Whether you are deciding what to post every day, researching music marketing strategies, scheduling co-writes, booking shows, avoiding sketchy contracts, or all of the above; keeping up with the music industry is not easy.

It is especially challenging if you are an independent artist without a marketing team or artist manager.

Even so, it’s crucial that you are well informed with music industry updates and trends so you don’t waste money, make huge mistakes in your career, or fall behind.

Yes.

The music industry is a fast-paced industry that isn’t always the most welcoming to newcomers. However, with the right tools, you can beat the odds and fulfill your dream music career.

So how do you keep up with this ever-changing music business?

Luckily, the rise of podcasts has created an infinite source of portable knowledge that you can tap into virtually anytime; anywhere.

Music industry podcasts are ideal for musicians and artists because the content is valuable, current, convenient, and most importantly FREE.

In this 2021 edition of 20 Best Podcasts for Musicians, you will discover podcasts from top music industry experts and listen in to insightful conversations on various music industry topics.

Listen to these music podcasts daily, and along the way collect helpful music marketing gems, professional musician secrets, and life-saving songwriting tips.

You’ll be music industry savvy in no time.

And just to make it even more convenient for you, this master list will include breakdowns of all you can expect before listening to each podcast.

Let’s dive in.

Hosted by multi-GRAMMY award winner Seth Mosley, this podcast is great for understanding not only how to get into the music industry, but how to stay in! 

Each episode unpacks the experiences and advice of a variety of top industry professionals- songwriters, musicians, producers, publishers –– you name it!

The podcast even gives unique insight from top artists within the Country and Christian industries, such as Paul Brandt, Matt Redman, John Cooper, Meredith Andrews, Cody Carnes, and many more! 

If you love the Made it in Music Podcast, make sure you also get access to the Deep Dives bonus show. In these episodes, you can watch exclusive interviews with each guest covering more in-depth content not accessible to the public! Get free access here.

Frequency: Bi-weekly 

Topics: Music business, Songwriting, Christian music, Country music, Sync, Music management, Publishing, Music marketing.

Hosts: Seth Mosley, X O’Connor, Logan Crockett 

Guests: Paul Brandt, Matt Redman, John Cooper Meredith Andrews, Cody Carnes

Av. Length: 40 – 60 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Google Podcasts, Website

Most people know the name Taylor Swift, but many may not know one of the names behind her fame: Rick Barker. Successful manager and keynote speaker, Rick Barker, resigned as Taylor Swift’s manager in 2008.  

Now he has made it his mission to grow and monetize the fan bases for over a thousand artists throughout his career. 

Working with a variety of genres, Barker is passionate about helping his clients get their music into the world. He is constantly investing time to stay up to date on the latest trends in digital marketing and the music industry. This podcast is good for those looking to grow in their knowledge of music marketing and promotion!

 Frequency: Weekly

Topics: Digital marketing, Artist management, Social media, Music Promotion.

Hosts: Rick Barker

Guests: Ari Herstand, Seth Mosley, Rod Castro

Av. Length: 5 – 50 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Website

Founded by songwriting duo Simon Barber and Brian O’Connor from Liverpool, UK, this podcast features some of the most successful songwriters in the world! Check this one out if you want to hear songwriters discuss their personal songwriting processes and the stories behind some of their favorite songs. 

Here, you can find interviews with Beatles singer Paul McCartney or legendary songwriter, Bon Jovi, talking about his latest album 2020! 

With over 200 episodes and interviews with hundreds of different artists and songwriters; you are bound to hear from an artist you enjoy! 

Frequency: Weekly

Topics: Songwriting, Lyric writing, 

Hosts: Simon Barber, Brian O’Connor

Guests: Birdie, Jon Bon Jovi, Paul McCartney 

Av. Length: 40 – 60 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Google Podcasts, Website

As the name suggests, the DIY musician podcast is all about helping musicians build their careers by “doing it themselves.”

It features interviews with promoters, publishers, lawyers, bookers, and artists from a variety of backgrounds! The podcast focuses on music publishing and marketing, providing listeners with an hour to an hour and a half episode each month.

