Musicians know better than most that the road to success can be paved with stumbling blocks. But what does it take to get past potholes in an industry where even the strongest acts can trip up?

A couple of weekends ago while we were down in Brighton for the tenth annual Great Escape Festival – Europe’s largest emerging music showcase – we asked artist both new and established a simple question to see if we could get to the bottom of the issue:

Is there anything you know now, that you wish you’d known before you started out?

Here’s what they said…

Rival Consoles

Ryan: “Hundreds of things… one of the most important of them is to carefully listen to your work. Or at least do the right kind of listening. I would love to have had a deeper sense of this early on, because sometimes you confuse ideas when you listen to the material in the wrong way. I guess it’s part of understanding of how to develop tracks. I grew up listening to very concise pop music like the Beatles, so when I started out I tried to fit as many ideas as possible into my compositions. That meant the results were pretty dense, but lacked deep exploration of any one single ideas. But as I’ve gotten older I’ve realised that to really develop an idea over time is crucial, because it creates a more immersive journey.

“I think most electronic producers are guilty of gravitating towards loud, punchy sounds. Power is seductive, but it can massively reduce creativity in my opinion. If you are constantly trying to make sounds really huge, it takes a lot of time and you energy and small sounds get dismissed. I wish I’d had the confidence to know this earlier, but in a way it can only come over time.”

Creepoid

Patrick, drums: “Don’t travel with drugs you can’t eat. [Laughs] No, really. We can’t talk about that.”

Anna, vocals and guitar: “Also, don’t undervalue yourself. If you wait it out and keep going someone will eventually recognise your talent, but you’ve got to believe in yourself first. There are some people who are really cynical or jaded out there about the music industry because of chatter on the internet… but you’ve got to believe.”

Aurora

Aurora: “I haven’t been in the industry long so I haven’t learned many lessons when it comes to the music business. And sometimes it’s good to just be in the moment. But I guess I’d like to remind my future self: ‘Don’t stop having fun because nothing last forever.’ So I’d like music to always feel like a hobby however serious it gets, because it’s important to enjoy everything.”

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