Music collaborations are a great way for emerging artists to be seen, get air time and improve on their craft. Established artists and trailblazers in a certain genre can also benefit from collaborations as they get to tap into an audience market previously elusive to them. But collaborations can be tricky business. In the music industry, collaborating with another artist or producer can either be a highly rewarding endeavor or can lead people down a grudge-bearing path full of resentment for each other.

If you’re just starting out in the business, it might help you to know the different ways you can collaborate with a producer and get your best piece of work ready for release.

Working on the basis of mutual interest  

It’s easy to send in a text or DM asking a producer to work with you, but to really get a collaboration piece to shine, you need to make sure everyone is on the same page. Identify your goals and try to match them with someone who understands them. This means you will have to get comfortable communicating and that too, openly.

Figure out the producer’s taste and style of work within the genre. Talk to them about the kind of music you would like to compose or perform. Think of each other more as co-producers. Your task would be to merge the best elements of your work with theirs. Once you’ve sorted out the general structure of your music, make sure you get a rough agreement on who’s going to be doing what task.

For the sake of creativity

Remember when Justin Timberlake sought out RnB and Hip Hop guru Timbaland for his solo career?  Experimenting with your sound and composition is a good way to team up with a producer. It doesn’t even have to be a streamlined process. Pick whatever you think you can do best. Compose a melody, create a music sheet or jot down some lyrics. Maybe work on demo track before diving headfirst into the process. In this case, you can take help from online music production software to save up on some logistical expenses.

Harnessing the power of experts

This is pretty much how a rock band collaborates—internally that is. Finding a producer who is prolific in what they do is usually the basis of all projects but what about doubling or tripling that number? Go for a team of producers and divide tasks that can be done individually. One person solely works on the beat; another works on the sheet music or lyrics. The focus will allow for a more refined production of each element that goes into a song because everyone works on their own area of expertise.

Music production couldn’t get any easier in the contemporary age. Get yourself online software like Music Jotter and start your collaboration journey now!