10FROM10 | Twitch Music Streamers (Part 9)
Updated: Aug 20, 2021
On this blog post, both Tina and I will continue on with this new regular series where we ask 10 Twitch Music Streamers 10 questions relating to Twitch itself and all about their personal experiences on the platform. I think that with such an amazing Twitch live Music Streaming community, this is continuing to be a really interesting blog series. If you would like to check out any of the featured streamers, click on the links in the bios to go to their Twitch profiles.
bekimachine is a music & game streamer from Britain. In her streams you will find her making music, performing concerts, DJ-ing, and playing single-player horror/story games! She produces electronic music under BEKIMACHINE, as well as playing flute for ska/punk band Just Say Nay!
Her solo music displays elements from various electronic styles, including future pop and synth wave. Heavily influenced by video games and the cyberpunk genre, BEKIMACHINE seeks to bring elements together to create a unique sound whilst evoking a captivating aesthetic. For live performances, she performs using Ableton Live. Her AKAI APC40 mkll is used to navigate & launch different songs & FX, and she uses an Axiom MIDI keyboard to trigger vocal effects and play melodies.
1. How did you find out about Twitch and what made you take that step on to the platform?
Initially a friend suggested that I try out streaming. I'd heard of it previously but never really been on the platform or watched other people. After a few months toying with the idea, I decided to start streaming games! Now, I mainly stream music, and needless to say, I haven't looked back since!
2. Do you have any pre-stream routines or rituals to prepare for stream before you go live?
Other than the basics, I always love a coffee to start my weekend streams and sometimes even a hot water bottle if it's cold 😂
3. With live streaming being very time and energy consuming, what is it that motivates you?
To be honest, I don't find it very energy consuming! And the time I allocate to it is my choice. Streaming makes me happy. I do it on top of a 50 hour work week, as well as being in a band and working on my solo music.
To me, all these things combined are an integral part of my career. I love the community I have built up and I always have so much fun streaming, I love knowing that I make other people laugh, and bring others enjoyment through my music. These are the things that motivate me!
4. What has been your most challenging experience on Twitch to date?
I think making music a permanent part of my streaming schedule. I used to stream games 3 days a week, but I decided to make Saturdays music content days. That was challenging for me, as I was nervous about losing community members who preferred the game side. But so far, my community has been with me every step of the way. I learnt to DJ from scratch on Twitch, and I'm making my album on there too.
I've had so much support so far with this change, I don't know why I was so scared in the first place!
5. Have you found much support and encouragement from other Twitch music streamers?
Yes! When I first started streaming I didn't really know any other streamers. It took me a full year to even utilise Twitter and meet others, and it wasn't until I went to Twitch LDN & TwitchCon that I met some amazing friends who have encouraged me every step of the way. <3
6. What impact has the current situation with Covid-19 had on your streaming/life balance?
Not much of a difference really. I currently work full time in the office, so I am still only able to stream 3 days a week. For me though, that is a healthy amount, as I have to put my other time into band commitments, my own music and YouTube content creation.
7. Do you find it a challenge keeping up with stream tech and with upgrading your stream?
At first it took me a while to get a decent gaming PC, but once I had that - I was sorted! I already had an audio interface and microphone from music producing. Eventually I got a capture card for my PS4 as well, so I can stream a variety of games from either PC or console!
I have an amazing community and any earnings I make through Twitch, I put back into my stream setup/music equipment. This year I purchased a Shure SM7B which is an amazing microphone. I use it for both streaming as well as recording vocals, so it was a smart buy! Soon I will need to make some upgrades to my PC for the newer games, but I'm not worrying myself too much about that as I'm happy with what I have! :)
8. To what extent has live streaming on Twitch changed your life?
It's allowed me to meet more people all over the world, and extend my music to a wider audience. It has pushed me to create things I never would of thought I'd be able to in the past, and taken me out of my comfort zone.
I can't imagine a life without streaming now to be honest!
9. Is there any advice that would you give to anyone who is looking to start live streaming?
I would say, make FRIENDS and don't expect anything back from anyone! Support where you can, but don't burn yourself out doing so.
Look after yourself and know when to take a break.
10. Looking ahead, what are your future plans for your own Twitch stream?
For me, continue building up my community. One of my long-term Twitch goals is to become a Twitch partner.
Continue DJ-ing, making music, playing games and sharing that experience with anyone who wants to join in the fun!
Emma O'Reilly (emmaormusic) is an Irish artist making folk rock/pop music, with a little bit of a musical theatre twist. Her musical history is a colourful one that spans contemporary classical choral music, directing a gospel choir, writing for theatre, and recording, performing, touring in the US, Canada, Lithuania, Ireland and the UK as an independent artist. She's been a busker, a teacher, a vocal coach, and there's also a BA in music in there somewhere, as well as a few acting gigs. In more recent times, Emma has become a lecturer in a music college, where she specialises in mentoring young singers in particular. She has a small but lovely following on Patreon, where she posts one brand new original song each month and, of course, she's recently started streaming on Twitch.
1. How did you find out about Twitch and what made you take that step on to the platform?
I first heard about twitch when that whole "Twitch plays Pokémon" thing went viral. I remember my brain grappling very hard with the idea of what Twitch actually was at that point, ha! After that I had a few references in my mind for Twitch - one of my friends (@commontrickster from spicylittleleaf.com) streams his drawings sometimes, and I'd heard through the busking circuit that one Jade Murray had started streaming music on Twitch...! Jade is a.k.a. Hammeta, or as I've come to nickname her, Mama Twitch.
I think I would have come to this platform sooner, but I had a really bad experience last year with a Twitch user who signed up to my Patreon (harassment and harassing behaviour). It definitely put me off Twitch as an option because I was really afraid that if I started something there, I'd come across a lot more people like that. I also have a lot of demands on my time - Patreon, teaching, trying to work on my next release - it felt a bit like "why would I join yet another platform to manage and worry about?". I think the fact that other platforms are so low on engagement means that you can burn out trying to build something there, and it feels like there's no point starting on a new platform when you haven't mastered the others.
Over the lockdown, an Irish comedian/musician/podcaster called Blindboy started experimenting with Twitch. Blindboy is one half of a comedy music duo called The Rubberbandits, and he's kind of morphed into one of Ireland's most interesting presenters. I'd gotten my boyfriend into his stuff, and he duly got OBSESSED with Blindboy's streams. Often BB just chats, but most of the time now he creates his own soundtrack to Red Dead Redemption 2 (I think it's 2!). He seemed to have really nice people following him. So that kind of warmed me to twitch as a platform again.
