32 YouTube Video Ideas For Indie Music Artists

YouTube is a great means for building a fanbase online, but what kinds of videos should you be making for YouTube?

Well, besides the obvious music and lyric videos, which can take a lot of time and thought to put together?

Ultimately, you want to use your YouTube channel to tell stories, and help your fans get to know you.

With that in mind, I did some research and brainstorming, and here are 28 video ideas for music artists that you can use for creating YouTube content...

1. Lyric Videos

I know, this is one of the obvious ones, but there might be some less obvious ways of going about creating lyric videos that you might not know about. 

So I put together an article covering easy ways to make lyric videos here that you might want to check out. 

2. Music Videos

Again, kind of obvious, which is why I also created an article giving you easy and inexpensive tips for creating music videos here.

3. Covers/Remixes

Creating covers and remixes are a GREAT way to get noticed, especially if you're covering a trending song. 

When people look for that trending song on YouTube, your video could show up in the suggested feed!

And not only can you post these on covers on your channel, but you can also document yourself creating these covers or remixes!

4. Behind The Scenes Recording Sessions

Why not just let the camera roll while you're recording? Maybe you won't get anything interesting, or maybe you'll strike gold! 

Either way, you won't miss anything because you'll have the camera rolling!

5. Vlogs

You can vlog about almost everything. You can vlog your daily life, or your progress toward releasing your next album. Whatever your fans want to see, this can be can easy way to get out video content.

6. Significant Life Events

Maybe you're on a journey toward improving your health, or you're traveling to an exotic location? Film it!

7. Album Reviews

Review the new album of one of your favorite bands and post it on YouTube!

8. Book Reviews

Review the new album of one of your favorite bands and post it on YouTube!

9. Music News

What's new in your music niche? Talk about it in a video!

10. Cultural Commentary

What's your take on where the culture is going?

11. Interview People

Find interesting people and interview them. These could be other artists in your genre, or just people whom your fans are interested in. 

12. Play Games

Like gaming or playing card or board games? Shoot a video of you and your bandmates playing. 

13. Unboxing

Any time you get new gear this is a great opportunity for an unboxing video!

14. Talk About Your Songs

Shoot videos talking about your songs. What are they about? How did you get the idea for them? What obstacles did you face while creating the song? 

15. Tutorials

Share your knowledge for making music with your fans in the form of tutorials!

16. React to old songs

What do you think of some of your older, maybe unreleased, songs? Record your reaction!

17. Get Political

A lot of people will say that you shouldn't get political, because you can potentially alienate half your potential audience. 

On the flip-side, it can also make you that much more popular with fans who do share your political views. 

This is dangerous territory, so it's up to you!

18. Do musical challenges

Try making a song in an extreme time crunch, or using non-traditional instruments like household items!

Just make some fun songs under some fun restraints. 

Andrew Huang does a great job of this! 

19. Share Your Story

Share your story up 'til now. How did you get into music? What obstacles did you have to overcome? What successes have you had? Setbacks? 

20. Tour of Your Home

Show your fans where you live! They love getting a look at your "normal" life.  

21. Talk about your gear

What gear is your favorite? How has it helped you make better music? 

22. The "Making Of" Documentary

Make some mini documentaries on the making of certain songs or albums. Take your fans deep behind the scenes! 

23. Outtakes & Bloopers from recording sessions

Just keep that camera rolling while your in the studio and I'm sure you'll wind up with some interesting bloopers to share. 

24. Thrift Shopping

Document yourself shopping for new costumes, gear, or materials for your studio!

Here's an example of how we did it. 

25. Song Meanings

Share the meanings behind your songs! Probably better for those whose lyrics are more ambiguous, and the meaning isn't quite clear. 

26. Say Thanks

Thank your fans for their support!

26. Host an "Ask Me Anything" Google Hangout

Go live on Facebook or in a Google Hangout and let your fans ask you anything! Then take that video recording and add it to YouTube. 

27. Record Your Screen While Recording And Mixing

You're already hard at work recording and mixing your music on your computer. Record your screen and share your progress with your fans! 

28. Have Your Fans Cover A Song

If you have a large enough fanbase, you probably have some fans who are musicians themselves. Ask them the cover a song and record a video that you can upload or share to your YouTube channel! 

29. Live Performance

If you have a large enough fanbase, you probably have some fans who are musicians themselves. Ask them the cover a song and record a video that you can upload or share to your YouTube channel! 

30. Highly Searched Videos

Another great video idea is to find footage you can use that is highly searched on YouTube, and then add your music to this footage.

This footage could be sports highlights, nature settings, or travel footage. The possibilities are endless!

Since people are searching for this footage, the odds of your videos getting found and listened to are much greater, and so long as your music fits the vibe of the footage, you could even get some followers.

31. Use Other People's Videos

Reach out to influencers on YouTube and offer them your music, royalty free, to use in their videos.

32. Practicing Your Craft

You could also upload videos of you practicing your instrument. 

My wife and I were going through a singing course, so we made a video showing ourselves going through the course. 

Want To Explode Your Fanbase?

With the power of the internet, it's now possible to pin-point the people who are the most likely to be your die-hard fans. These are the people who have the potential to fall in love with your music, and buy everything you put out. 

These are what's known as "Superfans", and I put together a free 7 step guide for how you can attract your Superfans, and actually make a living from your music. 

You can download this free guide by clicking the button below. 

Get it now and get ready to meet your Superfans!