Sound Advice: BAYNK

The New Zealand electronic artist gives insight on release strategy, building a stage show and how SoundCloud can be a career game-changer.

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Welcome to Sound Advice, the series spotlighting artists’ creative process and their SoundCloud journey. We’ll get the inside knowledge straight from the source on how musicians, producers and creatives are leaning into everything Next Pro offers to elevate their sound, reach the right audience and catapult their careers. Sound Advice is now available in audio format on the SoundCloud Stories profile. 

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New Zealand artist BAYNK originally played in bands, until an intrigue with artists like Flume, Rustie, Hudson Mohawke and CASHMERE CAT influenced him to dive deeper into electronic music production. At the time, he was studying chemical engineering and prepping for a possible career in the oil fields of the Middle East – until a chance online encounter changed his life course forever. In 2015, BAYNK had uploaded his first-ever track to SoundCloud: a warm, slow-building house jam called “Sundae.” He did nothing with the track for months until a promoter discovered the song and ended up booking him for Laneway Festival, marking a pivotal turning point in his career.

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Fast forward to today, BAYNK has gone on to earn a GRAMMY nomination for his 2022 debut album, ‘ADOLESCENCE,’ as well as headline sold-out shows around the world and make his debut at massive festivals like Coachella and Lollapalooza. He’s collaborated with the likes of Tinashe and Cosmo’s Midnight, and has taken charge of his own creative direction, from music videos to tour visuals.

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This September, BAYNK drops his sophomore album, ‘SENESCENCE,’ and has been busy unleashing the project in two-song installments. We called up Jock, who currently lives in Los Angeles, to talk more about the making and the meaning of his new record, his approach to putting together a live show and how SoundCloud became a game-changer for his career.

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LISTEN TO THE AUDIO EPISODE OF SOUND ADVICE, FEATURING BAYNK:

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LISTEN TO BAYNK'S DEBUT ALBUM, 'ADOLESCENCE':

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CHECK OUT THE FIRST TWO-SONG INSTALLMENT FROM BAYNK'S FORTHCOMING SOPHOMORE ALBUM, 'SENESCENCE':

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THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT IN THIS EPISODE OF SOUND ADVICE:

• What led BAYNK to change his area of focus from studying chemical engineering to pursuing music production.
• The story of BAYNK's first-ever SoundCloud upload, and how the track changed the trajectory of his career in music, as well as motivated him to keep pushing.
• How discovering artists like Flume, Rustie and CASHMERE CAT on SoundCloud inspired BAYNK to dig deeper into electronic music production specifically, from learning Ableton to finding his own sound.
• The strategy behind BAYNK's roll-out for his sophomore album and why he chose to release the tracks in installments of two leading up to dropping the full project.
• BAYNK's experiences with tinnitus (a physical condition often described as persistent ringing in the ears) and how it has affected his approach to writing music.
• The making of his 'SENESCENCE' album, including incorporating more organic/analog sounds, collaborating with others and trying new ideas in the studio.
• Insight into how BAYNK decided which tracks - from upwards of 150 - made the final tracklist for the album, and his advice for organizing and labeling music throughout the duration of making a full-length project.
• BAYNK's tips to fellow creators on how to utilize SoundCloud features to build an engaged audience and discover new music/artists, including using DMs, Search, Tags and Reposts.
• The painstaking process of building and organizing a live set.

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LINKS AND EXTRAS:

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Follow BAYNK’s journey on SoundCloud.

Listen to BAYNK’s career-shifting single (and first SoundCloud upload), “Sundae.”

Dive into some of BAYNK’s formative influences, including Flume, Rustie, Hudson Mohawke and CASHMERE CAT.

Check out a couple of BAYNK’s collaborative tracks: “Esther,” (featuring Tinashe) and “How Does It Feel” (featuring Cosmo’s Midnight).

Listen to the Buzzing: Electronic playlist on SoundCloud.

Follow the official Sound Advice playlist on SoundCloud.

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GETTING THE MOST OUT OF SOUNDCLOUD

1. Learn more about using DMs to connect with fellow artists and potential collaborators.
2. Learn more about searching your own Likes on SoundCloud.
3. Learn more about using private tracks on SoundCloud.
4. Learn more about getting started with Insights on SoundCloud.
5. Learn more about Advanced Insights, available to Artist Pro subscribers.
6. Learn more about unlimited uploads, available with a Artist Pro subscription.
7. Learn more unlocking access to unlimited distribution, available with Artist Pro.

‍To discover additional features a SoundCloud Artist Pro subscription offers, visit here. To catch up on past installments of Sound Advice and make sure you don’t miss out on future episodes, visit here.

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_{CREDITS Hosted by Vivian Host. Executive Produced by Mike Spinella. Produced by KC Orcutt. Audio Engineered by David “DibS”. Coordinated by Trevor McGee.}