My BF, who is a problem solver to his core, was seeing me get increasingly frustrated with funding applications, trouble engaging folks online, and not being able to busk, and he started gently bringing up Twitch as an option. After one particularly melt-downey conversation, I felt that it was time for something new. I decided to get in touch with Hammeta and ask her about her experience on Twitch.
Those two conversations are why I'm on Twitch - Hammeta was so incredibly supportive (emotionally and practically), gave me all sorts of music streamers to go and watch, and assured me that the music community on Twitch was really fantastic and supportive. She got me set up on Discord, gave me resources for overlays, songlists, etc... and then the community sort of did the rest. I got so much more support on my first stream than I was expecting that I was literally both excited and suspicious after it. I couldn't believe that I could have that much support that quickly; I have been trying to improve my online side of my music for years and I had never had an experience like that. It was also - gasp - FUN! So yeah, I think I'll be sticking around here for a while.
2. Do you have any pre-stream routines or rituals to prepare for stream before you go live?
Not as such. I used to have quite a few things I did before gigs, but honestly I'm juggling so much in my life at the moment that the best I can manage is getting some food into me, doing a quick vocal warm up in and setting up my gear. I'm hopeful that at some point I might get to the stage where I can clear more time for Twitch and develop a glorious, long, luxurious pre-stream routine. I'll keep you posted on that one.
3. With live streaming being very time and energy consuming, what is it that motivates you?
For me, it's that it's actually fun. Other platforms require a hell of a lot more effort for way less feedback, whereas on Twitch it seems that people genuinely want to listen and participate with not just me, but each other. So much of that is what music making is about - it's about reaching people, feeling seen and truly seeing them.
Another, less romantic, but practical aspect to it is that Twitch actually connects supporting the artist to positive, fun things - different emotes, different animations, shout-outs on screen - so many other platforms that offer streaming don't offer any options for fans to support you in this way. I did a live-stream every week for a year on YouTube and Facebook in 2018, and while some people enjoyed them, interaction was generally low and I never got any donations or support from them. Those platforms were not designed for that. It's really motivating to know that the time and effort I put into streaming does consistently come back to me, not just in connection but in subs and bits - the latter is what means I can make space for it in my life and keep going, because it's practical as well as fulfilling.
4. What has been your most challenging experience on Twitch to date?
I think it's mostly been the incredibly steep learning curve! Overlays, Discord, hype trains, raids, subs, emotes, these were all literally completely new to me just two months ago. The style of interaction on the site and what followers expect you to have in place has been a bit of a challenge too. I feel like I've got the basics down but I'm excited to see where I can take it.
5. Have you found much support and encouragement from other Twitch music streamers?
I've never experienced support like this in any spot online. The only platform I could compare it to would be Patreon. I have a lovely little following there who quietly show up for me each month - and I write a brand new song for them and give them behind the scenes videos and stuff like that. The tricky aspect of Patreon for me has been growing it into something that I can focus my attention on; I've found that my growth has been slow, and that my patrons prefer to listen to things in their own time - that seems to be enough for them, which is all good, but I would love to be in a position to do more with it.
With Twitch, by contrast, I was able to become an affiliate in 10 days, and after 3 streams as an affiliate, I have 15 subscribers and 143 followers. My Spotify streams are up, my YouTube subscribers are up, my Instagram followers are up. I have other streamers that I really enjoy checking out, and all of them have offered support and encouraged their followers to check me out. And, the mental thing is, they actually do come and listen. People here just genuinely love music, and if they like what you do, they want to be around for you in other places online. They also really clearly get a lot out of being part of the community, and they enjoy seeing musicians succeed. They seem to understand their power and their role in supporting a musician to do what they do - this is very rare. I think it's fantastic.
6. What impact has the current situation with Covid-19 had on your streaming/life balance?
I'd previously done quite a bit of streaming in different places online, so the idea of performing online didn't phase me so much. What hit me during Covid was my workload from my teaching. I teach in a music college in the UK and we were suddenly embroiled in trying to build a whole new system so our students could still get the best qualification possible. We worked extremely hard to do that, and it took up most of my time. I was trying to stream online up to 3 times per week at that stage, but at the time I was living in a tiny flat and that was quite stressful because I don't think it was entirely fair for my housemate to always have a stream happening in her kitchen...!
Covid has taken live gigs away; and it has taken busking away. I know that under the system the UK are in at the time of this interview, I can potentially do both of those things, but I am afraid of the risks involved. I'm also keenly aware that I can just about get by on what I earn from teaching, and that makes me lucky. I don't want to take up a busking spot that another person needs to be able to feed themselves, especially in this climate.
I miss being able to go and see my friends more. I miss knowing with certainty that I can just drop everything and go home to Ireland if I want to. But... that's different now.
7. Do you find it a challenge keeping up with stream tech and with upgrading your stream?
This is all totally new to me, so yes, yes I do struggle, ha ha!
I'd love to just have lots of new gear to help improve my stream, but I'll have to be patient on that one, and I feel like the people who show up understand that too. I can't wait to be able to give them better sound and visuals but it's going to take time to afford those things so for now I'm just trying to allow my stream to be what it is and improve what I can, when I can.
8. To what extent has live streaming on Twitch changed your life?
I'm not sure if I would say that it has changed my life (although I do think it has the potential to); I guess it's still pretty early days for me. It has definitely shifted my perspective of how under-equipped other platforms are to give users a fun experience as they watch the stream. I think that's down to the fact that this is a platform built by gamers. Game developers understand how to create fun, interactive user experiences, and you can really see how that plays out when you watch a musician stream on Twitch, versus a stream on Instagram.
9. Is there any advice that would you give to anyone who is looking to start live streaming?
Brace yourself. You are not ready (in a good way).
10. Looking ahead, what are your future plans for your own Twitch stream?
There are a few things! Ultimately I'd love to see my audience grow and to be able to carve out more time to spend streaming, but I think that might be further down the line. I'd also love to see the Patreon community grow as Twitch followers get to know me - Patreon has been a huge thing for my creativity over that last two years and it would be cool to share that with them too.
For now, it's nothing too elaborate; I have a lot of basic things I need to get sorted. I'm working towards getting my sub emotes and sub badges done. Next I'll be trying to get a good interface to improve the sound quality. Maybe after that a new camera? We'll see.
Check Emma out here:
Official | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram | Bandcamp | YouTube | Patreon | Twitch
Dora (existence130) likes to create and produce all of her own music. She loves experimenting, singing, live looping, freestylin', improv, jammin' on guitar/ukelele/violin/bass and making beats/instrumentals, all covering a wide array of music taste. Sometimes Dora will be on Twitch covering songs on the guitar, and sometimes just jammin' out requests or creating instrumentals/singing/looping.
