How Many YouTube Videos Should a Musician Upload Each Month?

YouTube is one of the biggest potential hubs for music artists, as they can post music videos and monetize their content. This not only helps to pave a successful career ahead but also provides popularity and fandom among the likeminded users who can watch the video through YouTube. That is the reason why all music artists leverage this platform and it has become more competitive in the recent years.

In such a situation, it is quite common for a music artist to consider that uploading more videos might help to clear the clutter. However, publishing more videos does not necessarily put you ahead as too many videos also creates the situation of getting neglected by the viewers since there are too many content to take in. Now, the biggest question is: how often should a musician upload a music video on YouTube?

The Ideal Frequency for Music Artists to Upload MVs on YouTube

For a music artist on YouTube, the sweet spot would be uploading 2 to 4 videos every month, which means posting around one music video every 1 to 2 weeks. Not just OMV, but you can also upload 3 or more YouTube Shorts every week, which helps to keep the channel visible and active. While it might not be possible for music artists to upload music videos too often, it is the frequency and the consistency that engage viewers and make them watch the video content.

On YouTube, you can upload many kinds of videos based on their format and style. There are many ways to promote music through YouTube, and the most effective method is leveraging diversified video formats.

General Frequency Guidelines for YouTube Videos

• Long-form Videos

Long-form videos are great for deep engagement on your channel; they fit perfectly with official music videos, live sessions, acoustic covers, behind-the-scenes, and other categories of music content. For such content, try to upload 2 to 4 videos a month, which is ideal for maximum users to notice and watch the content.

While you might be focusing on the quantity, what matters more for music videos is the quality and production. When you upload a rushed video that is poorly edited, it can instantly damage your reputation as a music artist and hamper your brand. Making a well-crafted live session or official video builds lasting fan loyalty, which can offer lifelong support for your career. Besides, good production requires time for creative development, and you should give that time to cook without rushing the process.

• YouTube Shorts

YouTube Shorts have newly emerged in 2022 and since then, it has been heavily leveraged by all kinds of creators on the platform. It is mainly a short–form video that comes with less than 1 minute of runtime and is mainly suitable for vertical screens since it is scrolled through on the phone mostly. These shorts are perfect for various purposes like creating chorus teases, riff clips, or quick performance snippets, etc to name some.

Shorts are low-friction to produce, help you test what musical hooks catch on, and feed the algorithm new entry points for discovery without burning out your main production schedule. It helps to generate quick views and further indulges viewers to watch the long-form content. Therefore, you do not necessarily have to create a short every time, but you can also repurpose your long videos to create shorts, offering a creative hook and anticipation for the viewers. The ideal frequency to post shorts would be 3 or more every week.

• Live Streams

Those who are unable to manage weekly long-form upload since production takes much time and money can also find an alternative way with live streams. It is recommended to use monthly or bi-weekly live streams or community tab posts to stay engaged with your audience. This audience engagement can be cherished even when you are not uploading any videos soon. Live streams are great for organic attention for the audiences as it creates the ground for direct interaction. Therefore, you can leverage the streams in between your release projects.

What does the data say?

• The Quality vs. Burnout

If you pay close attention to the creative process, you will see that music production takes a significant toll in time and expenses with various activities like recording, mixing, mastering, filming, and editing. Therefore, pushing 2 – 3 music videos every week can cause a tremendous amount of creative burnout. Experts suggest that it is better to publish 2 high-impact videos a month consistently rather than uploading multiple mediocre music videos and staying silent for half a year. It is a significant trade-off that every music artist should think about.

• vidIQ Analysis

Analysis shows that channels that post 1 to 3 times every month can witness a moderate growth of around 0.89% in organic views. The channels that are scaling to 12 uploads or more in a month, including long-form and short-form videos, can witness higher median views and subscriber acceleration.

It is evident that quantity or frequency of the videos is not very important when it comes to creating an impact in the niche. What matters more is the idea or the representation of the video and how it connects with everyone. You can witness the results in real time by experimenting with your own channel and music videos. However, it can be a lot for a music artist who is just beginning their career.

Final Thoughts

Creating consistent music videos is not an easy task for an emerging music artist, and it can get difficult to create sustainable momentum. It is recommended to hire a professional promotional partner in this case who can help you with the right strategies that help you progress in your music career. They can help you with content calendar which allows you to upload your video at the right and the right frequency which allows keeping the momentum.