Introduction
‘Music journalism is writing and reporting on all things music.’ (Ditto, 2023)
In the time of AI, human experiences and emotional perspectives have never been more necessary. This field of work continues to evolve rapidly to keep pace with the volume of music being released. As social media has become a huge part of everyday life, writing for print is a dying form of journalism. To make a job for yourself, it is now important to have engaging visuals, an effective marketing campaign, and a consistent online presence as well as attending live shows and writing reviews. To understand music journalism as a career, I will research the challenges, opportunities, responsibilities, and requirements of the profession.
Education and Requirements
There isn’t just one path into this profession, and there are no specific requirements depending on the path you choose. Some of these options are university degrees, apprenticeships, specialist courses or becoming freelance by utilising social media to market yourself. Music reporter Mark Savage said, ‘music journalism is a notoriously hard industry to break into’ (BBC, 2018). Having experience and an impressive portfolio can lead you to more job opportunities in this ‘fiercely competitive field’ (Ditto, 2023).
University degrees have a lot of positive factors and picking the right one is important; the official UK government website suggests the courses that are most useful are, ‘English, Journalism or Media and communications’ (National Careers Service, 2025). Music Journalist and photographer Ruth Medjber, who has worked with acts such as Miley Cyrus and The Stone Roses, studied photography and later said, it “was the worst decision of my life” the course offered no practical advice… a marketing or business degree might have been more useful.’ (BBC, 2018). This amplifies how it is important to consider all your options, whilst Medjber has had a successful career, she would still choose to change her path.
Pros of a University Degree in Journalism:
- It can provide you with connections and opportunities in the industry giving you a head start.
- ‘Can help develop writing, practical and time management skills – as well as providing you with a professional network.’ (Ditto, 2023).
- Collaborative environment with support from lecturers.
Cons of a university degree in Journalism:
- Tuition Fees and Student Debt.
- Specific GCSE, A-Level or equivalent qualifications required to be accepted.
Becoming a freelance journalist requires dedication and knowledge on marketing, networking and communicating. Becoming your own boss has its benefits as well as drawbacks. ‘You are running your own business, You’re going to have to do your own marketing, you’re going to have to control all your social channels, you’re going to have to do all your taxes and your accounts.’ (BBC, 2018)
Pros of being Freelance in Journalism:
- Flexible working hours.
- You get to choose your employer and what jobs you take on.
- Having the option to start your own business.
- There are no educational requirements.
Cons of being freelance in Journalism:
- Having to be in charge of your finances, paying taxes, not having sick or holiday pay.
- It may be challenging to get experience in the industry with pay, you may have to work more than one job at a time.
- Having to network without help is difficult if you lack experience.
Skills, Knowledge and Key Qualities
Having a knowledge of music is crucial for this job, being able to effectively describe the music helps provide credibility to the journalistic views. Understanding pop culture and being up to date with social media is a part of the job, knowing who and what is trending because ‘the music industry is being run by algorithms’ (Pfeifer, V. 2025). This can prevent you from wasting time and energy writing about something that won’t reach an audience.
Key qualities to have for this job include adaptability and curiosity which ties into what was previously stated. A lack of patience can be damaging to progression in the industry. Communication skills are ‘vital to building a successful career in music journalism.’ (Ditto, 2023). Networking is essential for opportunities including jobs and organising interviews with upcoming artists. Within this, being a strong writer and editor is vital as without these skills, the journalism can lose impact and seem unprofessional.
Another form of journalism which has become a very popular format is podcasting. This may be because, ‘the attention span has dwindled to just 8 seconds, down from 12 seconds in the 2000s’ (telefonica tech, N.D). This means that to keep up with this medium, understanding multimedia production would be very helpful in building your audience. Taking advantage of all these skills and networking with people, who have the skills you may lack in, will enhance the chances of success in the future.
Marketing and Promotion
Marketing and promotion are key to building your career. Having a portfolio on a website or blog with proof of experience is a fundamental when reaching out to employers or artists to interview. This shows you are serious about your brand which leads to more opportunities. Posting consistently on social media is crucial when working in this competitive market. Creating a noticeable brand is necessary to stand out in this modern world, you can now earn money from posting on TikTok and Instagram so having your reviews set out in an aesthetic layout can again help you get work. Ruth Medjber revealed that “Instagram is where I get the majority of my paying work these days” (BBC, 2018) This source is now 7 years old and since 2018 the use of social media has increased by ‘54.1%’ (Backlinko, 2025). The amount of people using social media has grown over 5 billion as you can see from this graph.