1. How did you find out about Twitch and what made you take that step on to the platform?
A friend mentioned that I should consider streaming my music since they knew I loved to sing. They actually mentioned this streaming platform called BIGO, so I thought I would give it a shot 2 years ago. My other friend mentioned Twitch would be a good platform to try out to stream on and so I looked into it and started browsing the music category. Honestly, I was really intimidated by Twitch and considered it the big leagues of streaming, so I started off on BIGO and YouNow instead. I mainly just wanted to get back into music and connect with others, so I started off just singing karaoke songs and didn’t start off using the guitar.
Slowly, I started learning how to get my audio settings refined and started streaming production. I then started to learn cover songs on my guitar and didn’t realise I would get the hang of it so quickly and was having a ton of fun learning new songs. I really wanted my brother to hop on and freestyle rap and that’s when I decided to give Twitch a try. I had my brother pop on and had so much fun being able to hang out with him and sing the chorus while he freestyled his rap. He’s super talented and I wanted to share his talent with others!
This really motivated me to continue on Twitch, so I decided to do a tonne of production streams and just get into my zone and create. There were only a few viewers in my channel, but it was really motivating when music producers came in and I could connect with them. It literally opened up such a doorway to connection with other creators and I have learned so much by putting myself out there on Twitch. Little did I know that one of those viewers captured a clip of me and featured me in their show. His name is fivehitdune and he features Twitch musicians on Sundays, specifically musicians that you find by scrolling to the bottom of the music category. He sent me a message letting me know I was featured in his show and this was incredibly encouraging for me to continue on Twitch and be a part of the community. It really meant a lot that someone valued my original music and my process. I was incredibly inspired by many artists in the Twitch community and started developing a song list for viewers to request from. Never thought I would get to a point where I can play multiple instruments, let alone live loop with them. It’s just been such a blessing and a journey joining Twitch! Can’t believe the amount of growth I have had by coming on this platform and being surrounded by creative individuals who inspire me on a daily basis! It’s amazing!
2. Do you have any pre-stream routines or rituals to prepare for stream before you go live?
Honestly for myself, I just need to go and do it. I honestly don’t even really prepare too much because otherwise I get a bit discouraged and then might convince myself not to go on. I just get my green screen all set up and usually restart my computer before starting and make sure OBS is working appropriately. Once I get on and start to warm up it allows me to get into the zone. One thing lately I have been doing is just pulling up some fun jams and starting off with some improv just to warm up, which just allows me to get into the zone and get all my instruments tuned. I honestly have to stream what I’m feeling - if I pop on and want to live loop, I’ll start off with that. If I’m feeling more creative sometimes, I’ll stream improvisation and production. If I want to play games I will start off the stream doing that - I like to host a lot of party games where the chat can play and we all hang out together and just connect. We play a lot of jack box party games and they are fun, creative and incredibly interactive! I tend to listen to amazing tunes as well and freestyle sing/rap/do improv while we are playing the game to keep the vibe up. I tend to just ease into what I’m feeling and go from there. I also sense what the chat is feeling too and kind of move towards what folks are feeling at the time as well. So each stream I tend to move where the energy takes me, so often it is spontaneous in its direction.
One ritual I do every day however, is meditation. I have been meditating for over 13 years and it’s something that really helps calm my nerves and is a practice that I consider very nourishing for myself. It is nice to really tune in and connect with how I’m feeling. I tend to meditate prior to my stream and consider it a great way to lift my energy to start off my stream. I do this practice regardless if I stream or not, but I do consider it a great way to ground, ease my nerves and put me into a nice state prior to my live stream. I have a meditation section in my Discord that I just added for those that might be interested if they would like to meditate with me. I plan to meditate prior to some of my streams and if those that want to join are more than welcome!
3. With live streaming being very time and energy consuming, what is it that motivates you?
What really motivates me is connecting with the viewers and ultimately refining my craft. It is so motivating to pop on and be surrounded by INCREDIBLY intelligent, creative individuals who join my stream. Many of them are artists, musicians and producers themselves! If it weren’t for the amazing talent that joins my stream, I wouldn’t be where I am today. They have given me amazing feedback, have encouraged me and also have given me simple suggestions that allowed me to grow incredibly, especially in regards to improvisation. I am so thankful I took the opportunity to start streaming, because the amount of growth that has been made from it has been astounding. It’s incredibly motivating to be surrounded by such amazing, hilarious and creative individuals. I just love the Twitch community! Everyone in the community is so unique and amazing in their qualities, and it has helped me grow so much.
4. What has been your most challenging experience on Twitch to date?
One of the most challenging experiences was probably dealing with a really horrible troll that came into my room. He came into my Discord and posted tonnes of horrifying faces of death type pictures that consisted of (mutilated bodies and mutilated genitalia) and then posted tonnes of racist comments in my chat and Discord. I think at times it can be hard dealing with some of these trolls that do these things to get off on it. They are behind a computer, so I think a lot of times they can stoop to incredible lows since it’s hard to know their identity. However, from this experience, I connected with another streamer who was affected by this same troll as well, but she personally knew him and she shared a bit of her story on how this harassment initially started and how she was seriously harassed by him for a few years after he faced rejection by her. He then continually harassed her and then went on to harassing others in addition. This situation actually ended up in some ways being a blessing, I got to meet this incredible streamer by trying to search this troll on Twitter to see if others were having a similar experience (which many did experience this troll come into their room that specifically streams Jackbox party, some were harassed more viciously than others and even had to change their Twitch streamer name because of him). I discovered recently that she is also a musician and sings and plays guitar too, which is so cool even though she streams mainly games.
My mods are now more prepared if he tries to come in again and we know actually who it is since she knows his name. She was harassed HORRIBLY by him for a few years, I won't get into detail what kind of harassment she faced, but it was shocking to hear. It’s sad that some of the trolls can get away with some of the horrible stuff that they do. But honestly, sometimes these trolls are in such a state of hell that they project it out. Many times I just try to hold love in my heart towards them since I know they are most likely in such a deep state of suffering to do something like that to someone. My heart also really goes out to anyone who is being affected by a troll like this as a streamer. Not easy to deal with that level of harassment and it can happen, so something to be mindful of as a live streamer.
