Music washes the dust away of everyday life, and provides us with a soundtrack to our travels. It’s also acted to transport us to a different world during the current pandemic while our itchy feet have been grounded.

But sometimes we forget the people who are actually behind the music – the musicians! It takes a lot of talent and hard work to produce music; music which we rely on to stay entertained on road-trips, and to block out the noise of crying babies on planes!

We may not know the complete process, the full story of the hardships, and all the obstacles our beloved musicians went through to get to where they are now, but we know they took a tedious path to becoming an artist.

I’m not talking about Lady Gaga or Rage Against the Machine, because these guys already receive love from their fans. I’m talking about the brilliant talents who don’t get much attention.

If music has made a difference to your life, and you rely on your favorite playlists to get you through your travels, here are some things you can do to show support for your favorite musicians. 

Artists might not be considered part of the travel industry, but they’re hurting just as badly due to the current pandemic, and music has, and always will be, central to the travel experience.

 How to Show Love to Your Favorite Musicians

Buy Their Album

This is probably the best thing you can do to support your favorite bands. Album sales = money. The more money they can have from their music, the more they can focus on it.

Musicians release albums in many formats – vinyl record, cassette tape, CD, USB music card, and mp3. If you can, buy directly from the band’s online store, as this means they receive most of the profits.

Buying through third party stores like iTunes, Amazon or Apple music means artists get a smaller percentage of the cut, though if you go to their websites you’ll get a good idea of what’s best for them – some bands may only have options to buy via platforms like iTunes, and will direct you where to purchase.

Buy Their Merch

Buying your favorite band’s custom band merch is the next best way to show your love and support. By wearing their band official merch items like shirts, jackets, pins, caps, tote bags, etc, you’re helping spread the word.

Word of mouth advertising is a very powerful form of brand awareness, and wearing merch is a great way to share your endorsement with those around you, without going out of your way to live life any differently.

A cool merch item is a good conversation piece, and curious people may stop you to ask about it. Though it’s also a great way to find and impress like-minded people with the same taste as yours.

Attend Concerts and Gigs

Only a few things are more exciting than seeing our favorite musicians perform live while the crowd sings along. And this is one of the best ways to support them.

While live gigs have traveled a rocky road in 2020, and touring revenue has plummeted, many musicians have still been releasing music, and pivoting to hold live performances via virtual means.

Tickets for live-streamed concerts are a fantastic way to support your favorite artists, and carry them over until they can start booking live gigs / touring again.

Yes, virtual concerts don’t have the same interaction and connection between artist and audience, and technology issues can cause disruptions; it’ll never be the same as attending a gig live, but it’s a good way to help in the here and now.

Keep in mind too that even when live gigs do resume, we’re entering a world of COVID-safe arenas, and social distancing at venues. Which either means that ticket prices will increase to cover the cost of the lesser capacity, or musicians will make a lot less.

Being willing to embrace and support alternative gigs, whether it’s a live streamed concert, a drive in theatre set up, or enjoying from private boxes, will mean the industry can recover more quickly.

Cover Their Songs

This is another way you can promote your beloved artists. You may even reach a wider audience for your faves especially if your cover goes viral. But even without the virality, you can still reach many people since music transcends cultures.

But don’t worry if you’re not a singer. You can also cover music by playing the piano, guitar, ukulele and any instrument you can think of. Make sure to tag them when you publish on Youtube and social media.

Be aware that you shouldn’t release a cover for your own commercial interest without gaining permission. While many people cover their favorite bands and publish online, Copyright law gives the original creators exclusive rights to copy, perform, and sell the works.

If you want to record a song and release it for proper distribution, you’ll have to obtain permission from the publisher of the song, and pay a mechanical royalty, or for a license.

Share Their Stuff on Social Media

Even if you don’t have a lot of followers, just making one or two friends curious would be a sweet gift to your favorite artists. Post photos of their new vinyl, merch items you’re wearing, and be their unofficial ambassadors.

When you buy their albums, you can take a video of yourself unboxing it and upload it on your channels. And when you do film yourself, give your comments on the packaging, design and such to entice viewers to buy too.

When you go to concerts, document the experience, taking clips of them singing or interacting with fans for social media. Many musicians go viral for things they do at concerts, like Jackson Wang on Tiktok after reacting to a fan bringing a fan with his meme face printed on it.

Moral of the Story …

Showing our love and support come in different ways. Some require us to spend like buying albums, merch, and concert tickets. Some are loud like posting/ promoting them on your social media accounts and some are just silent like simply liking and sharing their posts.

Whatever way you choose to do, know that everytime you support your favorite artists, you’re helping them with their music career. It doesn’t take much to show some love!