How to become a music journalist?

[James]

I love making and creating music. I have wide interest in a variety of different genres of music. I understand music from an intellectual and musically theoretical view point. I come from a musical background due to my family and I also enjoy English as a subject; Literature and Language I enjoy... so what is there out there for me in which I can pursue as a career in music and journalism... thanks!

[Rick]

First you'd have to get a Journalism degree.
Then you'd have to toil in the field of journalism for a number of years to gain experience as a writer.
Then, if you're really lucky (and deemed to be very talented), would you have the opportunity to become a music journalist.

But you need to understand that journalism itself is a dying industry, and that there are even fewer jobs out there as a so-called "music journalist."

[Madplant299]

No need for a degree. What you need to do is get started and see if you really like writing about music.

Start by creating a blog. Go to concerts or any music-related events in your area - bands, choirs, musical theater, singers, whatever - and review them on your blog. Also review every album you listen to, regardless of whether or not it's new. Have a trusted adult read your blogs and edit them for clarity. After each review is published, write the singer, band, producer, nonprofit - whomever presented the music event - and let them know it's there.

You can also review music-related books.

Welcome feedback - never get angry when someone comments on your blog in a negative way.

Start a Twitter account, and tweet out a link to every blog you publish, and tweet out every time someone comments on one of your blog entries. Create a Facebook page (you create this from your Facebook account) and have every Tweet you make posted to that page automatically (you do this via Twitter).

Read all the music journalism pieces you can get your hands on - everything in your local paper, in Rolling Stone, in any other music publications (all freely available at your local library), etc. Read some great music biographies. For instance, "Last Train to Memphis" is considered one of the greatest ever written.

Once you've done this for six months, take your best blogs and ask a journalism professor at a nearby college or university, or a music journalist at the nearest LARGE newspaper to review your work and advise you on how you could improve.

And after you do all of that, then you can decide if you need a college degree or not.