DIY musician is led by Kevin Breuner of the Atlanta-based band, Smalltown Poets. He is also occasionally joined by Chris Robley, who both fronted the pop group THE SORT OFs.

Frequency: Monthly

Topics: Music promotion, Marketing, Distribution, Music Business

Hosts: Kevin Breuner, Chris Robley 

Guests: Misty Boyce, Amythyst Kiah 

Length: 60 – 120 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcast, YouTube, Google Podcasts, Website

When physical albums were the dominant way of distributing music; liner notes, or the writing found within the sleeves of records, were a central means of sharing the narrative of a story with listeners. 

As the music industry has pivoted to online distribution, the founders of The Broken Record Podcast desired to create a platform where artists could further share the narratives of their music as was once found within these liner notes – hence the name, Broken Record. 

The podcast is passionately led by Justin Richmond and features interviews from producer Rick Ruben, former New York Times editor Bruce Headlam, and writer Malcolm Gladwell. 

On Broken Record, you can expect to hear about the lives, inspiration, and craft of a variety of artists!

Frequency: Once/twice weekly 

Topics: Songwriting, storytelling, Behind the Scenes of music, 

Hosts: Justin Richmond (also Bruce Headlam, Malcolm Gladwell, and Rick Ruben?)- not entirely clear

Guests: John Legend, Ozzy Osbourne 

Av. Length: 30 – 60 mins

Listen here: Apple Podcasts,  YouTube,  Google Podcasts,  Website

If you are looking for a podcast that covers a wide variety of aspects of the music industry, The Business Side of Music is a good fit for you! The podcast is released weekly and talks about recording, songwriting, copyrighting, cataloging, and much more! 

Episodes are hosted by Bob Bender, industry veteran and tour manager of Ringo Starr. Guests range from musicians and songwriters to personal brand experts. Every conversation is designed to help you move your music career forward.

Frequency: Weekly 

Topics: Recording, Copyrighting, Cataloging, Songwriting.

Hosts: Bob Bender

Guests: Chad Harvey, Amira Alvarez

Av. Length: 30 – 60 mins

Listen here: Spotify, YouTube, Google Podcasts, Website

In the Song Exploder podcast, LA native Hrishikesh Hirway features some of the top artists of our day as they describe, step by step how their song was created.  

To keep the focus zeroed in on the creative process of the song being featured, Hirway edits out his own part of the interview as listeners journey through how the song came to life. 

The podcast lays out isolated multi-tracks alongside commentary from artists, drawing listeners into details they may have never noticed. 

So, if you want to hear all about how Imagine Dragons wrote “Follow You,” or Billie Eilish wrote “Everything I Wanted,” this is the podcast for you!

 Frequency: Bi-weekly 

Topics: Songwriting, production, collaboration 

Hosts:  Hrishikesh Hirway

Guests: Bon Iver, Billie Eilish, Selena Gomez, Imagine Dragons

Av. Length: 20 – 30 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Website

Andrew Hitz has experience in performing in over 40 countries over the last two decades. As the name suggests, his podcast “The Entrepreneurial Musician” is designed to help artists monetize their artistry in an ever-changing industry. 

This podcast includes episodes of a variety of lengths, and many of his episodes focus on the little steps it takes for someone looking to make money in the music industry.

Frequency: Monthly 

Topics: Artist growth, Management, Artist development, 

Hosts: Andrew Hitz

Guests: The McCain Duo, Josh Spector, Alice Jones

Av. Length: 10 – 30 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Google Podcasts, Website

And The Writer Is… is hosted by the award-winning, multi-platinum selling, American songwriter Ross Golan.  

At least once a week, Golan talks with one of the top artists of our day. He covers artists from a variety of genres, from Lauv and Jeremy Zucker to country artist Luke Combs. 

On the podcast, writers talk about their music. A recent podcast featured Daniel Nigro, co-writer and producer of Olivia Rodrigo’s newest album “good 4 u,” as he talks about his work with a variety of artists and his latest release.

