Nerdapalooza 2011: Hotel Rates and Hosts!

Nerdapalooza has just announced the host of this years event, as well as the discount rates available for attendees staying at the venue, the Orlando Airport Marriott.

Nerdapalooza is an annual nerd music concert. This year the festival will be returning to the Orlando Airport Marriott beautiful Orlando, Florida on July 16th and 17th. This places the show conveniently during the summer in Florida (as if you needed another excuse to go to Florida this summer!), in the city that is also home to Walt Disney World Resort, Universal Studios Orlando Florida, Universal Studios’ Island of Adventure featuring the NEW Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Sea World Orlando, 1000 malls, and MUCH more. This year they will also be returning to the Orlando Airport Marriott that is located right outside of the Orlando International Airport (MCO). (For a list of airlines that fly into MCO, check here!) Anyone planning to attend the event will have absolutely no trouble finding a shuttle to bring you the less-than-5-minute trip from the airport to the venue!

This year the Marriott if offering a discount rate of just $89/night. Not only that, but the first 100 to reserve with the Nerdapalooza discount at the Orlando Airport Marriott will receive a 10% discount to the hotel’s restaurant for one meal at their stay! So if you’re thinking about going to Nerdapalooza, there’s no better time to reserve a room than right now.

In order to take advantage of this, you’ll have two paths you can take:

  • Either call 407-851-9000 or their toll-free number of 1-800-380-6751 and ask for 5th Annual Nerdapalooza Group Block.
  • Reserve online at this link, which will automatically take you to the Orlando Airport Marriott website with the discount code of nernera entered as the discount code.

Additionally, this year’s Nerdapalooza will be hosted by none of other than Epic Win Burlesque. Anyone who attended last years event surely won’t forget the Epic Win Burlesque performance after-hours on Saturday evening. For those who didn’t attend Epic Win Burlesque is a phenomenal burlesque troupe with a taste quite nerdy, as seen in shows themed in Ghostbusters, cartoons, and even hosting a debate between Star Trek and Star Wars. Hosted by Schäffer the Darklord and Nelson Lugo, accomplished magician and vaudevillian, Epic Win has been redefining the craft in New York.

Each year Nerdapalooza grows bigger and better, and this year is no exception! People from all over the video game remix community are already lining up to get to Nerdapalooza, including everyone’s favorite OverClocked After Dark hosts, Level99 and Brushfire. Don’t miss out on this huge event! Book your room today.

How to Optimize Your YouTube Profile

So by now you should know why you, as a musician especially, should have a YouTube Profile, you know how to optimize your videos and music for YouTube, but there’s one more thing missing: How to optimize your profile itself. There’s not TOO much you can do with your YouTube profile as far as optimization goes, but it’s a good opportunity to talk a little bit about yourself, get some links out there, and direct users to other outlets such as Facebook, twitter, your personal website, etc. The absolute best example I can give for this is OverClocked ReMix’s YouTube Profile.

Some important things to remember are:

  • Use your whole description, and every field you have that’s relevant. If you get X amount of characters, use as many of them as you can. Drop as many links in there as are relevant, and make sure you list them in the order of importance. Every bit of information about you in there is more information that someone will read.
  • Make your background image relevant. Have the address to your mainsite, twitter, Facebook, etc. You can even include a small description of yourself and your music as well. Remember information in the background displays above the fold (aka “near the top part of the page, before the user has to scroll down”). This is some of the first information they’ll see. Some users won’t scroll down at all, make sure you make your information very accessible. Try not to go over board with how “busy” your background was. Don’t let your information get distracting, and make sure the information that you want to put forefront is visible and obvious.

That’s really all I have. As I said, there’s not too much you can do, but there are steps you can take. I can’t emphasize enough that you should text every stop possible. Every little bit helps. As always, any questions or suggestions, just leave a comment, and I’ll catch you next week.

The Very Best That No One Ever Was! The Missingno Tracks

DISC 1

1. Fishy – Game On (~Opening~ Demo) 0:19
Starts out with the Game Freak sound effects, and then rocks the main theme like mad!

2. Level 99 РThe Mighty Mighty Pok̩mon (~Opening~ Demo 2) 2:48
Starts out with Stevo’s signature guitar sound! Pretty rockin’ track from the start. 0:30 shows off some source usage. 1:08 brings a breakdown… and then it builds back up without missing a beat. 1:31 brings in a solo. Source resumes at 2:01. Stevo rocks this track right to the very end! YEAH!

