What People Don’t Realise About Music Creation

Ever found yourself in the middle of a session, mentally drained, staring at your screen or the client thinking, “Why am I so tired? I love doing this.” 

Welcome to the world of music production, where every song is the result of thousands of creative micro decisions. It’s like a creative marathon that leaves you exhilarated but totally wiped out. 

Making music is an incredibly mindful and intentional process.

Tiring, but incredibly satisfying.

Let’s take a brief look at the endless sea of choices that come with writing and producing music - and why it’s not just a physical grind, but a mental one, too.

Stage 1: Writing and Refining Lyrics

Let’s start with the lyrics. You’d think stringing together a few words would be straightforward, right? 

Well, it’s not as simple as that. Every line you write is a decision. 

• Does this word capture the emotion I’m going for? 

• Is this the right metaphor?

• Does it flow with the melody? 

We constantly weigh up the meaning, rhyme, rhythm, vowel sounds, way the lyrics fit into the music, flow, and any number of other things - all to maximise the emotional impact of our lyric choices. 

By the time you’ve got a verse, you’ve made dozens of tiny choices, and that’s before you’ve even touched the chorus.

Stage 2: Pre Production (Big Picture)

Pre production is where you look at the big picture before going back into the micro decisions. 

This is arguably the set up for how the process is going to go. What needs refining before we go full tilt into crafting the sound?

In this stage, we make many decisions that affect the song in a large sense: tempo, key, trimming fat by taking out unnecessary sections, tweaking lyrics, making things flow better, planning out the dynamics of the song, etc. 

This is all to prepare us for the next stage: Production. 

Stage 3: Production (Dialing in the Sound)

Then there’s production: ie the sound itself of that record. 

• Recording instruments correctly.

• Getting great takes.

• Dialing in the groove and rhythm of the song. 

• Getting the right tone for each instrument or vocal is a whole other ballgame. 

• Should that guitar have more reverb?

• Is the vocal too bright?

• Do the drums need more punch?

Each tweak you make is another decision. And when you’re layering track after track, those choices multiply fast - each one a micro-decision that chips away at your mental stamina and energy.

It should be noted that a big part of the goal here is to get the track sounding as good as possible so that the vocalist loves the track and locks in when recording their parts. 

A flat initial production will likely end up with a flat vocal performance. 

Stage 4: Vocal Sessions

Now, let’s talk about recording vocals - a process that’s deceptively simple but is actually a labyrinth of decisions. 

First, there’s the technical stuff: choosing the right mic, setting the levels, and getting the room just right. 

Then, there’s capturing the performance itself. Is the energy right? Does the singer need more or less emotion in this line? Are they hitting the notes? Do they need to adjust their singing technique or the way they’re singing particular vowels or consonants? In other words, style of delivery and tone (not just pitch).

Then, even after each take is done, more work begins. 

Do we keep that take as an option or do we ignore it and go again? Which parts of each take do we keep? How do you piece them together to create a cohesive vocal comp? 

Let’s also not forget the focussed back-and-forth between you and the artist, making sure you’re both on the same page throughout the entire process.

Stage 5: Mixing and Mastering

Once you’ve got everything recorded, the next phase kicks in. Final editing, and mixing - where all the micro-decisions really start to stack up. 

Does that snare sit right in the mix? Is the bass too muddy? Are my lower mids feeling right. Is the song sounding brittle? Are the vocals too sharp? Should that synth pad come in earlier? 

You’re constantly making tiny adjustments, listening critically to how each element interacts with the others. By the time you’re done, you’ve made hundreds, if not thousands, of micro-decisions, each one shaping the final sound of the track.

Throughout this stage you’re also going back and forth with the artist/client with revisions, managing differences in opinion and taste. That’s also something to keep in mind. 

Creative Fatigue: Why Your Brain Feels Like It Needs A Holiday

All of this adds up. If you feel half exhausted from just reading this far then I get it - I feel the same way while writing this.

Our brains are constantly in overdrive, making creative choices that can be mentally exhausting. It’s like playing chess, where every move has consequences, but instead of playing on a board, we’re playing in a DAW with hundreds of pieces and samples of audio. 

That’s why after a long session, you feel like you’ve run a mental marathon. It’s not just the physical act of creating music that’s tiring - it’s the relentless stream of decisions that goes into every single note, beat, and lyric.

I do want to make sure I throw in something positive here. After all, we do love it. So, there is a HUGE amount of gratification when we’ve done the work. That’s something to be happy about and proud of. 

After all, we’ve created something new out of thin air that didn't exist yesterday. 

Finding Balance: Managing Creative Decision Fatigue

So, how do you manage all this decision fatigue? One tip is to pace yourself. 

Take breaks or break up the project into multiple sessions where you set your focus to one thing. Step away from the session for a bit and give your brain some downtime. Go outside and get some sun. 

Another is to prioritize decisions. Not every choice has to be agonized over. Which parts deserve to have the most energy put into it, and which parts of the song play more of a supporting role?

Sometimes, good enough is good enough, especially when you’re in the zone and need to keep the momentum going. When I say this, I don’t mean “that’ll do”. I mean, prioritise excellence instead of perfection and don’t waste energy on things you don’t need to.

And lastly, trust your instincts. You’ve made thousands of these decisions before, and you’ll make thousands more. The more you trust your gut, the less taxing the process becomes. And, the more you do it, the more you’ll have a good gut to trust.

Wrapping Up

Music production can be a grind - a path full of micro-decisions that can leave you feeling drained to say the least. But… That’s what makes it so rewarding. 

Every one of those decisions, big or small, is what shapes the final product. 

At the end of the day, we’re here to make art. And, creating good art is not easy. 

It’s worth the work. So feel encouraged by the effort you put in.

So next time you’re feeling it, remember that it’s all part of the process. 

Because once the song is done, you’ll have created something entirely new that didn't exist before - and, that makes it worth it.