Creating a music website is the best way to be heard by more people. Not only will you have a home for your music, but you’ll also be able to build a fan community around it.
In fact, an online presence is imperative to the success of your music career.
In 2021 alone, global digital music revenue for music downloads topped $1.78 billion according to Statista. Streaming revenue was even more impressive, hitting $23.3 billion in the same timeframe.
The majority of music revenue made online is concentrated around services like Spotify and Apple Music. But having a website of your own is a fantastic way to push awareness for your tunes and your brand overall.
In this blog post, we’ll show you how to create a music website that helps you promote your music, define your brand as an artist, and build a fan community around your work.
But first, let’s spend some time discussing who exactly should make the effort to create a music website.
Who should make a music website?
The answer to this question is straightforward. Any musician, band, or artist who wants to accomplish the following will have a concrete need for a website:
- Grow their fan base
- Sell their music or merchandise
- Book shows or tours
- Have their music heard by more people
- Share music trailers or sneak peeks of their music
In short, if you’re an artist who is serious about your craft, then you need to have a website. A website is essential for any musician who wants to take their career to the next level.
Of course, others can make use of a website, too, including:
- Hobbyists: Personal music websites are very much a thing and can be a great way to share your music with friends, family, and the internet at large.
- Music educators/tutors: Many people in this field have their own website to advertise their services.
- Music schools: These usually have a website for marketing and recruitment purposes.
- Instrument makers: Like music schools, these businesses need a website to reach their target market.
Websites are about more than offering a web presence for the business side of things. They’re great for building a fanbase too.
How a music website can grow a community
The great thing about having a website for your music is that it gives you a home base online. A place where you can share your music, your thoughts, and connect with fans.
A music website allows you to build a community around your work. As we all know, a strong community is essential for any artist who wants to be successful.
Think about it this way. Without a community, you’re just another artist trying to sell your music to people who don’t know you exist.
With a community, you have a group of people who are invested in your success and can help promote your work.
A community can also provide feedback that can help you grow as an artist.
They can tell you what they like and don’t like about your music. This feedback is essential if you want to improve.
Now that we’ve talked about why you should create a music website, let’s shift our attention to why WordPress is the ideal platform for building a website.
Why WordPress is best for music websites
There are a lot of different website builders and platforms out there. So, why WordPress?
Well, the answer is simple. WordPress is the most popular website builder on the planet. It powers over 43% of all websites on the internet. That’s a pretty significant number.
But it’s not just the sheer number of WordPress websites that makes it the best platform.
It’s also the fact that WordPress is incredibly user-friendly and easy to use.
You don’t need to be a tech expert or have any coding skills to create a WordPress website. Anyone can do it.
Plus, there are tons of free WordPress themes and plugins available that make it easy to create a professional-looking website.
Not to mention, WordPress is also free to use. You can download the software from WordPress.org and get started building your website right away.
How to design a music website from scratch
We’ve talked about why you should create a music website and why WordPress is the best platform for building one. Now it’s time to get into the nitty-gritty of how to design a website from scratch.
What follows are seven steps you can follow to take your website from the idea stage to launch.
Step 1: Set up a website
Before you can begin the design process, you need to get all the appropriate pieces in place. This primarily means securing hosting, a domain name, and your WordPress installation.
To begin, you’ll need to select a web host for your site. There are many hosting providers out there that offer quality services, but we prefer to use DreamHost. They’re one of the most popular hosting providers and have a long history of providing quality service for WordPress, in particular.
They offer a free domain name when you sign up for their web hosting services and make it easy to install WordPress with just a few clicks.
Once you’ve selected your hosting provider and registered for an account, you’ll need to set up your domain name.
Your domain name is the address people will use to access your website.
You can usually purchase your domain name directly from your web hosting provider. In the case of DreamHost, the domain name is bundled with the hosting package.
Once you have a domain name, you’re ready to install WordPress and get started with the design process.
Installing WordPress is a pretty simple process.
Most hosts, like DreamHost, offer a one-click install feature that makes it super easy to get WordPress up and running in just a few minutes.
Step 2: Pick a music theme
With WordPress installed on your domain, it’s time to start working on the design of your website.
WordPress offers a wide variety of musician themes to choose from, many of which are free.
However, if you’re looking for something a bit more robust, Astra is always a good option.
Our theme is designed to be flexible and serve the needs for many website types across multiple industries.
But the stand-out reason to use this theme is the availability of music website templates, which provide an open-and-go website building experience.
