Journalism?! I Don't Know :/

[Til_Kingdom_Come]

Anyway, I was thinking of taking up journalism, so I could become a music journalist for a magazine like Kerrang! or something. You may be thinking that I only want to do this to meet my favourite band, but that's not the case. It's just that IT and English are my only good subjects at school. I've always been really interested in rock music and I'm already writing reviews for albums in my notepad. I've done Green day's UNO! and American Idiot, aswell as Coldplay's Mylo Xyloto. I've got about 20 music magazines, and use them for inspiration.

 

Are any of you guys journalists for magazine, websites, forums, newspapers, freelance, etc..?

 

Thanks in advance!! :)

[Mollyxyloto]

Hiya!

I think i want to be a journalist, specialising in music too! I'm not one yet, but would love to be one day too.

I write reviews on iTunes and in my notebook too! I just love music, I'd prefer to work in Q. That's my favourite, that would be fantastic hopefully ill make it one day.

Music journalism is extremely difficult to get into, so I'd start building up a profile now, like start reviewing online :) I'm going to start doing that :) You also need to know a lot about music overall, the instruments, artists (even the ones you don't like:nod: )

I start college next September so ill be studying (hopefully) English language, sociology, art and design and media :)

 

I'd love to know if anyone has any tips too :)

[Til_Kingdom_Come]

Hiya!

I think i want to be a journalist, specialising in music too! I'm not one yet, but would love to be one day too.

I write reviews on iTunes and in my notebook too! I just love music, I'd prefer to work in Q. That's my favourite, that would be fantastic hopefully ill make it one day.

Music journalism is extremely difficult to get into, so I'd start building up a profile now, like start reviewing online :) I'm going to start doing that :) You also need to know a lot about music overall, the instruments, artists (even the ones you don't like:nod: )

I start college next September so ill be studying (hopefully) English language, sociology, art and design and media :)

 

I'd love to know if anyone has any tips too :)

 

I didn't know you could study media?! :/

 

How do you do reviews on iTunes? Do you mean just writing under the information on the apps or whatever? I had to do TONS of book reviews at school, would that help? :) Yep, Q, Kerrang!, NME, don't really mind.

[Mollyxyloto]

I didn't know you could study media?! :/

 

How do you do reviews on iTunes? Do you mean just writing under the information on the apps or whatever? I had to do TONS of book reviews at school, would that help? :) Yep, Q, Kerrang!, NME, don't really mind.

 

:) Do you live in England? What year at school are you in? This will help me tell you, because I can't advise anything if you live somewhere else because I don't know what you can study :)

[Nattatouille]

Anyway, I was thinking of taking up journalism, so I could become a music journalist for a magazine like Kerrang! or something. You may be thinking that I only want to do this to meet my favourite band, but that's not the case. It's just that IT and English are my only good subjects at school. I've always been really interested in rock music and I'm already writing reviews for albums in my notepad. I've done Green day's UNO! and American Idiot, aswell as Coldplay's Mylo Xyloto. I've got about 20 music magazines, and use them for inspiration.

 

Are any of you guys journalists for magazine, websites, forums, newspapers, freelance, etc..?

 

Thanks in advance!! :)

 

Hiya!

I think i want to be a journalist, specialising in music too! I'm not one yet, but would love to be one day too.

I write reviews on iTunes and in my notebook too! I just love music, I'd prefer to work in Q. That's my favourite, that would be fantastic hopefully ill make it one day.

Music journalism is extremely difficult to get into, so I'd start building up a profile now, like start reviewing online :) I'm going to start doing that :) You also need to know a lot about music overall, the instruments, artists (even the ones you don't like:nod: )

I start college next September so ill be studying (hopefully) English language, sociology, art and design and media :)

 

I'd love to know if anyone has any tips too :)

 

Hey guys,

 

First up I'd tell you it is an extremely hard career to get in to. The amount of people who want to do it and are qualified to do it far outweigh those positions avaliable. Plus to get in to Q/NME/Kerrang or anything along those lines is like hyper competitive and, shockingly, a lot of the people that work for them tend to be late 20's who have had a tonne of experience under their belt.