3. halc – Shades of Red (Theme of Pallet Town) 3:11
I thought this was a remix album… not a soundtrack. Starts out with almost straight source usage, and 0:18 brings in the remix. halc keeps on improving his skills! 1:25 brings in some solo action. 1:44 slows it down and breaks it down. Source returns with some mixage at 1:54. Everything slows down at 2:30. It all starts to fade away at this point as well…

4. Jaroban, Matt Beckemeyer, Fishy, Sam Cooper, Vralia, Jocelyn Holst, DJ Krisp-E, Chris Stibrany – My Greatest Rival (Battle! Rival) 5:28
Oooh! Starts out pretty ominous sounding… Also, it didn’t take long to get to the requisite mega-collab. 0:13 brings in guitar, and 0:20 brings in an epic voiceover. 0:36 shows source chippiness. Vocal track? No worries, the lyrics are pretty well written, and also pretty funny. 1:25 brings in a backup vocal. That’s great… We’ll see who has the bigger Pokéballs! Best line ever. This makes Gold out to be a loser of sorts and Silver to be a pimp. Then again, Silver is Giovanni’s… err… don’t want to spoil that. 2:50 or so brings in the chorus. 3:22 brings a breakdown of sorts. Whip out your Pokéballs! 3:37 or so brings in a battle scene voiceover with classic sound effects. The lyrics don’t take themselves seriously at all… I love it. 4:20 brings the chorus back. 4:58 ends the song, and ambience starts until the end, with the epic voiceover too… What a hilarious track.

5. ProtoDome – Rain Prayer (Road to Viridian City – From Pallet ~ Guidepost ~ Road to Cerulean – From Mt. Moon) 2:42
Piano, eh? Proto’s still got it. But why isn’t he saving Christmas: The Dangerous Formula? Eh, no matter… 0:22 brings in some chippiness with the piano. What a mellow jazzy track… This is a really good track right here; I love it! 1:25 or so brings in a piano solo. 1:38 brings in a chippy solo. Everything really picks up at 2:04 or so. Everything fades away at 2:36.

6. prophetik – Viridian Vibe (Theme of Pewter City) 3:29
Ambience, eh? Saxophone at 0:16 or so. Some electronica comes in at 0:38 or so. This is a beautiful track right here… 1:24 brings in a solo of the wind instrument. Source resumes at 1:50. The electronic sound in the background works beautifully. It keeps the track together in a cohesive unit. More solo at 2:38 or so. The finale becomes evident at 2:58. Ambience returns at 3:10, and the sax fades out to the end.

7. Cerrax – Out of Antidote (Viridian Forest) 3:41
Eh, eh? Okay, I had to do that. 0:08 brings in source, with creepiness to boot. This is how this track should be done! After all, they say that the forest is a maze. Great work from Cerrax here. What an eerie track; fitting for this creepy forest. 1:06 brings in some more creepy ambience, and is followed by a solo. There’s even more creepiness at 1:30!! Everything slows down and calms down at 1:45 or so, but builds back up 10 seconds later. Another solo of sorts at 2:10, with a breakdown included. It slowly builds up to what is sure to be an epic finale. A hint of the end at 2:48. 3:04 brings a return of the norm, but with a hint of finality. 3:26 proves that the end is near, and it breaks down to the end.

8. ProtoDome, Level 99 – Hope to See You Again Soon… (Pokémon Center) 2:21
A mellow mix for a mellow source. With “duh duh duh nuh nuh”s included. Looks like Stevo opted for acoustic here, and Proto opted for his usual quirkiness. A breakdown at 1:20 or so. The piano in the background is beautiful. 1:50 brings a solo of sorts. Fades to end.

9. Fishy – Battle for the Badge [Battle (VS Gym Leader)] 4:10
Starts out calm, but 0:05 brings in some epic music. 0:16 shows the source in full rockin’ glory! 0:37 rocks it even harder. Distortion at 0:58. This is a phenomenal track right here… just what a remix of this source should be and more! It’s hard to review because it’s so awesome. I only want to listen and not type! Woe… Anywho, 1:57 kicks off the solo; can’t miss that now can we? 2:17 brings in more of the solo, and it sure sounds epic. Source begins to return at 3:00 or so. Still a bit of a solo here… that’s over a minute now. Slowdown at 3:29. Calm music until the end… One hell of a track there.

