1. Start that “thing” today—not tomorrow, and not next week.
2. Getting started doesn’t require structure, an official tutorial, or any special gear.

‍Setting the scene

I’ve got no idea what I’m doing. I don’t know what software to use, but I do know that I don’t want to pay for anything—at least not until I’m sure making music is something I actually want to pursue.

First things first, I set out to find the “best” software to experiment with, without breaking the bank. For me, “best” meant: no cost, offline mode, a UI that isn’t ugly or archaic, easy-ish to experiment with, and something with learnings that transfer to a more advanced product later on.

In the past I tried Spotify’s web UI music creation tool, but it was only online so could only be used while I had internet, the lag wasn’t fun and it cost money quite quickly after the trial.

I like Fred again’s music, so I wondered what software he uses - apparently he’s a Logic Pro pro. Perplexity reckons Logic Pro is basically an overpowered and extended version of GarageBand. GarageBand comes for free with Macbook’s OS…so I went with GarageBand.

‍Getting started

At this point, I would normally pause there and think “job done”, lets continue tomorrow. I have two reasons why I didn’t want to pause:

1. Recent content I’ve been consuming has encouraged more personal agency. Books like 4-hour workweek or Modern Wisdom’s podcast interview with Naval Ravikant.
2. I read numerous articles of people starting with the only the simplest tools, making music only off their phone

So, using Atomic Habits tricks, I told myself to make music for 5 minutes. Without needing to even downloaded the software, I spend over an hour, hopping around the interface, trying to make a simple beat with the software MIDI controller.

No theory, no structured learning, no tutorials, just dive in and try it out. This worked well for me, and here is the first beat I made:

https://soundcloud.com/westernwilson/music-day-1

Before this, I didn’t know what a MIDI controller was or what a DAW was. (MIDI stands for Musical Instrument Digital Interface and DAW is what GarageBand is, and it stands for Digital Audio Workstation). Now I kinda do???

Honestly, taking a course or chatting with someone more experienced might be a good idea soon. I’ve thought about reaching out to Dera Meelan—someone I’ve enjoyed since hearing his track “Fire Sale” with Church & AP.

A few days past and here was my second beat:

https://soundcloud.com/westernwilson/music-day-2 ‍ If you have any pointers, reach out on any socials or at kiaora@westernwilson.com 🙏

‍Final note

There are many successful podcasters whose early podcasts sounded like they were recorded in a bedroom closet, sounding unpolished with bad scripts/questions. But no shade, I think that’s how it should be, that’s how you should start.

Point is, you can start today, and you can bootstrap it with minimal investment. Don’t spend on the best equipment if you’re not even remotely sure you’ll want to stick with it in a year; heck, you might quit after a couple of weeks.

Persevere with whatever you’ve got going on. Good luck, and stay curious!

What do I want to do? Where do I want to be? Why am I doing whatever I’m doing? I don’t have a perfect answer to this, but I know that I can’t let perfection stop the process. So let’s focus on what I know:

• I love technology, devops, and coding, but I should diversify into other creative stuff
• I want to lead myself toward some form of creative expression
• I have a proven capability to learn
• The internet grants me unlimited access to learning resources & community
• In this age of “AI”, I can reduce feedback loops, fail-fast and experiment quickly
• I’ve always had an interest in music

With that list, I reckon it’s time to learn how to make beats.

Ideally I would have documented my progress on social media (Instagram, TikTok, or other), but I fear opinions that might stop me from committing long-term, especially in the early stages.

So, I’m going to quietly post updates on here, mostly for me, but also for anyone who finds it!

Good luck on your journey, and welcome to mine.