5. Have you found much support and encouragement from other Twitch music streamers?
I have found tremendous support and encouragement from many Twitch music streamers. It's been unbelievable how much support there has been to be honest. I literally have been raided by music streamers I deeply admire and have been fans of for a long time. It's an incredible feeling to be recognised by those that inspire you. I felt supported even in the beginning. I was also featured on the show called, "Music Exposed" and it was such an amazing opportunity and it felt so good to be a part of it. Many musicians and music lovers watch the show and it also has an amazing community feel which focuses on sharing and getting to know other Twitch music streamers. It's a solid community and it keeps expanding, which is amazing. I imagine the Twitch music community is going to continue to grow and I'm so grateful I have gotten to know many of them on more of a deeper level. Many music streamers, as well as viewers have been so supportive in seeing you grow and have offered to help out with Ableton, Logic and audio settings - it's just amazing how supportive everyone has been on this journey. I've also collaborated with other music streamers on stream and we jammed out with one another. It's incredible! I feel so blessed to be surrounded by such creative and inspiring individuals!
6. What impact has the current situation with Covid-19 had on your streaming/life balance?
Honestly, during such a time of trials, I feel incredibly blessed that I have been immersed into streaming music. It has allowed me to continue to connect with others. Many have lost their jobs and are going through such hardship and it’s nice to be able to just touch base with one another and be there in this way. I have such an amazing community and at times it’s nice to hang out, play games, take song requests and connect with each other in this way. My hours got cut at work so I'm losing a bit of income from that, so streaming is a great opportunity to keep afloat and keep busy. I'm just really grateful I didn't lose my job entirely and I am able to have the opportunity to stream music, which is my number one passion.
7. Do you find it a challenge keeping up with stream tech and with upgrading your stream?
Oh yeah, in the beginning it was super tough. I honestly don’t even know how I got to this point. I watched lots of YouTube videos and took pictures of my audio settings. It has definitely been a process and quite time consuming when it comes to staying on top of the technology. I think that everyday I’m learning something new and try to take time and effort to improve the stream when I can. It’s amazing how much I have grown over the past year in a half being on Twitch with regards to the technology aspect of it. I’m learning something new every day and try to make an effort to take time to improve the stream and upgrade equipment. I'm really grateful that my partner is so technologically savvy. He has helped me a tonne. I’m hoping to get a new computer soon specifically for enhancing my production, I think that will improve the quality of the content quite a bit!
8. To what extent has live streaming on Twitch changed your life?
Live streaming has changed my life tremendously! It has encouraged me to practice music almost every single day and expand my skills. It’s so amazing to hop on and be connected to so many musicians and creative individuals who inspire so much growth out of me. It really helps to be encouraged and challenged along the way. The Twitch music community is so supportive, loving and non-judgemental, it’s unbelievable. This amazing community is what makes streaming music so incredible. If it weren’t for such an amazing community on Twitch, I’m sure it would make it a bit more challenging to hop on as frequently as I do.
9. Is there any advice that would you give to anyone who is looking to start live streaming?
From what I heard; they have done studies on those that live stream their music practice and it has shown that individuals are more likely to stick with their practice if they stream it live. Honestly, that’s where I started; I just started streaming my practice and music production live and it encouraged me to continue to refine my craft. Now I’m live looping with multiple instruments and have an extensive song list of cover songs that I have learned. I have also created several original songs as well. I cannot believe the amount of growth that has come with this. Honestly, I say to “just do it!”. It has opened so many doors of opportunity in my life and has increased my connections with others! I can’t believe how many people I have met along the way that have helped me on my journey! It’s unbelievable! Give it a shot if you can! Even just starting off streaming with your phone can encourage the practice and you’ll meet viewers along the way that will help you, even if it's only one or two viewers. I love it. I am so grateful to everyone that has helped and supported me on this live streaming journey!
I do however have a more extroverted personality type, so streaming really fuels me because I get to be around people while I'm doing what I love, so it's the perfect combo for me. But yeah, perhaps do some research about how it can help your practice and find out for yourself. I do think it's important to keep in mind that there are trolls on the internet and you'll get a few here and there, but overall the support that is present in the Twitch music community really outweighs any of that negativity. Having a mod and just knowing how to block/silent viewers being inappropriate or who are trolling is a nice skill to learn right in the beginning. Usually all is good, the power is in your hands on who you decide to tolerate in your stream. Overall, live streaming has been such a blessing for me and I'm so thankful I decided to do it regularly.
10. Looking ahead, what are your future plans for your own Twitch stream?
I want to continue to grow as a musician and increase my production value. I plan to get a new computer soon and when that happens, I think it will really enhance the audio quality since the computer will be able to handle Ableton and all of my music projects. I also plan to start releasing songs on Spotify too, once I get the new computer. I want to continue to refine my live looping skills, expand my song list, do more interactive improvisation streams where the viewers help create the song, and do a lot more freestyling. I also think it would be really cool to start incorporating cosplay into my streams and dress up more often. It will be exciting to see where this journey will take me, it has already taken me so far already and I’m thrilled to see what I will be doing a year from now on Twitch.
Guy Cohen, AKA GuyCoMusic, is a happy and energetic, funk and soul, live looping, live streaming and live performing artist.
Guy has been singing and playing original and cover music all his life and performing on stage since the age of 15. After a long time off the stage, Guy left everything behind and got back to music and to the stage as a cure for a chronic body pain condition. The rush, the adrenaline and the hype during live performances became Guy's medicine and a main and integrated part of that healing process.
'So now you know why I'm so happy all the time.
Join me on my journey of spreading happiness,
Groove, Soul and Love.'
1. How did you find out about Twitch and what made you take that step on to the platform?
A year ago I got back to the stages and to music after years doing high tech and other stuff.
As the pandemic and the lockdown hit I needed a place to get my adrenaline fix, a stage.
A friend told me about Twitch as a live streaming platform, I got in and found out that it is so much more, And the rest is history
2. Do you have any pre-stream routines or rituals to prepare for stream before you go live?
Lol, ohhhh yes...
First I loop the "Opening Number" just enough to jam on and to get some flow into the beginning of the stream.
Then, 10 minutes before the stream, we pray, I call it "The prayer to the bit(rate) gods", it goes like this:
1. Take your router out of the electric socket.
2. Count out loud from 1 to 15 in English.
3. Plug the router back in and hope for the best.
3. With live streaming being very time and energy consuming, what is it that motivates you?
With no doubt the number one factor of motivation to stream is the amazing love and support of the awesome and one of a kind community of Twitch.
Besides that, the adrenaline of performing live music helps me deal with chronic pain condition that I am dealing with most of my life.
4. What has been your most challenging experience on Twitch to date?
Whispers!!
5. Have you found much support and encouragement from other Twitch music streamers?
Yes very much! Most of the community are really supportive from small town streamers to huge partners ones and everybody is really happy to help.
6. What impact has the current situation with Covid-19 had on your streaming/life balance?
My life is totally different from where I was a year ago, in some of the best ways imaginable.
