Musical Self-Production – Freedom and Constraints for a Musician

Being a musician today is more than an art — it is a total commitment. Everything must be managed on one’s own. It offers immense freedom, but also a mountain of constraints that can easily stifle inspiration.

Freedom and Autonomy: The Price of Independence

I am entirely self-produced. I record myself, do the mixing, shoot and edit the videos, build my own instruments, manage my social media, write my texts… and search for concert dates. Every piece of software I use requires specific training, and each step demands fresh ideas to remain both professional and original.

All of this takes a tremendous amount of time and leaves little space for what drives me most: the music itself. Not so long ago, musicians didn’t face all these constraints. They could play freely “for the hat” in the street without being fined, get noticed by their talent and through natural encounters. Some even built remarkable careers simply by being heard — by living each note with sincerity.

Today, the music industry has largely closed its doors to smaller artists. Visibility often depends on image, communication, and notoriety — notoriety that is often illusory, tied to the race for followers and views, creating the impression that music is nothing more than a product rather than a form of sharing. And with modern technology, anyone — or anything — can be made to sing!

Yet despite these constraints, self-production remains fascinating. When well thought out, it allows an artist to create an entire universe of their own, from A to Z. Every detail — from the color of a visual to the texture of an instrument’s sound — reflects the musician’s identity. It is a rare freedom, a playground where anything is possible, and that is what makes this adventure so exciting.

There is a paradox in this autonomy: it grants total control, but demands an almost total commitment. One becomes both creator and conductor of their own career. You learn, you experiment, you make mistakes, you start again… and in the end, every project, every piece, every image belongs entirely to you. And it is precisely this intimacy with one’s work that makes self-production so valuable, despite its challenges.

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