 

All this being said, it's not impossible to do. You just have to get yourself a good portfolio and get yourself the needed experience.

 

I have only been around the musical journalism neck of the woods seriously now for the last 4 months. I currently write for The Edge (which is an entertainment magazine based in Southampton), 7BitArcade, O2 Acadamies Newsletter. Off the back of this I have interviewed and met: Palma Violets, Peace, Wolf Gang, Cosmo Jarvis, Howler and I am scheduled in for a few more in the new year. I've also attended about ~15 gigs guestlisted.

 

My advice would be:

 

-You need a large and comprehensive portfolio showing lots of different styles of writing. You are going in to musical journalism-- but that has different subsets, can you review albums? How about singles? What about live shows? And can you cover musical news? They're all things that might come up so show you can do them! Also it looks even better if things in your portfolio have been published somewhere because it gives more credibility (I'm afraid reviews under iTunes purchases aren't really applicable here though guys!)

 

-Try and get something published. Be it something completely unrelated to music-- having any of your work deemed publishable (be it unrelated) shows that you do have grasp enough on the language to be deemed fit for publishing. (I had a poem published and a science article-- both obviously unrelated, but it gives your CV an edge).

 

-Go to gigs! A lot of what they do is showing that you're passionate and you love what you're doing... How can you say you're going to be a great reviewer of live shows if you've never been or experienced it?!

 

-Know your stuff. It doesn't mean know the inside out of musical theory, but know enough that you can distinguish sounds/instruments/genres-- because that's the minimum you'll need to get by.

 

-Be ready to research. It's not all handed to us on a plate, you might be asked to interview someone you don't know and then you have to be on the ball enough to research and things. Maybe get your skills up now so, if you ever need to, you can show them at the drop of a hat.

 

-Have some long-term involvement in a magazine/newspaper/communications role of some description. Show that you know what the purpose of the written media is and show you know how it works. I was in the student newspaper throughout high-school, then took a position on the newsletter/comms of my society at university. People love to see that it's not just a whim you think you can do and you know the work that comes with it.

 

-Most of all; be passionate. They don't want someone who is just a run-of-the-mill, just like everyone else. If you're not enthusiastic about what you want to do-- then why do you think your readers will be?!

 

Hope this helps and good luck!

[Mollyxyloto]

Hey guys,

 

First up I'd tell you it is an extremely hard career to get in to. The amount of people who want to do it and are qualified to do it far outweigh those positions avaliable. Plus to get in to Q/NME/Kerrang or anything along those lines is like hyper competitive and, shockingly, a lot of the people that work for them tend to be late 20's who have had a tonne of experience under their belt.

 

All this being said, it's not impossible to do. You just have to get yourself a good portfolio and get yourself the needed experience.

 

I have only been around the musical journalism neck of the woods seriously now for the last 4 months. I currently write for The Edge (which is an entertainment magazine based in Southampton), 7BitArcade, O2 Acadamies Newsletter. Off the back of this I have interviewed and met: Palma Violets, Peace, Wolf Gang, Cosmo Jarvis, Howler and I am scheduled in for a few more in the new year. I've also attended about ~15 gigs guestlisted.

 

My advice would be:

 

-You need a large and comprehensive portfolio showing lots of different styles of writing. You are going in to musical journalism-- but that has different subsets, can you review albums? How about singles? What about live shows? And can you cover musical news? They're all things that might come up so show you can do them! Also it looks even better if things in your portfolio have been published somewhere because it gives more credibility (I'm afraid reviews under iTunes purchases aren't really applicable here though guys!)

 

-Try and get something published. Be it something completely unrelated to music-- having any of your work deemed publishable (be it unrelated) shows that you do have grasp enough on the language to be deemed fit for publishing. (I had a poem published and a science article-- both obviously unrelated, but it gives your CV an edge).

 

-Go to gigs! A lot of what they do is showing that you're passionate and you love what you're doing... How can you say you're going to be a great reviewer of live shows if you've never been or experienced it?!

