Make an Album With Mike

It seemed like such a great idea...

A simple backing track, a simpler lyric, and I HAD A SUREFIRE HIT!

Fame beckoned...
I could smell fortune in the air...
I couldn't contain myself!

I roped one of my best friends, Larry, in to ask one of his buddies, Julian, for a free recording session in his studio on the River Thames.

The session went great! Or so I thought...

Because a couple of weeks later, I woke up.

To my horror, I realised:

THE SONG SUCKED.
And I don't mean just a little sucky.
It sucked HARD!

I was so ASHAMED.

Even though this happened 22 years ago - just thinking about recording that awful vocal in the booth makes my skin crawl.

(At the time, I wondered why they laughed so much in the session!)

After this, I gave up on my dreams of being a singer/songwriter and focused on making instrumental music alone.

I did well over my 17-year career as an instrumental musician.

As a DJ, I travelled the world, releasing well over 300 tracks and remixes.

But the song (called "Disco Diva" - yes, it was THAT bad) became a running joke for Larry and a terrifying skeleton in my closet for me.

As a joke - Larry kept threatening to release it whenever I got too big for my boots:

Fast forward to today

On 28th November 2023, I breathlessly hit "publish" on my latest album. A collection of new songs with me singing. I was soooo excited to share my songs with the world

I even shared it personally with Larry in the CERTAIN knowledge he'd be impressed.

While the songs aren't perfect, there's a bunch I want to improve, and I'm nowhere near where I'd like to be...

I HAVE NO FEAR

I'm NO LONGER hiding from who or what I've always wanted to be...

I am a singer/songwriter.

I'm still not a good one, but that embarrassment that held me back for years is a distant memory. The shame is gone.

Replaced by unbridled excitement. Because...

I can get as good as I want to get.
I know how to do it.
And I know that I WILL do it.

And because I'm FINALLY taking myself and my music seriously and doing what I've always secretly wanted to do?

My nearest and dearest are taking me seriously, too.

"Are you serious? Is this REALLY you?" ← my wife Sally
"You've improved at least 100% this year, Daddy!" ← my eldest son.
"It's such a difference! You've really moved up! It's so inspiring to me." ← a friend.
"I'm totally your target audience for this style of music...I cried." ← another friend.

I'm nowhere near where I'd like to be, of course, but the reason I'm proud of the music I'm making is this:

I'm no longer making music that I think others want...

I'm making the music I KNOW I need.

How I Finally Made The Music I Can Be Proud Of

To be honest, I discovered the solution accidentally.

In November 2022, I decided to make an album because when I looked at my music career so far, I'd always made much faster progress through making albums.

Early in that process, I decided to see if I could overcome my singing/songwriting block.

Then, because I was sharing my progress on a podcast, I noticed quite a few others decided to make albums in 2023.

So I decided to help them while making my own album...and the Make an Album With Mike program was born!

I didn't know that I'd accidentally put together all the pieces you need to make the kind of music you CAN'T WAIT to share with everyone...

Miracle Milestones

Finishing a clearly defined project on a specific date chunked into achievable milestones means you stay focused on your music - even amid a crazy busy life.

Solo Collaboration

I don't know about you, but I've consistently failed to meet my internal personal deadlines.

But this is no problem when making music with others on the same schedule.

As tribal animals our brains are wired to work TOGETHER.

Suppose you're a solo artist and struggle to stay on track. Working on your music with others working on theirs (Solo Collaboration) is the key to unlock maximum productivity in any situation.

The Music Machine System

The system I’ve developed through a 29 year career making music and 11 years of coaching was always a game-changer.

It simplifies the creative process into clear stages anyone can follow. It works no matter what genre you make or the gear you use.

But when finishing albums (which can be an overwhelming task) the Music Machine comes into its own.

It transforms the album creation process from an impossible mountain to climb to a fun and fascinating journey of discovery.

But instead of telling you how it works...why don't I show you in:

I'm working closely with a small group of musicians and producers to complete our albums by June 26, 2024

Through finishing 7 albums and helping a bunch of artists finish theirs, here's what I've found:

Milestones are crucial.
Deadlines are essential.
A group makes hitting both possible!

So I'm working closely with a small group of musicians and producers to complete our albums over the next 3 months.

Whether you're making a release-ready album or a collection of 10-12 individual songs/tracks...

This "Make an Album With Mike" (MAWM) group is your chance to get my help and support to complete a load high-quality music.

Here are the 4 phases of making an album:

Mar 8th - Apr 4th: Preparation

On March 8 (9th for Aus/NZ) we will meet for our "Preparation Session". Here I'll show you precisely how to get ready over the festive season without overwhelm!

This phase is light on commitment and time.

You'll experiment to gain clarity on your musical direction.

And I'll help you organise and arrange your life outside the studio.

This will set you up so that even with work, family, friends and life - you can laser-focus on making the best possible album.

*Important: Time changes are coming up for North America (Sun 10 March), Europe (Sun 31 March), and Aus/NZ (Sun 7 April), so make extra sure there aren’t scheduling conflicts. I’m lucky to live in a place (Brisbane) where daylight saving is not observed, so the sessions are the same time for me.

