Questions and Concerns
Why Make Music… Episode 069
“Questions and Concerns”
Episode 69 feels different.
Not because it’s flashy.
Not because it’s controversial.
But because it’s honest.
This episode is less about answers and more about the weight of the questions that independent creators carry in 2026.
And if you’re building something — music, art, media, a brand, a legacy — you’ve probably felt it too.
From Hobby to Catalog
Let’s rewind.
Not long ago, this wasn’t a “career plan.” It wasn’t a rollout strategy. It wasn’t a branding blueprint.
It was time.
Time made available through discipline.
Time carved out through family balance.
Time used intentionally.
That time turned into:
6 instrumental projects (2024–2025)
26 tracks per project
156 fully original compositions
Written, produced, arranged, and finalized entirely in-house
No samples. No collaborators. No borrowed loops. No outside hands.
Then came the expansion.
The “If I Was Your Producer” series.
10 tracks per volume.
Monthly releases.
Now approaching Volume 8.
That’s roughly 80 additional tracks layered on top of the original 156.
When you zoom out, that’s nearly 240+ fully original pieces in under two years.
That’s not dabbling.
That’s system building.
The Guinness Question
The attempt to document this output wasn’t ego — it was curiosity.
Is there anyone else independently creating and releasing this volume of original music without assistance in a single year?
The response from Guinness wasn’t a denial. It was procedural: documentation and proof needed refinement.
Which raises a deeper thought:
How do you measure creative independence in an era of AI and automation?
What counts as “solo” anymore?
If you record, mix, arrange, master, publish, and distribute your own work… but use AI tools to speed workflow… is that different than using a compressor plugin in 2009?
These are modern definitions that haven’t settled yet.
And that’s the tension.
Streaming Reality Check
Here’s the uncomfortable truth:
Over 100,000 songs are uploaded daily across streaming platforms.
Most artists never cross 1,000 streams per track.
Streaming revenue alone is mathematically incapable of sustaining the average independent musician without marketing capital or playlist placement leverage.
So the question becomes:
Are we building art or feeding algorithms?
The metadata you enter before upload — BPM, genre tags, mood descriptors, lyrics, key — is no longer just clerical information.
It’s currency.
Major labels acquiring distribution platforms means access to that metadata.
Metadata reveals patterns.
Patterns reveal creators.
Creators reveal opportunity.
But who controls the map?
AI: Tool or Turning Point?
Artificial Intelligence isn’t the villain.
It’s a tool.
The problem isn’t AI assistance — it’s AI replacement.
When human input disappears entirely, copyright questions emerge.
Human creativity remains the anchor of ownership.
You can use AI to polish.
You can use AI to brainstorm.
You can use AI to enhance speed.
But if there’s no human spark, there’s no soul.
And without soul, there’s no longevity.
The irony?
The same technology that floods platforms with content also empowers solo creators to compete at scale.
It’s not about rejecting AI.
It’s about mastering it.
The Bigger Concern
Zoom out further.
Social media thrives on conflict.
Music journalism thrives on comparison.
Streaming thrives on data.
But creativity thrives on expression.
Why must artists always be positioned against each other?
Why does controversy outperform craftsmanship?
Why do we hear the same 40 songs globally while 100,000 new ones arrive daily?
The system rewards repetition.
But legacy rewards originality.
Sports & Culture Interlude
The WNBA Unrivaled 1v1 Tournament?
Genius.
Pure competition.
No systems.
No plays.
Just skill.
The NBA’s youth movement?
Thunder rising.
New dynasties forming.
The Super Bowl halftime?
Bad Bunny delivering culture unapologetically in Spanish on the biggest American stage.
The theme across all of it?
Ownership of identity.
Legacy vs. Virality
Virality is immediate.
Legacy is deliberate.
One good sync placement could change everything overnight.
But the foundation has to exist first.
Catalog first.
Process first.
System first.
This isn’t about going viral.
It’s about being undeniable.
Gardening Philosophy
You don’t plant a seed and demand fruit tomorrow.
You water it.
You protect it.
You let seasons pass.
You accept storms.
You accept slow growth.
And one day… roots go deep enough that no storm uproots it.
This is not a sprint.
It’s cultivation.
Final Thought
Even if no algorithm rewards it.
Even if no playlist pushes it.
Even if no record book recognizes it.
The music will still be made.
Because that’s the constant.
And when the breakthrough comes — and it only takes one — the groundwork will already be there.
Questions are healthy.
Concerns are human.
Creation is eternal.
New Release:
If I Was Your Producer – Volume 8
February 20.
Keep building.
Keep questioning.
Keep creating.
— WDMNation Media