 

-Know your stuff. It doesn't mean know the inside out of musical theory, but know enough that you can distinguish sounds/instruments/genres-- because that's the minimum you'll need to get by.

 

-Be ready to research. It's not all handed to us on a plate, you might be asked to interview someone you don't know and then you have to be on the ball enough to research and things. Maybe get your skills up now so, if you ever need to, you can show them at the drop of a hat.

 

-Have some long-term involvement in a magazine/newspaper/communications role of some description. Show that you know what the purpose of the written media is and show you know how it works. I was in the student newspaper throughout high-school, then took a position on the newsletter/comms of my society at university. People love to see that it's not just a whim you think you can do and you know the work that comes with it.

 

-Most of all; be passionate. They don't want someone who is just a run-of-the-mill, just like everyone else. If you're not enthusiastic about what you want to do-- then why do you think your readers will be?!

 

Hope this helps and good luck!

 

That's really helpful, thanks! I think I'm really enthusiastic about music.

I can tell the genre of music usually :) and know a fair bit about a lot of bands and artists but I'm always open to hearing and learning about new artists :)

 

I love live music. I might start going to local gigs and reviewing them, send reviews and stuff to the local paper, try and get some published stuff.

 

Thanks, you were really helpful :hug:

[Brent]

I was a journalism major when I started school.

 

Then I learned that there are NO jobs. NONE. So I am now in medical school, four years later. This is one of the best decisions I've ever made. I have a passion for writing and reading and editing, but I can still do it.

 

Do NOT go to Journalism school. Many of my friends are now working at mall kiosks with their journalism degrees. If you really want to be a journalist, a degree isn't necessarily necessary. Do it on the side. Tom Brokaw did it, and so can you.

[Nattatouille]

I was a journalism major when I started school.

 

Then I learned that there are NO jobs. NONE. So I am now in medical school, four years later. This is one of the best decisions I've ever made. I have a passion for writing and reading and editing, but I can still do it.

 

Do NOT go to Journalism school. Many of my friends are now working at mall kiosks with their journalism degrees. If you really want to be a journalist, a degree isn't necessarily necessary. Do it on the side. Tom Brokaw did it, and so can you.

 

Yeah Brent is 100% right in this regard too.

 

I'm a scientist actually by day doing a PhD in medical research and I write for my other pieces when I have time/evenings/weekends. Journalism is my hobby... Not my job.

[Prospector]

Well, I think doing Journalism just thinking about being on a music magazine is a bit wrong, I mean the chances a very little and I guess you have to think about all the possibilities. Most of people I know that did Journalism are working as press agents or things like that (wich was not what they wanted at first place), so think a lot before doing it.

[Til_Kingdom_Come]

:) Do you live in England? What year at school are you in? This will help me tell you, because I can't advise anything if you live somewhere else because I don't know what you can study :)

 

Oh yeah, I'm in year 9 and I live in England. :)

[Mollyxyloto]

Well in that case I need some careers advice guys.

 

I enjoy writing about things. I love to listen and watch music (live or not). I love to draw, I just love art overall. I'm a confident person.

 

 

Any ideas?

[Mollyxyloto]

Oh yeah, I'm in year 9 and I live in England. :)

 

Then yes, at my school, when we got to choose our year 10 and 11 options you could choose media. I deeply regret not taking it. You get to look at things in the media such as posters and telly advertisements, you pick out key features and learn why they're all used. You also get to create your own. :)

Then you can go to college and study it at A2 or AS level :)

[Til_Kingdom_Come]

Then yes, at my school, when we got to choose our year 10 and 11 options you could choose media. I deeply regret not taking it. You get to look at things in the media such as posters and telly advertisements, you pick out key features and learn why they're all used. You also get to create your own. :)

Then you can go to college and study it at A2 or AS level :)

 

thanks. :) we cant do media for GCSE but i think we can in Alevel. Do you think Business studies would help

[Wyrd]

I agree with Brent and Nattatouille (wow, your post was very helpful!). If you want to do this, you should see it as a 'hobby' thing and have a back-up plan to make a living.