10. ProtoDome – On the Origin of Species (Evolution) 1:35
This title makes me laugh… well done, Proto. Well done. A mellow track for a simple source. Nice breakdowns and usage of Pokémon cries. Yes, I can tell they’re cries by the sound. Yes, I’m a nerd. No I don’t care. Think I heard a Magnemite in there… Very well done, and very calm. Nice work. Ends with the classic finished sound.

11. Benjamin Briggs – Drowning Blue (S.S. Anne) 3:13
Piano/chiptune hybrid is evident in the first 20 seconds. Classic chthonic goodness here. 0:56 brings in some source usage. Slowdown at 1:22, and solo from there. Slight speedup at 1:44 or so. It works wonderfully. Also a bit of a solo at this point, until 2:27 when the source returns. Fadeaway at 2:54 to end.

12. Rozovian – Spume (Sea) 4:43
Oh, Rozo, what have you done here? Let’s see! Sonar blips? Nice ambience… signature for Rozovian. Everything keeps building and building up until 1:11 when more ambience comes in. What a buildup.. 1:26 brings in some source usage. I knew it was building to something! What a happy track! Scratch that, what a bipolar track. More so than Bipolar Bird from Essence of Lime… 2:12 brings in more source usage. 3:07 slows everything down, and brings back the sonar blips. 3:18 brings it all back again though. I like the tempo of this… Everything slows down for the last minute, and returns to the ambient beginnings of the track. Nice job, man!

13. Tweek – TEEM.ROKIT (Team Rocket Hideout) 4:31
Tweek, master of epic stuff, tackles the Team Rocket Hideout on his own. Err… the song, not the place. 0:20 proves the epicity of the track is easily evident. 0:44 brings in some heavy drums. What an epic track! No surprise though; it is Tweek. 1:14 or so brings a breakdown, but with all breakdowns it builds back up. Source usage is littered throughout this breakdown. 2:10 brings in some more solid source usage. 2:26 has the classic sound of the source that is probably ingrained in the memories of youth who played Red and Blue for hours on end. Gold and Silver too, for that matter. 3:00 or so shows another solo. If Team Rocket was this awesome, they just might have succeeded in their goals. Instead, they were foiled by a sixth grader. 3:50 shows that source one last time. Fades to end starting at 4:10.

14. pu_freak – Clash of the Titans [Battle (VS Trainer)] 5:55
Piano rendition of the battle theme? I’ll take it. 0:26 brings in some source usage. The original battle themes were the best. This is a pretty awesome track. On par with Rexy’s best, methinks. 1:15 or so is a bit of a solo. 1:30 brings in the source again. Speed up at 1:55 with more source. This style fits the source wonderfully… like a skintight bodysuit or something. Yeah, it’s that good of a fit. 2:50 or so has a slowdown, but 3:00 brings in more of the source. 3:25 or so breaks everything down to the simplest form… pure, slow piano at its best. This continues until 4:24 or so when it starts to build back up… slowly but surely the intensity increases with each key, each note, until 4:52 when it gets back to the source. And at 5:10 it is on the verge of exploding with the pressure and intensity. At 5:30 it explodes, and the remnants of the track fade away to the finish. Beautiful!! Bravo!!

15. Rozovian, WillRock – Blue Haze (Road to Viridian City – From Pallet) 5:21
Once again, ambience. This is also Will’s first track on the album, and his signature synth sound comes in at 0:48. This track keeps on building like so many others before it. Then again, that’s fitting for a Pokémon remix album. Have to build your monsters up too, right? 1:38 continues the building of the track… WillRock uses Source! It’s super effective! Listener takes 2:10 damage because that’s the time it begins at. 2:37 brings a hint of more to come. The title is apt; there’s certainly a haze in my ears with this song. And then at 3:00 or so, the main song cuts through the haze like a Razor Leaf. At 3:39 or so, WillRock uses Solo! It’s super effective! Yes, I’m gonna continue these jokes. With this album, it’s kinda mandatory, ya know? Everything builds up after this solo until 4:38, when a hint of the end reveals itself. 4:50 slows everything down to it’s base level. Ambience to finish. Great way to end the first disc.