Just swap out the placeholder images and text with custom content and you can press publish in a matter of hours.
One Starter Template that may be of interest to music professionals is Flute Artist. It offers ample opportunities for showcasing your latest work alongside high-quality photos, social media links, support for a discography, and biography.
When selecting a theme, it’s important to keep your target audience in mind. You want to choose a design that will appeal to the type of people you’re trying to reach with your website.
For example, if you’re a jazz musician targeting an older audience, you might want to steer clear of more modern designs. If you’re a hip-hop artist targeting a younger audience, a more contemporary design might be a better fit.
Another consideration is how easy the theme is to use and customize.
While many themes claim to be user-friendly, some are definitely easier to use than others. It’s definitely worth investigating this point before making a decision.
When reviewing a theme, take a look at the features it offers and see if they match your needs. Also, take some time to review the user comments and ratings to get a sense of what others think of the theme.
Once you’ve selected a theme, it’s time to install it on your WordPress site and start customizing it to match your brand.
To do this, simply go to Appearance > Themes then click Add New.
Either search for the theme you’d like to install or click Upload Theme to upload a premium offering you’ve saved to your computer.
Once installed, click Activate and proceed to adjust the theme’s settings and design as you see fit.
Read more: You can even install a portfolio theme, to showcase your past events portfolio to your audience.
Step 3: The best music website plugins
Next, you’ll want to install some essential WordPress plugins. Plugins are tools that add new features and functionality to your website.
While there are thousands of WordPress plugins available, we recommend starting with just a few essential plugins for music websites. That is, plugins that provide features for better showcasing your music, specifically.
These plugins include:
Presto Player
This plugin allows you to easily embed video and audio files into your WordPress posts and pages. Plus, it comes with a handy player that lets visitors control playback without ever having to leave your site.
It also includes support for playlists, so you can group together multiple tracks into a single player.
The Events Calendar
If you plan on hosting concerts or performances, this plugin is useful for creating and managing an events calendar. It allows you to add all the important details for each event, including the date, time, location, and a description.
Plus, it comes with Google Maps integration so visitors can easily find your event venues.
WPForms
This powerful plugin lets you create custom contact forms, signup forms, surveys, and other types of online forms. This proves useful if you want to gather fan feedback or allow visitors to sign up for your newsletter.
bbPress
Lastly, bbPress turns your WordPress site into a full-fledged forum. This can be a great way to build a community around your music.
This plugin integrates seamlessly with WordPress so you can add signups, account profiles, moderators, and more.
You may need other plugins for things like search engine optimization, speed optimization, caching, and security, but the above are must-haves for music websites.
Step 4: How to upload music to your site
Now you’ve installed WordPress and selected a theme, it’s time to start adding content to your site. In this case, that means uploading your music.
To upload media files to your website, all you need to do is go to Media > Add New in your WordPress dashboard.
Then, simply click Select Files to choose the audio files you want to upload from your computer.
Once you’ve selected the files you want to upload, click Open then click Start Upload.
WordPress will now begin uploading your music files. Once the process is complete, you’ll see thumbnails for each track you’ve uploaded.
Now that your music is uploaded, it’s time to start adding it to your posts and pages.
To do this, simply go to the post or page where you want to add the audio file then click on the Add Media button.
This will open up the WordPress media library where you can select the audio file you want to insert.
Once you’ve selected the file, click on the Insert button then save or update your post or page.
Your audio file will now be embedded in the post and ready for playback.
While this is the standard way to add media to your site’s posts and pages, it’s likely a better idea to display your music in a way so that it can be played and generally interacted with by fans.
To do this, we prefer using Presto Player. As we mentioned before, it’s a plugin that allows you to easily embed audio files into your WordPress posts and pages. It’s also our own plugin, so we know how good it is!
Plus, it comes with a player that lets visitors control playback without ever having to leave your site.
To get started, you can buy the plugin directly from the site; once you checkout, you’ll be able to download the file.
After doing the former, sign in to your WordPress site from the back-end and go to Plugins > Add New.
To upload the plugin, click on Upload Plugin and select the file from your computer.
After installation is complete, activate the plugin by clicking Activate.
Next, you’ll need to activate your license.
To do so, return to the Presto Player website, sign in to your account, then click License Manage.
Find the section that says Key Generator then click where it says Generate License Key.
After you generate a key, return to your WordPress dashboard and select Presto Player > License.
After you paste the key in the appropriate box, click Save. Presto Player will now be installed and ready to use.
Now that you’ve installed and configured the plugin, it’s time to start adding your music.
