubstep REALLY hit the American mainstream.

 

You have my full permission, Advait. Proceed.

Just joking man, pick up the little book called "The War of Art" by Pressfield. Read it, you will understand a lot better what you need to do and what's ahead of you.

 

Fuck you

 

You go for it, mate!

Use up every single inch of your talent. you might not excel in all roles, but as you go on, you will find out which you prefer/do better at and can decide what you wanna spend the majority of time and resources on, if not all!

Seriously, go for it.

 

Calvin Harris. Producer, Singer, DJ.

Usually you can only do one thing at once. Since if you are focused, then you are focused on something in particular and put a lot of effort into that. However if you can sing, you can produce and sing at the same time easily. Many people already do. DJing on top of that is possible since today DJ doesn't really mean Disc Jockey. So going to a club or venue and pressing play and adding a few things here and there should be straight forward. I mean if you have management you end up doing everything fairly easily.

I suggest if you are confident with certain roles, go for it and to be honest they all merge into one fairly easy. There are plenty of producer/singers.

 

haha

 

Thanks for your reply. Yes I completely agree with you!
Have to plan out properly and stay committed to it!

 

Thank you very much for your reply. I will surely look for a management as and when I proceed and focus on all production and singing.
Great advice

 

Thanks for your reply and kind words for my track. Yess I agree with your suggestion.
Greatt advice

 

Thanks for your reply and really glad to meet another Indian.
Yes I didn't practice much before the competition. A little low on my riyaaz

You are absolutely right about promoting our culture. I personally love India and our rich and diverse culture and I believe in PM Modi Ji.
He's going the change the whole game of India and his recent policies are amazing (great changes witnessing in India in economic and other sectors).
Yess I don't have any view about being a modern Music Producer/DJ and a Ghazal Singer. I actually love the contrast skill sets and liking.

Going to commit all myself in music.
Greatt advice.

 

Thanks for your reply. Just got the book and I guess it's going to be an amazing experience. Going to read it thoroughly.

 

Thanks for your reply. Yess I'm going to utilize myself fully and going to commit authentically to music.
Greatt advice

 

Thanks for your reply.
I really see Calvin Harris as a very achievable and practical inspiration. He can really execute all the three skills very nicely (no matter if it's pop music but his music is really good)

haha true!

Once again great advice

 

"The only person stopping you is you." I don't remember where I heard that quote from. I'll have to look it up...

One thing I think you should keep in mind is not to spread yourself too thin. You can get pretty good at a wide range of things, or truly excel when you focus on a smaller few.

 

Last edited: Dec 2, 2016