A Northeast journalistic blog I have been following is ‘Geet Canny Music’. The blog was founded by Katie Graham in 2022. She describes the brand as ‘a Newcastle based voice introducing you to the UK’s best new breakthrough bands & artists.’ (Geet Canny Music, 2022). Graham has a strong social media presence, and her style is clear as she uses leopard print and neon green backgrounds with her logo on it. Although her business is small, she has interviewed many artists at festivals such as Gurriers and Pentire. As well as this, her feed is full of reviews and promotional material for herself and others. Since 2022, her socials have grown to over 1000 followers which doesn’t sound a lot, but for a self-published blog she now has experience and connections in the industry should she wish to progress her business.
Challenges
Within this career, there are both personal and legal challenges.
Financially, this is not the most stable job. According to the government website, the average pay scale is between ‘£24,000 – £45,000’ a year. (National Careers Service, 2025). This is for a full-time position working between 35 and 42 hours a week including bank holidays. Though it isn’t a bad starting salary, this is based off employment from a company, not freelance so, you would need to budget for travel, accommodation, concert and additional costs which can make the role financially demanding.
Legally, there are multiple issues journalists must consider, such as copyright. When reviewing a song, you must credit the artist for their work. Similarly, if you misquoted or used incorrect phrasing which could cause the artist issues, it is seen as defamation of character and can lead to a court case.
There are also personal challenges to think of, being a music journalist a lot of your time may be spent at concerts which mainly take place in the evenings, meaning long and irregular hours. This may lead to burnout or exhaustion which is detrimental to health. The inconsistency of the job can mean tight finances which in some cases can lead to debt. To deal with this, budgeting can be a useful way to keep track of expenses and income, and finding a second job could be helpful. Receiving negative comments comes with being online and posting can lead to harassment. It is important to have strategies to manage this and to prioritise your own mental health.
Responsibilities and Routine
A typical day as a music journalist varies depending on whether there are any concerts or festivals to attend, putting time aside to write reviews and articles, and whether there are any interviews planned. It will also change your schedule depending on whether you work from home or in an office. If working in a company, your day will have much more structure as tasks will be assigned for you to complete unlike freelance work which is much more unpredictable. Talia Andrea wrote an article about Arusa Qureshi, a freelance journalist, who stated, ‘I wish I could tell you that I had a routine that I stuck to, but I don’t! … I usually end up having a lot of meetings over Zoom.’ (Andrea, T. 2023). Journalism requires a fast turnaround to keep up to date with all the new music that is being released. This often means working with the responsibility of a deadline to get any complete work out as soon as possible.
Opportunities
Starting out may be difficult but that is the same for any creative career. Making a reputation for yourself can be difficult but there are many paths you can take. One way to start off which helped music journalist Clare Crane kick start her career was by ‘not going to uni but, instead, built up experience in the field by volunteering at a radio station, becoming a runner at the BBC and doing lots of networking.’ (BBC, n.d). From beginning as a volunteer, she now works on BBC 6 radio on programmes such as the Radcliffe and Maconie show. The BBC is great for providing opportunities to young people as they have apprenticeships covering a whole range of industry experience. Progression in this business is completely down to your work ethic and how willing you are to push yourself. Putting yourself out there means a lot of networking and long days but hopefully it will work out.
Conclusion
In conclusion music journalism seems to be a relatively risky profession to join because of the financial instability and the lack of opportunities. It is necessary to have a strong work ethic for this job and to be aware you may get very little in return. However, it seems to be a rewarding job when the work is there; having the opportunity to support and promote fresh music in this overwhelming industry would be a privileged lifestyle to have. Having an adaptable, curious and determined personality is necessary to thrive, as well as having concise communication and networking skills. The world of journalism is changing, moving over to new formats like podcasts and social media and though this industry seems to be a difficult one to break, there are opportunities to support new writers including apprenticeships and courses provided by the government and even volunteering roles for the BBC. All of this support is available to keep this form of creativity alive it is important we take advantage of it whilst it is there for us to utilise.
Bibliography
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Savage,M. (2018). How to make it as a music journalist. BBC News, internet edition. 24 May. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-44224091 [Accessed 3 Jan 2026].