 Frequency: Once – Twice weekly

Topics: Songwriting, Publishing, Co-Writing, Music Business, Ghost Writing, Production 

Hosts: Ross Golan 

Guests: Jeremy Zucker, Lauv, Luke Combs, Daniel Nigro 

Av. Length: 60 mins

Listen here: Spotify,  Apple Music, YouTube, Google Podcasts, Website

This podcast features the voices of three professionals each playing varying roles in the industry: Darren Makins (singer/songwriter, musician), Ron DiSilvestro (producer, audio engineer, drummer), and Michael Marks (audio engineer, musician). 

Each episode features a conversation about how to navigate various parts of the music industry.

Frequency: Monthly 

Topics: music business, 

Hosts: Darren Makins, Ron DiSilvestro, Michael Marks 

Guests: Jason Reed, Josh Mahan 

Av. Length: 60 – 120 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts

Have you ever been curious about the personal journeys of some of your favorite artists?  

In each episode, host Brandon Harrington sits down with songwriters, session musicians, and industry executives as they share experiences with addiction, racism, sexism, bankruptcy, homelessness – you name it! 

This podcast shares the stories of industry professionals as they’ve worked to survive not only the ups and downs of the music industry, but the peaks and valleys of life.

 Frequency: Twice a week

Topics: Life experiences of artists 

Hosts: Brandon Harrington 

Guests: Marty Dodson, Volk, Robert Finley, Mat Kearney, Emily Weisband 

Av. Length: 60 – 90 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Website

Have you ever been curious about the personal journeys of some of your favorite artists? 

In each episode, host Brandon Harrington sits down with songwriters, session musicians, and industry executives as they share experiences with addiction, racism, sexism, bankruptcy, homelessness – you name it! 

This podcast shares the stories of industry professionals as they’ve worked to survive not only the ups and downs of the music industry, but the peaks and valleys of life.

Frequency: twice a week

Topics: Life experiences of artists 

Hosts: Brandon Harrington 

Guests: Marty Dodson, Volk, Robert Finley, Mat Kearney, Emily Weisband 

Av. Length: 60 – 120 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Website

The New Music Business With Ari Herstand is great for independent artists trying to navigate a digital world of streaming platforms, social media, and Tik Tok. The podcast, hosted by Ari Herstand, focuses particularly on those who are innovating within the music business. 

In an episode, each about an hour-long, you can expect to hear from an artist, manager, music supervisor, label head, publisher, agent, radio DJ, or other industry pros! Herstand believes that there are a lot of ways to succeed, and desires to help explore those ways. 

Frequency: Weekly 

Topics: Music business, Marketing, Songwriting 

Hosts: Ari Herstand 

Guests: Andy Grammar, Madame Ghandi, Kevin Garrett 

Av. Length: 60 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Google Podcasts, Website

Led by Celtic metal songstress Leah McHenry, The Savvy Musician Show is a marketing podcast geared specifically to musicians. 

The podcast jumps into conversations about the best strategies for navigating the ever-changing world of social media, Facebook advertising, album launching, and crowdfunding.

Frequency: Weekly 

Topics: Marketing, Branding, Music business 

Hosts: Leah McHenry 

Guests: Steven Wood, Ty Richards 

Av. Length: 30 – 60 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Website

Strong Songs is a podcast that looks at just those – strong songs. In the show, Kirk Hamilton takes a look at a variety of strong songs from across time- picking them apart and putting them back together again. 

In each episode, Hamilton typically looks at song structure and chord progressions. That being said, this podcast is probably most helpful to those with at least some knowledge of music theory.

The podcast is a great choice for looking to dive deeper into what makes Abba’s “Dancing Queen” and other hit songs so timeless!

Frequency: Twice/month 

Topics: Song structure, Songwriting, Melody, Lyrics

Hosts: Kirk Hamilton

Av. Length: 60 mins 

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcast, Google Podcasts, Website

What sets this podcast apart from the others is that it isn’t focused on teaching you how to win mainstream awards or have millions of social media followers. 

Instead, Making it with Chris G. focuses on having conversations with people that simply do what they love full time. 

