I know first-hand how nerve-wracking interviewing someone can be, and that kind of anxiety gets so much greater when you know that the subject of your interview has a loyal following.
I’ve been interviewing musicians for over a year now and I’d like to share some of my experiences and advice for making the process as easy as possible for everyone involved.
Start Small
I first starting interviewing musicians through my university magazine. We had a lot of contact with PR companies who would offer us interviews ahead of tours and album releases. This meant that writers could choose who they interviewed from the opportunities that we had to offer. Although we had some really big opportunities, I started small. ‘Small’ doesn’t necessarily mean small bands: it might just be someone whose work you aren’t too familiar with – and this takes off a lot of the pressure. Of course, you do have to make up for it in research, but at least you aren’t worried about messing up in front of someone you really respect…
Aim Big
…however, that doesn’t mean that you should turn down opportunities just because you feel underqualified. I faced this recently when I had the chance to interview someone whose music I’ve been listening to for years. It was short notice and a much longer interview than I was used to but I took the chance knowing that I would kick myself if I turned it down. I’ve never been so nervous in my life as I was on the day of the interview but once I got in the phone it was just like any other chat. Remember, no matter how obsessed you are, you’re talking to another person on the end of the phone.
Do your research
Doing your research and preparing questions in advance is crucial and there are a lot of factors to consider:
Purpose: what is the purpose of the interview? Is it ahead of a new album or a tour? Think about what projects the artist has coming up and tailor your questions appropriately.
PR: You’ll be able to get your hands on a press release online. Look at what points they emphasise – an interesting feature of the tour or a particular song that gets mentioned. The artist will want to talk about these things, so they’re a good place to start with questioning.
Expand: Take these interesting features and expand on them. Maybe the artist co-produced their latest album or they’re headlining a tour for the first time. This is a good way to get stories that are fresh and personal to the artist.
Other interviews: this is perhaps the most important point. Look at other recent interviews and make a note of what questions they respond well to and which ones don’t elicit such enthusiastic answers. Once again, you can expand on these points and pick up details that other interviews didn’t get – and avoid the dreaded one-word answer.
The Actual Interview
Once you’ve done your research it’s time to interview! Finalise your questions and write them out – don’t try and remember them off the top of your head because you could miss something important. You can craft a specific order for them but more often than not, you’ll switch things around according to the flow of the conversation.
Don’t just focus on your end of the interview – which can be tempting if you’re recording the conversation. Listen to what your subject has to say, pick up on any cues and follow up on the questions that get an interesting response.
In terms of actually recording the interview, I always like to ask permission first – although based on the surprised reactions I’ve gotten I don’t think everyone does that. You don’t need a fancy recording setup; I do most interviews using speakerphone and a recording app like Audacity on my laptop.
Writing it up
The first thing I do when I’m writing up an interview is to write out the full transcript. Not an easy task if the interview is long and you hate the sound of your own voice, but it makes the actual write up so much easier. Then, I go through and highlight the best quotes that I can structure the article around. Once you’ve done the hard work, the article itself will flow naturally.
Unless you have nerves of steel, every interview is going to cause you anxiety. It’s totally normal, whether you’re a newbie or a veteran of music journalism. With each opportunity you’ll learn something new which will help you with the next one. The most important thing to do is enjoy yourself – talking to musicians about the things that they’re passionate about is a beautiful thing to be a part of!
Vicky Greer
Featured image courtesy of Patricia Zavala on Unsplash. Image license can be found here. No changes were made to the image.