7. Do you find it a challenge keeping up with stream tech and with upgrading your stream?
Yes, but I'm a mega-tech-geek so I LOVE it and the learning process, also I LOVE helping other streamers solve stuff and get better.
8. To what extent has live streaming on Twitch changed your life?
Entirely.
9. Is there any advice that would you give to anyone who is looking to start live streaming?
Just DO IT!!!
10. Looking ahead, what are your future plans for your own Twitch stream?
Ohhh... big plans!! You would have to find out for yourself. Stay tuned.
Isabelle Mercier (isabellemercier) is a world traveller and teacher. Yes I will be talking about myself in the third person, this is weird I know! The break that came with Covid-19 made her rediscover a passion of hers: Music! She had to let go of her next adventure: Croatia and Bosnia. She packed her stuff and landed in the western prairies of Canada. Her bilingual stream will bring you across the world when this pandemic is over. Until then sit back relax and enjoy some tunes, Commander Keen, or come help her catch Carmen Sandiego. :)
1. How did you find out about Twitch and what made you take that step on to the platform?
My IRL friend AndyTheFrenchy told me about it. I started to come to Twitch as a viewer and quickly realised that I would be perfect for the platform as I love to entertain people and spend hours talking. I decided to start streaming during my spring break of 2020. The result was that a few days later our lives were changed forever and I was ''gifted'' 2 months at home wondering what to do. Streaming became a big part of it. :)
2. Do you have any pre-stream routines or rituals to prepare for stream before you go live?
I actually don't really have a routine. I just do it. :) This often results in me not being ready to stream by the way, haha.
3. With live streaming being very time and energy consuming, what is it that motivates you?
The community is my main motivation. I must say that people on Twitch are really helpful and they share a lot with us. Streamers share a lot of their lives or impressions and to have that crew that comes back to see you day after day is just so rewarding. With work it is difficult to take time to do it, but I can't let my community down. I squeeze in as much as I can.
4. What has been your most challenging experience on Twitch to date?
TECHNOLOGY! Omg, I started streaming music with a mic that was very sketchy, then my Mac overheated when I got a soundboard, my mac also didn't support Streamlabs very well, my alerts would cut my sound off too, I had problems with WiFi on the laptop, Commander Keen (a 1990's game) would freeze and, to top it all off, I sometimes would start streaming without pressing ''Go Live'' #Fail. But I since got a new PC and I must say it has changed my streaming world. :D
5. Have you found much support and encouragement from other Twitch music streamers?
Of course! Some of them actually helped me build my very new PC for the needs that I have and I really appreciate them being around to help me tech-wise but also to cheer me up when I feel down. This streaming community (Music) is the best on Twitch. They are supportive, no trolls, amazing people. They are there to listen but also to share. I love seeing on my Discord what people eat/drink/do haha. I consider some of them to have become friends by their loyalty and the time they take for me. We also love to play games on Discord together. So I would say that yes I made new friends and that the support and encouragement from others on Twitch is beyond what I expected!
6. What impact has the current situation with Covid-19 had on your streaming/life balance?
I am actually back to work (being a teacher) and I can't wait for summer or Xmas break to roll around to have fun with my friends on stream. I want to buy time. Does anyone know where I could buy that?
7. Do you find it a challenge keeping up with stream tech and with upgrading your stream?
I am very bad at doing so. I should be investing time in my stream, but between work and my participation to everyone's projects (this, Zabmathieu's Twitch musicals, other collabs) it is difficult to keep time for myself, haha. But I really want to create new alerts and change my backgrounds and light. I should be upgrading here and there with a bit of time. ;)
8. To what extent has live streaming on Twitch changed your life?
This community has been SO generous. I was able to buy a new piano and get back to music so much more. I went from opening the piano 15 minutes a week, to almost 2 hours a day during the pandemic. I have never been so grateful to people for contributing to my stream and making this possible. I know I am not a great pianist, but I really enjoy doing what I am doing and it is all because people were really generous on my stream. Thank you again my friends!
9. Is there any advice that would you give to anyone who is looking to start live streaming?
Don't compare yourself to others. It is easy when you begin to compare your stream to others. Remember that some people have been doing that for a while and grew a big community. Don't be sad if two people show up. Make your stream the most entertaining and give the best show for these 2 people. They'll be back and tell 2 more. I had a lot of difficulty at first to watch streamers and say to myself "why don't I get bits?" or "How come this stream gets 30 people watching". Then, you come back to the basics: Are you doing this for money or for fun? The answer HAS to be fun, otherwise you'll pressure yourself into it. Just be you, have fun and people will tag along.
10. Looking ahead, what are your future plans for your own Twitch stream?
I'm so happy at the moment. My piano is paid off, the PC is also bought, my soundboard works well. So from now on I want to live experiences. My current Dono Goal is to bring AndyTheFrenchy and MlleRylo (2 IRL friends and streamers) over to visit me in Saskatoon. So if you want to contribute towards that I really appreciate it otherwise, like my !Waddle song says "The fun is free you know" drop by anytime :) We'll make you a duck! Quack!
LINNEYOFFICIAL’s spine-chilling voice is transcending genres, showcasing both her versatility and the unique appreciation her talent is garnering. With over 13 million streams on Spotify and counting, Linney has proven she is force to be reckoned with. Her single, “Yesterday,” with world-renowned Trance music-producer, Gareth Emery, hit 1M streams early this year after premiering it live to over 6K people on Halloween weekend in Minneapolis last autumn. Her single, “Remember You,” with Project 46 was premiered by Spotify’s own Austin Kramer and can be heard on editorial playlists such as mint, Cardio and Dance Rising. Just this year, five of her songs have been played on Armin van Buuren’s radio show, A State of Trance, and "Electric Kids" with Tritonal is in rotation on Sirius XM radio.
Deemed “a star in the making” by Indietronica, Linney’s outstanding singer-songwriter talent, sheer drive, and unabridged passion have won her repeated success. Her songs have been featured on Riverdale (The CW), The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (Netflix), MTV: love gone missing and more.
Keep your eyes out for the Linney Vocal Pack released on Splice this Autumn!
1. How did you find out about Twitch and what made you take that step on to the platform?
I first heard about Twitch from my photographer friend who was live-streaming her editing sessions. I didn't actually realise that there were others streaming music on the platform at the time. It wasn't until someone reached out to me about Twitch Sings that I knew they were working to include more music on the site. I originally signed up as a member to participate in that app but my schedule didn't allow me to partake at the time.