 

Also, it might help to start posting reviews you write. Like you say you wrote one for Green Day's album. Try to submit it somewhere. Try to write pro bono for some sites. Even post it at rateyourmusic.com or forums like this one for that matter, just to practice. Schredder2 started a thread recently for reviews of CDs and that one might be a good start. If you post in there, you can get feedback as well: 2012 music summaries

By writing pro bono you can start building up a nice CV and then later on you might even get some money out of the music journalism and get to interview/see some nice bands.

 

Good luck! :thumbsup:

[Italian Plastic]

I have a friend who's interviewed Wilco, HEALTH, Grimes etc but works at the zoo in the day :cheesy:

[Til_Kingdom_Come]

I agree with Brent and Nattatouille (wow, your post was very helpful!). If you want to do this, you should see it as a 'hobby' thing and have a back-up plan to make a living.

 

Also, it might help to start posting reviews you write. Like you say you wrote one for Green Day's album. Try to submit it somewhere. Try to write pro bono for some sites. Even post it at rateyourmusic.com or forums like this one for that matter, just to practice. Schredder2 started a thread recently for reviews of CDs and that one might be a good start. If you post in there, you can get feedback as well: 2012 music summaries

By writing pro bono you can start building up a nice CV and then later on you might even get some money out of the music journalism and get to interview/see some nice bands.

 

Good luck! :thumbsup:

 

Thankyou. I'll try do some reviews on that thread. :)

[Til_Kingdom_Come]

Do you guys think it's a good idea for me to consider this career path in the future, or am I just wasting my time?! :( Thanks for all you advice.

 

I just think it would be good for me because music is the only thing I am truly passionate about. This might sound weird, but it is sort of spiritual. Like, in a Religious Studies lesson a couple of weeks back, I was gonna play The Scientist, but I played Wake Me Up When September Ends, by Green Day because more people seemed to like that! :) And when my teacher said that wasn't spiritual, I now do NOT particularly like her now! :D

 

Anyways, i've been trying to convert my friends into Coldplay lovers, and one of them said that when she was feeling sad, she listened to The Scientist and it made her feel much better.

 

I think music does things to you that nothing else can - weird huh? And I'm not remotely religious!! :D

 

Was any of that relevant? Anyway, my point is, music means ALOT to me. :) :)

[doritji]

Do you guys think it's a good idea for me to consider this career path in the future, or am I just wasting my time?! :( Thanks for all you advice.

 

I just think it would be good for me because music is the only thing I am truly passionate about. This might sound weird, but it is sort of spiritual. Like, in a Religious Studies lesson a couple of weeks back, I was gonna play The Scientist, but I played Wake Me Up When September Ends, by Green Day because more people seemed to like that! :) And when my teacher said that wasn't spiritual, I now do NOT particularly like her now! :D

 

Anyways, i've been trying to convert my friends into Coldplay lovers, and one of them said that when she was feeling sad, she listened to The Scientist and it made her feel much better.

 

I think music does things to you that nothing else can - weird huh? And I'm not remotely religious!! :D

 

Was any of that relevant? Anyway, my point is, music means ALOT to me. :) :)

 

 

I'm studying journalism at the moment. I don't regret it at all. And those saying that there are no jobs, aren't looking hard enough.

 

And I just think that you shouldn't focus too much on the music industry business. I mean, not that it can't be your dream, but realise that it might take you some time to get there and that you should be willing to do other stuff first, to build up a portfolio.

 

What I can advise is that you perhaps try to search for review websites where users can submit their own reviews. This will help your writing, but it'll also give you something to refer to when applying for this kind of stuff. The most probable scenario is that you probably work at some magazine/newspaper for soem years, and that you keep your eyes peeled for job openings at several music magazines/websites. If you can then apply for such a job with your magazine/newspaper experience, and with your written review to prove your skills, your chances of getting hired are pretty realistic.

 

You just can't expect to graduate and immediately get to work in the music industry. But if you realise this, and are patient enough, then I'd say: go for it!