Apr 5th - May 2nd: Idea Generation

Extreme quantity is the best method to create high-quality songs that work together.

So we'll turbocharge your idea generation to discover what your album could become.

(I can't wait to see your "amazed" face when this happens!) 🤓

May 3rd - 30th: Execution

First, you'll say "no" to most of the ideas you've made.So you can focus on those which resonate.

You'll still work on more than ends up on the final album, so you won't have to force ANYTHING.

By focusing on the best, building draft arrangements that "just work" is a breeze.

May 31st - Jun 26th: Presentation

By now, some songs will be "musts".

Others will be "possibles".

Starting with the "musts", we'll go deep into solving the problems in your album tracks.

Together we'll iron out the issues between you and that album you can be proud of!

Our final deadline is June 26.

Cynthia Lou

"Make Music Your Life does not disappoint! Keeps me in my highest creative vibe and flow, that magical place where the best ideas come from, while grounding me in the practical, detailed, daily activity that moves me to releasing music."

How we can help you

Geoff Howse

"I can wholeheartedly say that it has been the best thing that has ever happened to my music making. Like many people, I struggle to finish tracks and noodle around with the same few tracks for years. Since starting the MAWM course 3 months ago, I finished 16 tracks (with loads more in the pipeline), the quality of my tracks has gone up massively and I developed a unique style to my music. I signed straight back up for MAWM again and I recommend any aspiring music maker to do the same."

How we can help you

Fernando Hernadez

“I have been working with Mike and his team for some years now and can honestly say that he is alway's striving to improve his programs. Bravo, have learned so much but more than that I have discovered and grown as a person while having more fun than ever making music!”

How we can help you

Here's the Make An Album With Mike sessions:

1. M.A.W.M. Team Coaching

Every Thursday (Friday if you're Aus/NZ), we will meet for 2 hours. We'll alternate between:

a. Thoughtnado Sessions (bi-weekly from Apr 5)

"Thoughtnados" are my thinking tools designed to deliver deep insight into your music. Thinking like this increases the quality of your music AND removes wasted hours of frustration.

b. Studio Hours (bi-weekly from Apr 12)

I will help you solve your inevitable problems in making your album.

Bring music for feedback.

Or a problem you're stuck on.

Together we'll find a breakthrough.

NOTE: to keep it simple, ALL SESSIONS start at the same time - 3pm EST (New York)*

PLUS: All sessions are recorded. So if you can't make it, you won't miss a thing.

2. Weekly Music Sessions

Either attend the "Magic Music Machine" sessions live on Zoom - or join the recorded replays.

During the sessions, you'll make your music with others making theirs.

This is "Solo Collaboration" - a weekly lightning bolt of motivation and clarity.
2.5 hours of focused music-making feels like 2.5 minutes!

I'll give you step-by-step music games to unlock your creativity. I will design them bespoke for the needs/wants of the album team at every phase.

These sessions start at 3pm on April 7th (EST/New York), then weekly until June 24.

Plus - after the MAWM program is finishes on June 26th, you’ll get lifetime access to the ongoing Magic Music Machine program to continue making music with other Music Machine users.

(NOTE: All sessions are recorded if this doesn't work with your schedule. So you can do them when you want.)

3. M.A.W.M. Team Community

You'll also join a private MAWM-only area of the Make Music Your Life Tribe.

Between sessions, you can ask questions, support others, and share your progress with your community and coaches.

‍Reason #2: When you focus all your time on the result (finishing music), you put the result before the process.

Making music is a SKILL.

The more you practice, the better you get at making music.

We know that intuitively.

But if you spend MOST of your time in the studio, struggling to finish ideas, spending all of your time polishing, editing and tweaking...

Guess what you get good at?

Polishing, editing and tweaking!

First and foremost, great music comes from great musical ideas.

By putting the PROCESS first (practising your ability to make great musical ideas), you'll get the RESULTS (finishing more quality music).

You can't do that if you spend all your time trying to "finish" every idea you've latched onto.

‍Reason #3: The REAL reason you can't finish music.

98% of musicians I've coached don't make nearly as much music as they could or the quality they could.

Here's why:

They're trying to finish tracks that aren't worthy of finishing!

If you spend hours, days, weeks or months on ONE particular idea, you get emotionally invested in it - no matter how good or bad it is!

This creates the perfect conditions where it's almost impossible to finish anything.

Not only is the musical idea not strong enough... but because you're so attached to it (and you don't want to ruin/lose it)... what the piece of music "already is" has been "set" in your mind.

You can't finish it because you're too attached to what it ALREADY IS.

And because you can't finish it, you can't finish anything else either. In the worst cases, you don't even start anything else!

The Idea Explosion Challenge allows you to BREAK this cycle.

You'll create an abundance of ideas to choose from. You don't get overly attached to any track.

And because you know you can always create MORE, ever-better ideas, you're less worried about "ruining" any of them.

Taking this carefree approach, you can choose the best ideas to take forward... and you'll finish much better music in a lot less time.

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BONUS 1: "Sweet Release!" Live Session

MAWM is focused on making the album, so you'll have it done by June 26th.

But in this final session on June 26th, after celebrating our success, we'll focus on releasing and promoting your album to maximise exposure.