Every time you hop on social media or watch these red carpet events, you stare in amazement wondering what they did to “make it.” Well, every music artist has their own story to tell. Some were born into fame due to their famous parents. Take Natalie Cole, for example. Natalie Cole is a famous singer and inherited her talents from her famous dad Nat King Cole.

But not all music artists had the privilege of being born into stardom… lots of music artists have rags to riches stories. Look at the late Michael Jackson… Growing up, he didn’t live in a mansion with 13 bedrooms and bathrooms; the Jackson family was poor! So poor that Michael wrote a song called Ben, which was a rat he befriended that found it’s way into their home!

Nonetheless, whether these celebs had famous parents or grew up poor, there are certain characteristics and driving forces they all had in common to achieve their level of success. If you want to make it in the music industry, take a look at some vital necessities you’ll need to succeed.

Music Industry Necessities

Necessity 1: A Determined and Dedicated Attitude

On your journey of trying to achieve fame in your musical career, it’s going to be rough. The music industry is full of enlarged egos, flaring temperaments, and “maybe next times”… it can honestly be quite brutal and defeating but if you really want to achieve the level of success your heart desires, you’re going to need an attitude of determination and dedication in order to not only survive in this industry but also to thrive in it.

Necessity 2: A Personal Mentor

Because this industry is harsh, you’re going to need a person in your life who is going to not only encourage you but also tell you the truth. A personal mentor is actually someone that everyone needs in their life but as an aspiring music artist, a personal mentor is going to be the one to encourage you every time you get a no and they’re also going to be the one to tell you what you need to do to improve.

Necessity 3: The Drive to Never Stop Learning

Whether you’re a seasoned music artist or new on the scene, you should never lose the drive to learn and improve your skills. If you’re wanting to improve your singing or improve your guitar skills, consider enrolling in a music school or investing in private lessons a few days out of the week.

The only way to stay ahead of your competition is to grow as a person. If you think about it, how many times have you seen those one-hit wonders or seen artists who have had a number of great songs and then they just disappeared or became stagnant in their career. You see it all the time but do you know why this happens?

It’s because they’ve stopped trying to grow as an artist. Once you hit a certain level of success, you should never stop trying to grow, especially if you want a long-lasting music career.

Necessity 4: Get Active on Social Media

In this day and age, if you want to advance your career, you’re going to have to have a heck of a PR and marketing team but you’re also going to need to get active on social media to advance your music career to the next level.

Just imagine making a few posts of yourself playing the piano or going live during a practice session… your fans will start liking your posts and sharing it to their stories, which will then make their followers check out your page and start following you!

According to E!News, celebrities use their social media accounts in enticing ways and what lots of people don’t realize is that a lot of the photos celebrities post have a whole team of professionals behind them. Nonetheless, the photos increase their following and you too can increase your following by consistently posting.

Necessity 5: A Professional Mentor

Every music artist should have someone that they can turn to for advice or guidance but this particular person needs to be someone who’s heavy in the industry. For most artists, this person is their manager but it can also be other musicians. You have to realize that everyone needs help and when it comes to making decisions about your music career, you want to take advice from someone you can trust and has your best intentions at heart.