We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dj Pain 1 a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

DJ Pain, appreciate you joining us today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

I think a lot of creatives believe they have to be the best at everything in order to be successful– for example, an aspiring music producer will often obsess over creativity, quality, marketing know–how, music business knowledge, audio engineering talent, etc– and it causes anxiety.

From what I’ve seen and experienced, being persistent, stubborn and hungry to learn is what sets the naturally talented apart from the successful. They’re often not one and the same.

I know countless other music producers who in my opinion are far more talented than I am, but I managed to make music production a career because when I was failing, I persisted. When I was ignorant, I learned. When I was frustrated, I sought clarity.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m a music producer, so essentially I compose and produce the instrumentals to songs and assist in their completion. That could involve being a part of the songwriting process, the vocal production process, the engineering process, putting together additional creatives to complete the song, etc.

I’m from Madison, WI, a city in which there is no music business infrastructure whatsoever. Even the most successful musicians– from symphony players to DJs– have day jobs. I’m proud to have created a sustainable business in what is effectively a music business desert.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

All I wanted was to make music. It became clearer with time that running a business wasn’t just about making music. At a certain point, after asking a lot of potential clients what their pain points were when it came to working with music producers, I found that music producers were often unresponsive and unhelpful when it came to customer service.

A lot of us license our instrumentals online for artists/songwriters to use.

I went against my own antisocial nature and set up a system– email, sms, chats etc– to ensure that I was reachable. I made my email marketing strategy personal rather than salesy. It’s a lot of extra work, but building rapport through conversations elevated my business in a way that I don’t believe any amount of advertising or branding could.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Absolutely– my goal is financial freedom, which leads to so many other forms of freedom. Alleviating the stress of needing to constantly work harder to generate more income and absorbing the stresses of loved ones experiencing that stress as well is a huge goal.

Beyond that, being able to focus solely on labors of love, nonprofit work, selective projects, more experimental music that may never even see the light of day, all of that requires time, an open schedule and a peaceful mind.

Financial stress causes so much chaos. Unfortunately, having money solves a lot of life’s problems.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.djpain1beats.com
• Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/djpain1
• Facebook: http:///www.facebook.com/djpainone
• Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/djpain1
• Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/jacksonwonderful

Image Credits

djpain1_2022_2_photo by Paulius Musteikis