How to start learning music production (the right way)

I know this guy who took up music production.

He downloaded FL Studio at the age of 14.

After throwing himself in the deep end and making his first “song” (a 60-sec loop with little-to-no musical progression or variation)…

…he thought he was god’s gift to the world of music.

All these thoughts, dreams, and desires started flooding into his brain.

“This is what I was born to do.”

“I’m going to tour the world.”

“Forget school. I’m just going to focus on music instead.”

6 months later, he quit.

“It’s too hard. I’m not cut out for it. I lack talent.”

That’s the story he told himself.

And for most people, that’s where the story ends.

They get into music production, experience an initial burst of excitement, and once frustration enters the picture… they’re out.

Fortunately for this person, the story continued.

A year later, he decided to give it another shot.

This time, he was more intentional. He took a structured approach to learning music production.

Instead of desperately trying to produce a "hit," he focused on producing a large quantity of music. Most of it sucked. But he learned at rapid speed. (More on this on the next page)
He read books, took courses, and watched tutorials. But he made sure not to fall into the trap of "just learning" but never finishing. (I'll share more about how you can avoid this trap later on).
He dropped the ego, put his head down, and stopped believing stupid lies about "talent" and whether he was cut out for it or not.

Not long after that, he had his first label release.

Then another.

Collaboration requests started coming his way.

He could put a full song together in less than a day. And it would sound decent.

Today? He runs an online music production platform that’s helped hundreds of thousands of producers around the world learn production and make better music.

And he’s writing this series that you’re reading right now.

The Talent Myth

I can assure you that I’m not a “naturally talented” musician or producer.

It took me years to make something half-decent.

And quitting for a year because I thought I lacked talent certainly slowed me down.

There’s a reason I’m sharing this story though…

I often receive emails from producers asking if they’re screwed because they’re not a “musical person…”

Asking whether they should even bother to continue learning and trying to produce… or whether they should pick up a different hobby.

And it’s all because of this stupid talent myth.

Anders Ericsson disproved it in his book Peak: Secrets From The New Science of Expertise (highly recommend btw)

The bottom line: unless you are tone-deaf (less than 1 in 20 people) or literally deaf, you CAN learn to produce music well.

All it takes is:

But most importantly, a rejection of the talent myth. And a relentless commitment to never quitting.

I know this might be a controversial…

You might still believe in talent.

And I’m sure you can point to a story or two about very “talented” people who didn’t have to work hard for what they have. (Although, things aren’t always as they seem).

But there is a strategy that works for every producer.

It’s the best one I know of if you want to take the shortest path from beginner to intermediate to advanced.

It’s the only way I know to develop intuitive production skills that enable you to recreate the music in your head.

And it’s contrary to most advice you’ll receive from others.

How to start learning music production (the right way)

The Talent Myth

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