First, get known by your community.

Any small event, provided your content is decent. If you’re good, parties can help a ton — make sure your selected age group knows your name, your style, and your talent. If any clubs have a type of open-mic night, try it out.

Starting with your own community is essential. It gives you a basic client base, and more opportunities. If people know you, you have a better chance at getting a heads up if someone of importance might be in a certain place at a certain time. Furthermore, the more people know you, the more luck you’ll have getting into bigger events as a performer.

Slowly, you’ll work your way up. It takes time and it hurts like Hell, and most don’t make it. But if you work hard and are willing to make a few sacrifices, it can happen. You just have to start small — the more people you know, the more you’ll meet. The more you meet, the better things will work.

For gaining popularity, record a few tracks if you can. Put them online, allow free downloads. Sites like MySpace are good for that. Just get yourself out there, and meet people. Don’t be another person that meets someone and forgets them the next day — if someone meets you at a party, and you see them at a bigger party and say hello, they’re much more likely to tell their friends.

Good networking — not just with certain people, but with everyone — can get you a long way.
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