DISC 2

1. WillRock – Champion’s Horizon (Route #26) 4:47
Starts out rocking right out the gate. Classic WillRock sound permeates this track, as with most of his other tracks. 0:29 brings in calm source usage. 0:39 is the return of the synth sound. 0:54 has the classic screaming guitar sound that is so beautiful. 1:17 brings in a solo. 1:53 or so brings more source usage. 2:12 has some piano; a rare calm spot for a WillRock track. But 2:25 proves it was just the calm before the storm, as everything intensifies tenfold from here on out. This is truly one heck of a track, and truly fantastic. 3:19 brings in some triumphant sounding guitar. 3:50 or so has a victorious solo. More calmness at 4:05 or so. 4:22 says PIKA!! And repeats a few more times until the end. Cute and unexpected.

2. Insert Rupee – Precious Metals (Goldenrod City) 2:25
Ben Briggs and halc team up once more for this song. Very evident source usage. Very happy as well; the musical glee is reminiscent of Why So Serious? More source usage at 0:58 or so, with a bit of a personalized touch. 1:12 has a solo using some classic sounds and Pokémon cries. 1:42 has another solo. It all breaks down to simplicity at 2:07, and continues until the end.

3. WillRock – Slowpoke Shuffle (Azalea Town) 3:49
Ttthhhiiisss tttrrraaaccckkk iiiissss sssslllloooowwww…. A very mellow track; very well done Will! I’m half-tempted to review this song in the conclusion as a joke, but I won’t. Source is very evient throughout this track. 2:00 brings in a slow solo… a slowlo if you will. Source usage returns to dominance at 3:00 or so. Calmness continues to the end.

4. Mattias Häggström Gerdt, GSlicer – Casino Lounge (Goldenrod Game Corner) 4:43
Anso’s electronic expertise and GSlicer’s skills combine for one trance-tacular track. Rhythm appears at 0:30 or so. Source usage at 1:45 or so. This is a very rhythm-driven song; it works though. A bit of a solo begins at about 2:10. It’s like Rain Dance and then a water move; one part emphasizes the other. Nice work. Source returns at 3:30 or so. Calmness begins at 3:58 or so, and then builds up to the finale. Solo beat at 4:18, and then fadeout until the end.

5. Chrono, Dragon Avenger – Divine Olivine (Violet City) 4:15
What a happy beat! If Deia’s involved, I’m expecting vocals to go with a beat like this. Chimes play throughout. Source at 0:32. 0:47 brings in Deia going “na-na-na” more than that recent My Chemical Romance song. This is cooler too. More source at 1:21. Short breakdown at 1:35 or so. 1:56 brings Deia back, with backup vocals by DragonAvenger. Pretty well done. 2:38 brings in some beautiful piano, that brings in even more of the source. 3:14 returns the source that had been used up until this point. Basic beat from 3:55 or so until the end, with occasional chimes.

6. DragonAvenger – Jiggly Choir (Jigglypuff’s Song) 0:42
Okay, creeped out a bit. Damn Jigglypuffs… Anyone else getting sleepy? All this track contains is Jigglypuff singing. Pretty funny for an interlude. Then again, Deia did those on the FF4 album too…

7. ProtoDome – Home Is Where the Luvdisc Is… [Hearthome City (Day)] 1:45
0:12 brings in some jazzy source. Piano is used equally as the brass instruments. A bit of a solo begins at about 1:05. This continues until the end; beautifully done, Proto. Beautiful!

8. halc – My Friend Mudkip (Dewford Town ~ Surfing) 3:13
And now for the only Generation 3 remix on the album. Begins with some nice chippiness, and a great take on the source too. 0:30 brings in some background music. Also, for the record, I do like Mudkip. This is a very happy track, and chippier than a truckload of Lay’s put through a wood chipper. 1:30 brings in the Surfing source. This is even better than Shades of Red, believe it or not. A bit of a calm spot starts at 2:15 or so. A bit like Pacifidlog Town itself. Except this doesn’t float atop a colony of Corsola. Calmness and bass to end from 2:50 or so.

9. The Orichalcon – Argent Vexemon (Ice Path) 3:33
This is a very frigid song; by that, I mean the sounds are very icy. Bells and the like are used. 0:37 starts some electronic sounds. This a very intense song; 0:57 brings in a heavy beat. More source usage at 1:23 or so. There’s a large focus on the main rhythm here. A bit of a solo begins at 2:27 or so. A buildup to the end begins after this solo; the end really begins at 3:12, when it all starts to fade to silence until the end.