2. Do you have any pre-stream routines or rituals to prepare for stream before you go live?
Good question! I suppose pre-stream is kind of like the musician's virtual green room, haha! I hadn't really thought about that before but now I've gotta work on that :) Generally, I like listening to music beforehand and usually drink tea while preparing with vocal warm-ups.
3. With live streaming being very time and energy consuming, what is it that motivates you?
Honestly, I've really enjoyed connecting with others around the world! People I would have never met otherwise. I've pretty much been stuck in my apartment for the last year - and my apartments okay ya know - but hanging out with new friends is way better!
4. What has been your most challenging experience on Twitch to date?
The technology. I have a MAC and I've run into lots of issues with sound, delay, my older computer just deciding to shut down whenever it wants, haha - the works! But I'm always learning and I think each stream is getting better and better!
5. Have you found much support and encouragement from other Twitch music streamers?
I absolutely love the music community on Twitch. Everyone is SO supportive of one another. I try to pop onto others channels and say hello while they're live even if I can only stay for a few minutes.
6. What impact has the current situation with Covid-19 had on your streaming/life balance?
It's given me more time to be creative with how I structure my business and the freedom to explore alternative ways of creating income.
7. Do you find it a challenge keeping up with stream tech and with upgrading your stream?
So far everyone has been really helpful with giving advice on upgrades. It's definitely challenging but it's also fun working to figure everything out!
8. To what extent has live streaming on Twitch changed your life?
I'm still pretty brand new to the platform so my following is small but mighty but I'm incredibly proud of what I've been able to accomplish already. It's been really nice to have something to look forward to each week!
9. Is there any advice that would you give to anyone who is looking to start live streaming?
Starting out can feel incredibly daunting and it will definitely take time learning the platform/technology but it'll be so worth it! There's also so many people that went through a similar struggle in the beginning and would be happy to help you out.
10. Looking ahead, what are your future plans for your own Twitch stream?
I'd like to start integrating different shows each week - for example we have #SampleSunday on Sunday evenings where we create vocal samples and give them out to subscribers, and I'd like to add a weekly acoustic morning show where I play songs on piano or guitar and eventually invite guests to perform as well!
livi_in_the_middle was formed in late 2016. Livi (Vocalist/Bassist) and Mike (Guitarist/Drummer) are siblings and have been good friends with Antony (Pianist/Keyboardist) for most of their lives. The band was formed primarily for Twitch, then shortly afterwards started gigging alongside live streams. They also upload YouTube covers each month.
1. How did you find out about Twitch and what made you take that step on to the platform?
Ant was the one who first found Twitch and introduced it to rest of us. We took the step on this platform because we saw there were other musicians on Twitch and we wanted to jump on it early, as there wasn't many on there.
2. Do you have any pre-stream routines or rituals to prepare for stream before you go live?
Yes we do. We have 3 hours everyday before stream to warm ourselves up with running songs. Then also setting up all the camera angles and making sure everything is ready to go live. On Mondays we have 6 hours before stream, where we learn a new song that we add to our song list.
3. With live streaming being very time and energy consuming, what is it that motivates you?
I would say the biggest motivation is our passion for music. But also all the incredible community we have. Everyone is always so nice in chat and it just makes it such a pleasant experience for us.
4. What has been your most challenging experience on Twitch to date?
In the earlier days of streaming we had a limited amount of songs on our songlist, and also Livi’s voice wasn't very strong and could only handle streaming for an hour or so.
5. Have you found much support and encouragement from other Twitch music streamers?
Yes definitely! The music community itself is incredibly supportive, and everyone is always willing to help each other out. We’re lucky to be a part of it.
6. What impact has the current situation with Covid-19 had on your streaming/life balance?
At first due to the guidelines in our country we had to stop streaming for about 6 weeks. This hit us hard and had a big impact on us financially and to our stream growth, as we were off for so long. But all in all the exposure to Twitch music and Twitch in general has increased greatly as a lot more people are having to work from home.
7. Do you find it a challenge keeping up with stream tech and with upgrading your stream?
If we need a new bit of equipment we usually put a donation goal up, which our amazing community always helps us get. So we are very lucky to have all the high quality equipment we have now. We are always looking for new ways to improve our stream quality.
8. To what extent has live streaming on Twitch changed your life?
To be able to do what we love for a living is a massive achievement for us. We can now focus all our time and energy into our music, which we are so grateful for.
9. Is there any advice that would you give to anyone who is looking to start live streaming?
Go for it! You will never know how it will go unless you try, we would never change our journey with Twitch, it's the best thing we have done. A few tips that we would give on the technical side, which we have noticed on a few new streamers, is to make sure levels aren't peaking, cameras are in focus and in sync with the audio. The main thing is to have fun and enjoy what you’re doing!
10. Looking ahead, what are your future plans for your own Twitch stream?
Our future plans are to keep growing and building our stream. We are lucky to be where we're at now, so we look forward to what the future brings.
Known as just "Raquel" on Twitch, the pioneering Music streamer began her journey in 2017, garnering a large following through her live streams of intimate shows. Having shared the virtual stage with acts such as John Legend & Barry Gibb, Raquel is at the crest of the online music wave that has since exploded in the pandemic.
Raquel started playing guitar as a teenager and started producing music while attending UC Davis, where she earned a degree in Neurobiology, Physiology and Behaviour. “It started off as fun side projects to take my mind off school,” she told Naluda Magazine earlier this year. “After graduating, I started putting out covers online alongside my then full-time job as a Neurophysiology Tech. I played open mics in the week and local gigs on the weekends. I quit the hospital to be a legal assistant for a lawyer where I learned business; from accounting to managing case files, I felt like I could do anything and everything. One day, I just went for it and decided to fully pursue music and content creation. I’m very DIY; from management, booking tours, production and writing the music, I take a lot of pride in my independence.”
Raquel performs live with keyboardist & producer Martin Castor (Itzmart/Tragic City), bassist Jacob Edwards (twitch.tv/jacobedwards), and drummer Brian Kempson. Aside from weekly live music, she hosts a podcast with Twitch Partner, Megan Lenius, and produces all of her songs alongside her community on her channel, twitch.tv/raquel.
1. How did you find out about Twitch and what made you take that step on to the platform?
I knew Twitch as a gaming platform; 4 years ago, feeling very guilty that I spent so much of my free time gaming, I started playing Overwatch and other FPS games on stream. I started doing music just for fun and it took off. My audience grew so much faster and I just stuck with it ever since.
2. Do you have any pre-stream routines or rituals to prepare for stream before you go live?
I try to wake myself up by going on a bike ride or exercising. Sometimes, I can't wake up early enough though. Some rituals include picking out an outfit 5 minutes before stream and rushing putting on makeup to try and make it on time, lol.