Chris has taken on numerous roles in the music industry throughout his life! He is a music business professor, concert promoter, artist manager, and former talent buyer for Live Nation/House of Blues New Orleans! His episodes typically feature guests from the entertainment industry, but some episodes offer insight into the world of athletes, entrepreneurs, and other career professionals.

Frequency: Weekly (ish) 

Topics: Publishing, Marketing, Booking, Songwriting, Independent music careers

Hosts: Chris Goyzueta 

Guests: Phil Messier (founder of Synch business “Bopper”), Jonathan Stone (founder of Rocket Songs)  

Av. Length: 60 – 120 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Website

Unstoppable Recording Machine is a podcast led by Eyal Levi, the CEO and founder of the world’s biggest and best online audio school for rock and metal producers, URM Academy. 

Each episode he sits down with industry professionals to talk about production and audio engineering for rock bands.

Frequency: Weekly 

Topics: Production, Audio engineering 

Hosts: Eyal Levi 

Guests: Thom Russo, Andrew Sheps

Av. Length: 90 – 120 mins

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Website

The Working Songwriter is another great podcast sharing the stories of songwriters. Episodes typically last about an hour and feature artists classified in the “singer-songwriter” category. 

The show has been downloaded over a million times! Some notable features have been with Drew Holocomb, Elizabeth Cook, and The Milk Carton Kids.

Frequency: Monthly

Topics: Songwriting, Behind the Scenes of Artists, Music Industry.

Hosts: Joe Pug 

Guests: Drew Holocomb, Elizabeth Cook, The Milk Carton Kids

Av. Length: 60 mins 

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Google Podcasts, Website

Songcraft is a podcast “featuring in-depth career-spanning interviews with songwriters of all genres and eras.”  

Each episode talks about the experiences of various songwriters as they converse about the stories behind their songs and how they’ve developed in their craft.

The podcast is posted every two weeks by co-hosts Scott Bomar and Paul Duncan. Bomar was formerly a staff songwriter at Sony/ATV and a two-time GRAMMY nominee who now spends his time as a musician, producer, and songwriter, finding success in a variety of genres.

Frequency: Every two weeks 

Topics: Songwriting process, Behind the scenes of artists, Lyrics, Ghost writing, 

Hosts: Scott B. Bomar, Paul Duncan

Guests: Daniel Nigro “Driver’s License”, Todd Snider “Alright Guy”, Michael Franti “Say Hey (I Love You)”

Av. Length: 60 – 120 mins 

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Website

The Music Industry Podcast is presented by Burstimo, a rapidly growing marketing agency comprised of a team of publicists, digital marketers, graphics designers, and video editors. 

Some of their largest clients include Warner Music and Universal Music Group!

The podcast is hosted by Burstimo’s Maddy and Alex who dive into a variety of topics regarding marketing in the music industry! 

By covering topics from Spotify to live events, merchandise to social media, and branding to music promotion, the podcast is aimed to help you get your music into the lives of as many as possible!

Frequency: Monthly (ish) 

Topics: Social media, Branding, Music promotion, Digital marketing

Hosts: Maddy and Alex 

Guests: Liberty Wilson (Senior Marketing Director of Warner Music Group), Lisa Young In (Audience Development Manager at AWAL)

Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts

Building a full-time music industry career takes a great deal of knowledge about the industry and how it works.

Just last year, emerged so many 21st century trends and changes; streaming, increase in direct to fan relationship, fall of record labels, and rise of indie artists.

If you are like most indie musicians, it is hard to find time to read up on the music industry trends.

Reading is a great way to learn, but with a fast-paced industry like this, by the time you are reading the book, it’s already outdated.

That’s why in this article, we curated together a list of the best podcasts for musicians like you to learn on the go.

You are listening to some of the most recent updates and trends in the industry with music professionals working in the industry.

So whether you’re dropping off the kids to school, on a quick lunch break, or taking a jog around the neighborhood; don’t miss out on these valuable sources of wisdom and knowledge from music industry experts living out the dream in real-time!