10. ProtoDome – May I Have This Swords Dance? [Canalave City (Day)] 2:51
A very calm song… it starts to build right from the start until 0:23 when the source comes in. Some jazziness comes in at 0:37, taking on the source. This is a very well-balanced mix of chiptune and jazz. Chipjazz, if you will, is pretty much Proto’s specialty, it seems. Solo at 1:27 or so, and it’s beautiful. There’s some pitch bending at 1:46 or so; continues until 2:06 when a breakdown occurs. Sax-sound comes in at 2:11 and continues until the end. Piano finishes the track. Nice work by Blake the British guy who’s a bit strange…11. Fishy, Andy Jayne – Super Effective [Battle! Trainer (Johto)] 5:15
Ah, Fishy and Andy. A collab unseen since Summoning of Spirits. 0:20 brings in some epic guitar source usage. This song is even longer than Battle for the Badge; with this much rock I can’t wait to see how much it progresses. More source usage at 1:08. Some solo at 1:27 or so. Once again, it’s hard to review because all I want to do is listen. Mor source usage at 1:57 here. This song is certainly super effective against my musical tastes; I’m loving the dual guitars. More solo at 2:41, and this one sounds quite heavy. Source returns at 3:04 or so. Another solo at 3:17 that quickly returns to source usage. 3:47 brings in some more rocking on the source that is a mix between cover and solo as with so many other parts of this song. This is such a fast-paced song. Slowdown at 4:27 that brings in some piano. Slowness continues until 5:02 when it all starts to fade away.

12. WillRock, ProtoDome, halc – Bullet for My Piloswine [Route #225 (Day) ~ Ending] 4:00
Vocals at the start; Pretty rocking start. Chippiness comes in at 0:25. Also, this song is guilty of one of the most simultaneously horrid and awesome puns for a title ever. Rocking at 0:37 courtesy of Mr. Harby. More chiptunes at 0:53 or so. Heavy guitar at 1:25 or so. Solo at about 1:40. This is certainly an epic track. Piano comes in at 2:08, no doubt courtesy of Proto. Chiptunes at 2:23. More guitar at 2:33. Dual guitar sound at 2:48 or so. More awesome guitar at 3:20. Fade beginning at 3:49 or so until end.

13. pu_freak – Journey’s End (Ending) 3:09
And we come to the final track, with a very fitting title. What an aural journey it has been, too. Very awesome piano, here. Then again, what OCR album these days doesn’t have at least one epic piano track? Very slow track, but the source is highly evident. I don’t anticipate a huge buildup here, as it’s the last track, and relatively short too. But it does start to build starting at about 1:40. The finale is surely imminent. This such a beautiful track… it all starts to decline to silence at 2:30, with very calm piano dispersed throughout this final period. Ends with a classic sound effect.

CONCLUSION
Well, this album has been in the works for 4 years now, right around the time when Diamond and Pearl came out, heralding the beginning of Generation 4 and showing a grand total of 493 unique Pokémon. And now, in less than a week Black and White come out, starting off Generation 5 and bringing the total up to 649. This album has been a long time coming, and that’s a very good thing. A nice balance between jazz, chiptunes, and epic guitar-driven rock, among other things, it comes together nicely. It’s definitely worth a download, and every track has earned its place on my hard drive. A much anticipated album, and the expectations were never too high. The end result met them and exceeded them without a doubt. Great work from everyone involved, and I can’t wait to hear and review the next album, whatever it may be. The only sure thing is that it will be OCRA-0024. Until next time, game on!

Missile Master, Episode 1: Invasion OST

OverClocked ReMix Publishes it’s 4th Free Original Video Game Soundtrack

On February 28th, OC ReMix published it’s newest original video game OST: Missile Master, Episode 1: Invasion by OC ReMixer Kunal “ktriton” Majmudar. This marks their 4th free video game soundtrack, following the release of the Return All Robots soundtrack by Andrew “zircon” Aversa.

From the official press release:

February 28, 2011
Contact: [email protected]

FAIRFAX, VA-Missile Master, Episode 1: Invasion, a retro arcade-style developed by Javelin for iOS-based devices, was released last year through Apple’s App Store. Today, OverClocked ReMix has released the game’s soundtrack for free. BitTorrent download at http://ocremix.org/album/26/missile-…nal-soundtrack.

