The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck About Your Music

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck About Your Music

So, you make music. Or at least, you say you do. But if we’re being honest, you spend more time tweaking a hi-hat than actually releasing anything. You’ve got 742 half-finished projects sitting in a folder called “Final Mixes,” but we both know nothing in there is final.

Welcome to the never-ending cycle of creative procrastination, where your mind convinces you that everything has to be perfect before it sees the light of day. And here’s the kicker: that mindset is exactly what’s stopping you from ever doing anything worthwhile.

The Creative Brain Needs to Breathe

Look, being creative isn’t just about making music. It’s about keeping your mind from turning into a corporate hamster wheel of pointless tasks, notifications, and stress. The moment you stop creating, you’re just another zombie scrolling through Instagram, pretending that looking at other people’s work somehow counts as inspiration.

Creativity is a muscle. If you don’t use it, it shrivels up and dies. The irony? The more you worry about making something “great,” the less likely you are to make anything at all. Overthinking kills momentum. Perfectionism strangles creativity in its sleep. And the only cure? Just f*cking make something.

Life Is a Distraction Machine

It’s way too easy to get caught up in everything life throws at you. Work, relationships, endless digital distractions—it’s all designed to keep you from sitting down and doing the thing you actually care about. The moment you decide to write a song, the universe suddenly reminds you that your kitchen needs cleaning, your inbox is full, and your dog looks like it needs emotional support.

You’ll tell yourself you’ll get to it later. But later turns into never, and before you know it, you haven’t made music in months.

The truth is, life isn’t going to stop throwing distractions at you. It’s on you to fight for your creativity. Carve out time. Prioritize your music the same way you prioritize scrolling TikTok for an hour before bed. Your future self will thank you.

Just Release the Damn Thing

If there’s one piece of advice that could save most musicians from themselves, it’s this: stop hoarding your music like a dragon guarding treasure. Just release it.

No one cares if it’s not perfect. Hell, no one even knows what “perfect” is. You think your favorite artists nailed every track exactly how they wanted? Nope. But they put it out anyway, and that’s why you even know who they are.

Releasing music isn’t just about sharing your work; it’s about getting better. The more you put out, the more you learn. The more you learn, the better you get. But if you sit on your music forever, waiting for some magical moment when it’s “done,” all you’re doing is making sure it never exists beyond your hard drive.

Perfectionism is Just Fear Dressed Up in Fancy Clothes

You know why people say they’re perfectionists? Because it sounds better than admitting they’re scared. Perfectionism is just a socially acceptable way of saying, “I’m afraid people will judge me.”

Spoiler alert: people will judge you no matter what you do. Some will love it, some will hate it, and most won’t care at all. And that’s a beautiful thing—because it means you’re free. Free to make what you want, how you want, without needing to cater to every opinion on the internet.

So stop over-polishing every track to the point where it loses its soul. Stop convincing yourself that you need another six months to tweak that one snare. Put it out. Move on. Make more.

The Only Thing That Matters is Doing the Work

At the end of the day, the people who actually succeed in music (or anything creative, really) aren’t the ones who have the best gear, the most expensive plugins, or the “perfect” process. They’re the ones who keep making shit, no matter what.

They don’t wait for inspiration. They don’t get stuck in their heads. They make music, put it out, learn from it, and repeat. That’s the game. That’s always been the game.

So if you want to make music—really make music—stop giving so many f*cks about whether it’s good enough. Because the only way to get good is to keep going, keep releasing, and keep creating.

Now go make something. And then actually put it out.