3. With live streaming being very time and energy consuming, what is it that motivates you?
I love the fact that I make people's days by just being present, playing songs that I absolutely enjoy. I think people counting on me to show up motivates me to be entertaining and on point.
4. What has been your most challenging experience on Twitch to date?
I realise that not all days are alike and some days, I really don't feel like showing up. I find it the most difficult when I don't even feel like being on camera.
5. Have you found much support and encouragement from other Twitch music streamers?
Yes! Some of my best friends are people I met on Twitch. Before the pandemic, I would play live shows and tour all over the country with Megan Lenius and Samuel Tucker Young. We would vlog, stream, and play shows together. I think it's important to establish friendships with people on the platform. Not only is it a great networking opportunity, but it is a great way to make friends with people who understand your hustle and your career.
6. What impact has the current situation with Covid-19 had on your streaming/life balance?
Covid definitely weirdly benefited me, as far as streaming and life are concerned. I was stressing out about having to travel too much in the beginning of the year, fearful of not being able to produce the songs I wanted to at home. Because I was home, I was able to focus on building my stream, audience, and produce the music/release songs when I wanted to. I found other ways to be creative and stayed focused, versus having to recover from back to back trips.
7. Do you find it a challenge keeping up with stream tech and with upgrading your stream?
I like technology so it's really not usually an issue for me to incorporate stream tech/upgrade anything on my stream. I feel like adapting to new and better technology is just part of the job.
8. To what extent has live streaming on Twitch changed your life?
Streaming definitely made my music relevant in a way where it was so difficult to do so. I was "local famous," but it was hard to break that mold of being just a local celebrity. Twitch made it possible to grow a fanbase outside of my immediate region and helped me find people to collaborate with as well. The opportunities have been boundless. From hosting shows at TwitchCon to playing full blown concerts for my viewers, it's been so life changing in so many facets of my career.
9. Is there any advice that would you give to anyone who is looking to start live streaming?
Just stay consistent. It's the hardest and most overlooked aspect of streaming. You just have to keep doing it. It is definitely a grind but no one is going to stream for you.
10. Looking ahead, what are your future plans for your own Twitch stream?
Honestly, just staying consistent and focusing on new, fresh content. I like keeping things 90% music but I also like incorporating other streams, like IRL/Just chatting, gaming, and cooking streams.
SteveSampsonMusic is a guitarist and vocalist from Plymouth, UK, who also plays drums and bass guitar. Usually Steve plays solo but has also played in bands as a creative member, as well as a session player with genres ranging from acoustic folk to extreme metal. Steve is regularly gigging and busking, and streams these sessions as well as streaming from home.
1. How did you find out about Twitch and what made you take that step on to the platform?
I was living as a self employed musician which can be a struggle within itself, so I had a look to see if there were some ways of making a bit of money online, just like the odd tenner here and there just to cover some living costs. I found things like surveys and free offers on all sorts of things which led to me discovering people live streaming games on Twitch. I hadn't even heard of it before, I checked out some streamers playing games, then saw other things like yoga and cooking so I thought 'woah, are musicians doing this?' so I looked and, yes, they were. I looked through some, found clairepics and a few other streamers, downloaded the app on my phone and gave it a go. Started streaming my busking sessions and then home just on my phone, then developed my setup to what I have now and I just love it.
2. Do you have any pre-stream routines or rituals to prepare for stream before you go live?
Depends on the type of stream as I broadcast my busking sessions, home and gigs as well, if I was able to. Sometimes I rush to stream as I'm quite busy usually, but I try to get my vocal and guitar warm ups in before going live.
3. With live streaming being very time and energy consuming, what is it that motivates you?
The community, it's incredible. Knowing that anything could happen when you least expect it. I've had the kindest people in my stream. The generosity from people, with the time they've spent supporting, offering advice, donating and even helping promote by sharing the page, giving shout-outs in other people's streams, asking someone to raid me, or raiding me themselves. It's unbelievable. Makes me want to do it more and do it better each time.
4. What has been your most challenging experience on Twitch to date?
I've recently moved house again and at the moment, it's all good, but being a music streamer, especially with vocals and acoustic instruments (I'm sure brass and wind players struggle with it more), the main problem is noise issues. The first place I was in when I started streaming, I had neighbours banging on the wall, the next place, the walls turned out to be pretty much paper thin, I bought a load of sound proof insulation and made this little streaming den and even then it was too loud for other people in the house. In my current place, I'm all good, although you never know when that can change, so I have a back up plan which I need to work on. Also learning the tech side of things which I'm not generally good at.
5. Have you found much support and encouragement from other Twitch music streamers?
Absolutely, not just the music community, but all different types of streamers have been so supportive. I'd be here forever naming them, haha. Skuffatv, a gaming streamer and also a personal friend of mine, built me a PC and charged very little to help me stream with no crashing. I still crash sometimes as I do forget to update the PC and other things, haha. He also got me set up with OBS and Streamelements, so my overlays were sorted. He's been there from the start.
6. What impact has the current situation with Covid-19 had on your streaming/life balance?
It's sort of given me the chance to set up my home streaming and improve it. I was full time as a musician so I was gigging quite a lot and busking, so home streams weren't happening as much and I didn't have the time to make the home streams better.
7. Do you find it a challenge keeping up with stream tech and with upgrading your stream?
Yes, haha, I am terrible with technology anyway. Of course, skuffatv has helped massively, miraydx and justme67 (both streamers) message me to remind me I need to change stuff, if I don't know how then they tell me. My Songlist bot bugged out once and Holls sorted me out as I had no clue, haha. I'm always learning, usually failing, but I get there in the end eventually.
8. To what extent has live streaming on Twitch changed your life?
In my hometown, the music scene has been dying quite a bit - we've lost quite a few music venues, so Twitch has saved me so I can perform more often than I like. Knowing what possibilities Twitch has makes each stream exciting, as you never know what's about to happen. Once during a stream, I was reading a message on my phone from skuffatv when I heard a noise on my stream. I had been raided by matthewkheafy, a musician I've admired since I was about 15/16 years old from being a fan of his band Trivium! The internet, especially with streaming, has been insane for getting discovered as literally, anyone can be watching.
9. Is there any advice that would you give to anyone who is looking to start live streaming?
Start as soon as you can, keep at it, make a schedule, be patient, and be yourself. Streaming is about doing what you do and what you love to do. If you are worried thinking 'oh what if I don't get the following, what if what I do isn't interesting to anyone?', just remember, there's a market for everything, it's just about finding your audience. It could take time, but you just keep going. If people can get a following streaming themselves sleeping, which there are people doing this (although it is against Twitch's Terms of Service), then you can build your audience on anything. Also remember, you never know who's watching. Also, a bit of tech skill helps, haha.