[Til_Kingdom_Come]

I'm studying journalism at the moment. I don't regret it at all. And those saying that there are no jobs, aren't looking hard enough.

 

And I just think that you shouldn't focus too much on the music industry business. I mean, not that it can't be your dream, but realise that it might take you some time to get there and that you should be willing to do other stuff first, to build up a portfolio.

 

What I can advise is that you perhaps try to search for review websites where users can submit their own reviews. This will help your writing, but it'll also give you something to refer to when applying for this kind of stuff. The most probable scenario is that you probably work at some magazine/newspaper for soem years, and that you keep your eyes peeled for job openings at several music magazines/websites. If you can then apply for such a job with your magazine/newspaper experience, and with your written review to prove your skills, your chances of getting hired are pretty realistic.

 

You just can't expect to graduate and immediately get to work in the music industry. But if you realise this, and are patient enough, then I'd say: go for it!

 

Ok. Thanks. :) This might sound really stupid, but what does build up a portfolio mean? :confused: :)

[doritji]

It's a collection of your work that you can show to your future employers. In this case it's a bunch of articles you have already written to show that you can in fact write a decent article.

 

In few weeks I'm starting my internship at a free national student magazine and I'll keep the articles that I'll write for that magazine with me, so that I can show them off when I'm applying for a job in the future.

[Til_Kingdom_Come]

It's a collection of your work that you can show to your future employers. In this case it's a bunch of articles you have already written to show that you can in fact write a decent article.

 

In few weeks I'm starting my internship at a free national student magazine and I'll keep the articles that I'll write for that magazine with me, so that I can show them off when I'm applying for a job in the future.

 

 

Thankyou! :)

 

Good luck with your internship

[Mark]

I've done work experience at the BBC, Q Magazine and the Daily Mirror. I'm doing English at Uni, hopefully gonna do journalism some time. Worked for Sky Sports. I would say this:

 

• Do not study journalism. If you study journalism, you are pigeon-holed as a journalist your whole life. If you enjoy writing and editing, do English, because you can do (nearly) anything with English.
  
• Seriously consider if journalism is right for you. There are very few jobs. The pay is bad. Teachers get three times the starting salary. It's all heading online these days. It's a lot of hard work. And for every person that meets Green Day and does a line of coke with Florence or whoever, there's someone stuck in the office, reading through a review, checking the magazine's not saying anything it could be sued for.
  
• Write stuff. All sorts. Find books on how to write stuff. Study your craft, work hard at it. Don't just expect to be good at it because you know about music: look at your teachers for example. Are the best teachers the ones who know their shit, or the ones who communicate ideas the best? It's the same with writers. Study, study, study. Read loads. Start a blog. Review everything. Get Twitter. Read proper newspapers, and not The Sun.
  
• Write to places for work experience. If you want to work for Q, ring them up. Ask them. They'll ask for your work, send it to them.
  
• Somewhere like Q will most often only hire someone they know for a big job. If they have a post for online sub-editor, they ring up their mate Paul at the NME and ask if he fancies the post. That's why getting yourself known to people through work experience is crucial. It's the same in any job, they're going to hire someone they know.
  

 

My cousin wanted to be a Formula 1 mechanic, but his mum told him that there's no chance of him getting that job, because it's an extremely limited field. That's the wrong attitude to have. Someone has to interview Muse, you just have to prove that you're the right person for the job. Good luck with it, and follow the advice of everyone else that's commented.

[Mollyxyloto]

^Thank-you very much!

[Black Rose]

Most writers on the main magazines are freelancers whom don't work directly for the magazine, hence why you can see the same name popping up on various magazines.

 

Its very hard to get a foot in the door, best place to start is with the smaller media, local newspapers, get a name for yourself.

[Til_Kingdom_Come]

Most writers on the main magazines are freelancers whom don't work directly for the magazine, hence why you can see the same name popping up on various magazines.

 

Its very hard to get a foot in the door, best place to start is with the smaller media, local newspapers, get a name for yourself.

 

Thanks. :) I might try my local paper then.