This marks the fourth time OverClocked ReMix, a community primarily focused on fan arrangements of video game music, has published an original soundtrack on behalf of a game developer. Missile Master, Episode 1: Invasion‘s soundtrack was composed by Kunal “ktriton” Majmudar, OC ReMixer and independent composer. OC ReMix will continue to publish more free game soundtracks on behalf of interested game developers and publishers in the future, providing convenient hosting and free promotion.

Missle Master, Episode 1: Invasion is available now for $0.99 on the Apple App Store and was developed by the independent software development company Javelin.

Links

 

How to optimize your YouTube videos

Last week I talked about the importance of a YouTube account, and this week I had planned on talking about how to optimize your profile, however with the recent discussion on OverClocked ReMix about how to get more views on YouTube, and with my own recent work in trying to get promotional videos made for the Nerdapalooza,  the nerd music festival taking play this July in Orlando, FL, I thought I’d skip forward to video optimization this week. As I mentioned last week YouTube is the 2nd most used search engine on the internet, this makes it INCREDIBLY powerful for getting your music out there. The YouTube algorithm also makes sure, best it can, that related videos are linked together, so someone who’s watching one video might find any one of these related videos interesting as well. This is huge. This is your bread and butter. This make is how YouTube helps people find sleeper artists they never knew they loved. So how can you make sure that artist is you.

In the thread on OC ReMix, artist CyprusX posted a video of his Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia guitar remix that he’d submitted to OC ReMix,  and asked how he might be able to get it more views. His song is actually quite good, have a listen:

So how does someone, whom obviously already has good musicianship, get their music to a wider audience? There’s been so many good suggestions, I thought I’d pluck a few from there first.

Dhsu said:

Actually one thing that works fairly well is making it a reply video to another video that’s already popular.

This is an absolutely great way to get views, and is highly encouraged, for both the poster and the responder. When you post a video response to a popular, relevant video, your video shows up under it as a video response. Additionally, their video also is linked under your response video as what yours is a response to. This way both you, and the video you respond to get additional exposure. That said, it’s equally important to encourage visitors to make video responses to your videos as much as possible. You’ll notice Auto-Tune the News does this a lot.

Benjamin Briggs (aka chthonic) said:

also make all of your thumbnails boobs

I’m not joking

I’m not going to deny that this works, but this is one of the situations where you want to weigh views/conversions. As a musician on YouTube looking to get your musican heard, you conversion is essentially when someone who doesn’t know about your music ends up listening to your songs, likes them, and gets converted to a regular fan. While putting suggestive images in your thumbnails, or stuffing your video full of popular, irrelevant tags, or just spamming your URL all over the place, whether or not it’s relevent, is a great way to get lots of views, it’s a very poor way to get a lot of conversions. Your best conversions are going to come from people who are already interested in something similar, and find your videos as a result of that.

zircon said:

  • Make really compelling videos
  • Make videos regularly
  • Encourage people to subscribe + Like your videos
  • Share your videos on Facebook
  • Make video responses to popular videos
  • Make really compelling videos

This is pretty much it, right here. All these things are pretty dead on, especially with the like/rating and subscribing suggestion. The more subscribers you have, and the better your ratings are, the more likely you’re going to be the show up in results and related videos. It’s that simple, but wait, there’s more!

Modus said:

[…] putting your songs to a creative, high quality montage can sometimes do the trick. This windows movie maker screenshot crap isn’t going to catch anyone’s attention but montages DO, as lame as that is.

This is somewhat true. While it’s absolutely important that you have something more interesting than a still image or a slideshow, it’s even more important that you have information about yourself in there as well. Make sure to have, at the very least, a title card that has information about yourself, your channel, other places to hear your music, and having “annotations” or in-video links to like/subscribe incase your video gets embedded elsewhere.

Lastly, artist Luhny said as the 2nd reply:

how about you post a link? advertise it on facebook, twitter, myspace, when you are on IRC or when you are using any messaging services such as ICQ, MSN, AOL, YIM, etc. Advertize it more, so most likely more people will view it.