10. Looking ahead, what are your future plans for your own Twitch stream?
I'm constantly thinking or doing things to improve the stream. I'm going to keep going as I just love it so much. I have many plans which I won't mention yet but I will as soon as it's all figured out.
Hey! I'm ThirdFretCapo and I am a classical guitarist and teacher from Belgium, living in the UK! I am very new to this adventure that is live-streaming on Twitch, but it has been an amazing ride so far and I have met some wonderful people. I enjoy all kinds of things (I guess you can call me a bit of a hobby hopper), as long as there is a creative aspect to it! Anything from music to graphic design, simulation games to LEGO. You can find me live on Twitch practising my guitar throughout the week, and every Sunday 5pm GMT with a weekly request stream!
1. How did you find out about Twitch and what made you take that step on to the platform?
I have known of Twitch as a platform for years, but never as a platform for music. Over the course of the last year or so, my friend Em, who also streams on the platform (ViolinSolo) has periodically tried to convince me to start streaming my practice as she felt it would be a good fit for me and I would enjoy it. I had dismissed that idea several times… until I didn’t!
2. Do you have any pre-stream routines or rituals to prepare for stream before you go live?
Boil the kettle, make a massive cup of tea (both for drinking and warming up my hands), and brush my teeth. Those are the main things I do before every stream I start. That and panic a bit until things properly get started… hehe. I have been trying do more testing and double checking before I go live but I am still working up to that.
3. With live streaming being very time and energy consuming, what is it that motivates you?
It is the streaming itself that motivates me. Being able to talk to people from all over the world and having their support for sharing what I try to do on my tiny corner of the internet is incredible. I can try different things and experiment, and can do so with company and input, which, especially these days, is so rare yet so important.
4. What has been your most challenging experience on Twitch to date?
My very first requests stream was an unexpectedly difficult experience. Up to that point I had mainly done streams where I just practise my own pieces at my own pace, but when I did that first requests stream everything felt under so much more pressure. I could not just repeat a section if I didn’t know what to say and had to actually do a good job with the pieces I played for people. That was also the first stream where I went live a couple minutes before actually appearing on screen with a little countdown, and those 10 minutes (way too long, I now know!) had been some of the most stressful minutes I’ve experienced in the last six months!
5. Have you found much support and encouragement from other Twitch music streamers?
YES! As mentioned before, Em made a real push with her audience to make me feel welcome, which has helped me a lot getting started. Since then I have met so many new people, all of whom are kind and supportive to each other and me. I’ve felt welcome in the guitar community on Twitch immediately, and even in the more general music community I am meeting more and more people and being constantly reminded of one thing: The music community on Twitch is an incredibly warm one. It is quite the difference comparing it to the competitive nature of music out there “in real life”.
6. What impact has the current situation with Covid-19 had on your streaming/life balance?
Relatively little, to be honest, except giving me the time to start streaming in the first place. I only started streaming in August 2020, when Covid was already well underway. If anything, it has been helpful though as it handed me a lot of free time to just sink into this new undertaking. I think for me, it was more the other way around: Streaming has given me an outlet to be social, as well as something to keep me motivated and musically occupied in these times of very little opportunity. I had stopped playing for a while before I started streaming, as I just had nothing to work towards and I am the type of person that needs a tangible goal to warrant working on something.
7. Do you find it a challenge keeping up with stream tech and with upgrading your stream?
It is a very new area for me, as I never spent too much time exploring proper recording and video equipment, but I am getting by! I have, on the other hand, always worked well with and been interested in (new) technology so I have that going for me. One of the first things I did when I started streaming is just go through ALL the settings I could find on Twitch, try to get an idea of what is possible and where I could find certain things, even though at that point I didn’t understand what half of them meant yet!
8. To what extent has live streaming on Twitch changed your life?
I feel like in more ways than one, this new adventure has saved me. I was living alone for the first month or so of my streaming adventure, and since seeing other people was not exactly allowed, it became my main means of socialising and talking to people. Also just having something to do, a project to pour all my time and energy into has been incredibly helpful, especially as the prospects of my career as “classical guitarist” were becoming more and more scarce, with the current Covid-19 on-goings. I had reached a point where, next to my one and a half days of online teaching that survived, I had nothing going on. No gigs, no playing with other people, nothing.
9. Is there any advice that would you give to anyone who is looking to start live streaming?
I am still fairly new to Twitch myself, but there are a few things that I found really helpful to gain more confidence, as well as grow my channel. Firstly, and the most important thing for your peace of mind: Hide that live viewer count! Focusing on how many people are watching gave me a lot of stress early on. I would get excited if the number went up a bit, causing me to stress and to fumble, and I would get disappointed if it went down, causing the exact same things to happen. I used to have my iPad open with chat and have a little bit of post-it note to cover the number (until I found out you can just hide it…).
Other than that, in terms of growing your channel, the main thing I have found to be effective (and just fun!) is to interact with other streamers; socialise where you can; make friends! I mentioned this in one of the earlier questions already but the music community on Twitch isn’t a competition for the top spot, it is a wonderful community of people looking to push each other up and support one another, all while having a good time.
Oh, and if you are unsure if you should start streaming at all? Just do it! You will not know what happens until you try!
10. Looking ahead, what are your future plans for your own Twitch stream?
Short-term? At this point I am looking to grow my audience, get my name out there and make more connections with other streamers, as well as slowly but surely upgrading things to look more professional. My overlay is an ongoing work in progress, and I try to keep things fresh where I can. I want to continue arranging of all kinds of video-game music as I enjoy doing that a lot and people enjoy listening to those, as well as occasionally playing some video games on stream too.
Most recently I have bought a looping pedal with the help of my wonderful community (for my birthday, no less!), which will allow me to do some amazing things and make some really cool arrangements. However, seeing as I have no prior experience looping tracks, I will have to do a lot of practice to get better at it, so that is what I have planned for the next while!
Long-term? I honestly do not know! I will continue riding this incredibly exciting train and see where it takes me, making sure I enjoy the ride to the fullest.
Tina and I would both like to say a huge thank you to each of the 10 music streamers Beckie, Emma, Dora, Guy, Isabelle, Linney, Ant, Livi & Mike, Raquel, Steve, and Capo for being a part of this blog post, for taking the time to answer our questions and allowing us to share their replies. We hope to continue this series as we are really enjoying it and look forward to bringing you further updates with even more Twitch music, gaming and variety streamers.
Please click on the image below to check out all the other posts in this amazing blog series...
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