To do this:
- Go to Presto Player in the WordPress dashboard.
- Click Media Hub.
- On the next page, click Add New at the top of the screen
You may select the video or audio type you wish to upload or embed from there, with five options including YouTube, Vimeo, Video (self-hosted), audio, and Bunny.net. Only Presto Player Pro subscribers have access to the last choice.
Alternatively, you can upload your music files straight to your posts or pages by clicking the + icon to add a new block then selecting the Presto Audio block.
From there, click the Add/Select Audio button.
Or, if you’ve already uploaded them somewhere else, click Audio URL and enter in the link to that file’s location.
After that, you can type in the title of your song, a description, and a caption.
After you’ve finished, click Select to put the audio file into its own post.
If the audio files you’re attempting to upload are too large for adding to WordPress directly, using Bunny.net is your best bet here. It offers smooth playback and integrates well with Presto Player as well so the user experience will be seamless.
Step 5: Required music site pages
There are a few key pages that you’ll need to include on your music website if you want it to be successful.
These are:
- Homepage: The homepage is the first page that visitors will see when they arrive at your site so it’s important to make a good impression. Be sure to include an attention-grabbing headline, recent news and blog posts, featured audio and videos, and links to your social media profiles.
- About: This is where you’ll tell visitors who you are, what kind of music you make, and why they should care. Include a biography, press quotes, a discography, and links to your social media profiles.
- Discography: If you’ve released any music, be sure to include a discography page on your site. This is where you’ll list all of your releases, both physical and digital, along with links to where they can be purchased or downloaded.
- EPK: An EPK, or electronic press kit, is a digital version of the information that you would typically send to a journalist or music blogger in hopes of getting them to write about you. An EPK typically includes a biography, press quotes, a discography, links to your social media profiles, and high-resolution photos.
- Tour/Calendar: If you’re a touring musician, include a tour calendar page. This is where you’ll list all of your upcoming shows, along with links to purchase tickets.
- Blog: A blog is a great way to keep visitors coming back to your site and build a fan community. Be sure to post regularly and write about topics that will be of interest to your fans.
- Contact: Include a contact page on your site so that fans and industry professionals can get in touch with you. Include an email address, mailing address, and social media links.
Step 6: Sell music on your site
If you want to sell music on your site, you’ll need to set up a store.
There are a few different ways that you can do this, depending on whether you want to sell digital or physical products.
For digital products, you can use Easy Digital Downloads. This plugin allows you to sell digital products, such as MP3s, directly from your website.
For physical products, you can use WooCommerce. This plugin turns your site into a fully-functional eCommerce store. You can use it to sell physical products, such as CDs and vinyl records.
Once you’ve installed and activated your chosen plugin, you can start adding products to your store.
You can learn more about this in our step-by-step guide to setting up WooCommerce.
Step 7: Encourage fan engagement
The whole point of having a music website is to build a community of fans around your music.
There are a few different ways that you can facilitate fan engagement on your site:
Forums
A forum is a great way to create an online community for your fans. They can use the forum to discuss your music, share news and rumors, and connect with other fans from around the world.
bbPress offers an easy way to add a forum to your WordPress site. With it you can create forums, topics, and replies, and moderate the discussions.
You can learn more about how to set up a forum on your WordPress site in our quick-start guide.
Comments
If you’re not ready to set up a forum, you can encourage fan engagement by simply allowing comments on your blog posts. This way, fans can interact with each other directly on your site and you can get immediate feedback on your content.
Social media
Social media is a great way to connect with your fans and promote your music. Be sure to include links to your social media profiles on your website, and encourage fans to follow you on these platforms.
You can even create a hashtag for your fans to use when sharing your music online.
Are you ready to take your music career to the next level?
Creating a music website is a smart way to promote your music and connect with your fans. Thanks to WordPress, it’s easier than ever to create a professional-looking site without any coding knowledge.
In this article, we’ve shared seven steps that you can follow to create a music website.
By following these steps, you’ll be able to promote your music, sell your products, and build a community of fans around your work.
If you need a WordPress theme to get started, be sure to check out Astra and Starter Templates as they are well worth a try.
Do you have any questions about how to create a music website? Let us know in the comments below!
Pratik Chaskar holds the pivotal role of CTO at Brainstorm Force, serving as the backbone of the company. Renowned for his organizational skills, strategic thinking, problem-solving attitude, and expertise in leading and executing plans, Pratik plays a crucial role in the BSF’s technological landscape.
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