Bam. So easy, right? Advertise your video in relevant places and people will view it. Share it on any and every outlet you have where people would find it relevant. What this is called is “building authority.” You can’t promote your work in a single place and hope someone stumbles upon it. You have to put yourself out there in as many places as it seems relevant. Keywork: “relevant”. Don’t get overly spammy, and don’t try to push or sell people too hard. Psychologically people aren’t really going to accept things you try to shove down their throat. HOWEVER if they look around a few places, you constantly start coming up, then you seem relevant to their interests and their more likely to be interested.

To anyone incredibly serious about promoting their music independently on YouTube is suggest this (this will be catered specifically to video game remix artists, but other musicians can find it relevant):

  1. Set up Google Alerts
  2. Have it search for terms such as “video game remixes”, “game remixes”, “videogame remixes”, “castlevania remixes”
  3. Have it send you daily e-mail updates
  4. Watch, and wait for a discussion like this one to show up somewhere on the internet: http://gamrconnect.vgchartz.com/thread.php?id=125199
  5. Register, contribute, and then plug your own mixes. The contribute part is extremely important. If you just hop into this community and say “hey guys check this out” people are going to be turned off immediately by your spammy behavior. The first thing you want to do is drop in there and say “Hi, these are some mixes that I liked. Additionally, I’ve done a few remixes myself, here’s 1 or 2, let me know how you feel about them.” Make sure to always be polite, and encourage people to give you feed back and establish personal connections. Don’t just drop in, post your mixes, and leave. This is probably one of the best ways to get fans. If you do this on enough threads on the internet, not only are you videos getting more views, but they’re getting more internal links, which helps your videos show up more often, and it’s getting you more authority for  the “video game remixes” search terms. This can also work for your original works as well if you say “I also have a few originals on there” etc.
  6. Repeat. Very few people go viral over night. Especially people peddling to a market as saturated as video game remixes on YouTube. If you want to get views, never stop promoting. Don’t expect the magic internet fair to do all the leg work for you.

In addition to everything mentioned above:

  • Optimized Titles. CyprusX is on the right track but could actually benefit from including “Order of Ecclesia” in his title, rather than just “OoE”. You have something like 120 characters for your title, use as many of them as you can: eg. Castlevania: Order of Ecclessia – Empty Tone Rock Guitar Remix
  • Don’t feel bad about stuffing those titles as big much as possible. Why? Well how are people going to see your video? Either they’re going to get to it from another video, they’re going to be linked directly to it, they’re going to know about it already and go themselves, or it’s going to be embedded somewhere else. They’re more likely to find it if it has a title with the keywords relevant to what they’re searching for, if they’re getting linked to it they’ll listen to it regardless of the titles if they’re interested, if they’re coming back to hear it after already having heard it, then you’ve already won, and if it’s embedded they won’t even see the title. I’ve heard excuses like people not wanting to alienate their audience by having an obvious SEO’d title tag, but I’ve never heard a good reason to not do this. Also: keyword being relevant titles. Do not spam.
  • Optimized descriptions. Information about the song, the source, you, your channel, your website, twitter, facebook, etc.
  • Do covers. When possible, do covers. Optimize your tags & titles bigtime. eg. Weezer Say It Ain’t So NES 8-bit remix. “Guitar Rock Remix” etc.
  • Post video responses
  • Encourage video responses
  • Encourage ratings
  • Encourage subscriptions
  • Links in your signature
  • Linking people you might think are interested
  • Having your own website with links to your YouTube
  • Having a twitter, linkedIn, Facebook page
  • Tumblr’s are nice for this
  • Look and see what POPULAR artists are doing, and do that, because they were doing that before they got popular, and it worked pretty well for them.

Anyway yea, you can see where this is going. You might as “which one of these are most important?” Per usual the answer is ALL of them. Every little thing you can do that might help is worth doing if you actually want to get heard. Don’t give up. Put yourself out there. Do it with to 100%.

If anyone has any question about anything discuss, or any suggestions about anything else they might want to hear me talk about, leave a comment 😀

OverClocked ReMix Releases Pokémon: The Missingno Tracks

OverClocked ReMix has recently released Pokémon: The Missingno Tracks, their 23rd video game remix album. Suprisingly Missingno Tracks is the first major undertaking of any Pokémon related music remixing in the community. The album spans the entire Pokémon serious and features songs from artists including Level 99, Fishy, Benjamin Briggs (chthonic), and more. After around 5 years in production Missingno Tracks features over 90 minutes of music, and as always, is available free via OverClocked ReMix in both high-quality MP3 and FLAC.