Is the news manipulating your emotions? If so, how, and… why? Is there a better way to stay up to date with the latest headlines without feeling powerless, angry, and fearful?

In this episode of The David Andrew Wiebe Show, David interviews Kira Shishkin, founder of informed.now, the leading news-by-SMS research and delivery service in North America. In this conversation, Kira shares about DJing, the problem informed.now was intended to solve, an accident that nearly took his life, and more.


In This Episode:

- What it means to be a DJ, according to Kira


- How music production has become more automated


- Why Kira believes being a DJ is about helping people discover music they didn’t know they needed


- Why being creative doesn’t always translate to being popular


- Why Kira is disrupting sensationalized, uncredible news


- The truth about news, propaganda, and the media slant


- What Kira noticed about a delusional 70s movie


- What Kira believes the pandemic revealed about our unpreparedness


- Why you have no choice but to pay attention to our increasingly globalized world


- How news manipulates your emotions to force reactions


- Why informed.now has remained a human-centric company


- Why independent creators should focus on communication in the age of AI


- How you can level up your workflows by leveraging AI


- How AI can rapidly increase your results and satisfaction


- Why you can’t let AI take responsibility for results (at least not yet)


- How Kira wound up in a coma


- Why you can continue to expect greatness from informed.now

Key Resources:

- informed.now

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Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed this episode of The David Andrew Wiebe Show, take a moment to subscribe. You’ll receive updates for future episodes, PLUS weekly digests and empowering music career recommendations sent directly to your inbox. Let’s make your passion goals a reality. We’re here to help.

Until next time, stay empowered. https://davidandrewwiebe.com/?p=29009

Click the “play” button above now to watch David’s video review of Claude Hopkins’ Scientific Advertising.


Scientific Advertising Review


Direct-response marketing icon Gary Halbert recommended several books to anyone looking to sharpen their skills as a copywriter, and Claude Hopkins’ Scientific Advertising appears at the top of that list.

How does the book hold up? Well, according to David, the content is quite good. It’s a bit challenging to read because of the particular way people spoke/wrote in the 1920s, and it’s a no-fluff manual with relatively few examples, case studies, and stories. Its title might also be a little misleading. A case could be made that the method it suggests is scientific, but science is nowhere to be found in its contents.

Still, its contents are solid, and as Halbert himself suggested, foundational to gaining competency in ad writing. David gave it a 4.5/5. Not a perfect score, but still an excellent rating for an excellent book that marketers should study but artists can skip.

Previous review: How To Make Maximum Money In Minimum Time

➔ Get your copy of Scientific Advertising (affiliate link) https://davidandrewwiebe.com/?p=29002




In his book, David defined The Renegade Musician as a concept. What is a concept, exactly, and why does it matter?

In this episode of The David Andrew Wiebe Show, David illuminates the idea of a concept through well-known and understood cultural concepts like the American Dream and Ikigai, as well as why a purely intellectual understanding of these is insufficient.


In This Episode:

- What the “American Dream” really is


- What “Ikigai” actually means


- The importance of real-life experience and surrounding yourself with other renegades


- The true test of The Renegade Musician

Key Resources:

- The Renegade Musician: Step out of the shadow of the old music career model

The Renegade Musician Concept


The Renegade Musician book defines being a renegade musician as a concept, philosophy, ideal, and a movement. In this video, David expands on what it means to understand it as a concept. The key takeaways from the video are that:

- The American Dream. It’s not 1.93 kids, a golden retriever named Charlie, and a white picket fence, though some may aspire to that. The American Dream is equality, opportunity, and the freedom to pursue your highest aspirations.


- Ikigai. David argues that not only has this concept been overexplained, but also misrepresented. The definition of Ikigai is “purpose for living.” Ikigai Venn diagrams have frequently made their rounds on social media, but these are not true to the concept. David says the only thing he would add to the simplest definition is “a purpose for living that shifts with circumstances, priorities, and time.”


- The renegade musician. You can’t just declare yourself one. You’ve got to be around one. The only way to “get” a concept is to be around it. Who are you learning from? Who is your renegade coach or mentor?

Subscribe to The David Andrew Wiebe Show


Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed this episode of The David Andrew Wiebe Show, take a moment to subscribe. You’ll receive updates for future episodes, PLUS weekly digests and empowering music career recommendations sent directly to your inbox. Let’s make your passion goals a reality.

Until next time, stay empowered. https://davidandrewwiebe.com/?p=28979

What does it actually mean to be a renegade? Do artists automatically become renegades simply because they’ve chosen a path that most people don’t?

In this episode of The David Andrew Wiebe Show, David expands on the renegade musician and how artists can empower themselves to discern and assert their true value in the world.


In This Episode:

- What it means to be a renegade


- Why musicians identify with the concept (and why they might not be true renegade musicians yet)


- Why achieving true renegade status is challenging


- The simple technique you can use to differentiate your music


- The true value of a musician


- The tired TED Talk format David despises


- Why everyone can become wealthy


- The critical importance of knowing your value as a musician

Key Resources:

- The Renegade Musician: Step out of the shadow of the old music career model


- God Wants You to Be Rich: by Paul Zane Pilzer, this book proves unlimited riches (affiliate link)

Key Points on Becoming a True Renegade


Here’s what David covers in this episode:

- A renegade is someone who deserts, betrays, or disrupts their country, a set of principles, or religion. This is effectively the dictionary definition of a renegade, and a good starting point. Renegade musicians desert and disrupt the norms that don’t serve them.


- While there are plenty of artists who already identify as being a renegade, that isn’t a given. The question isn’t whether you’re doing things differently from most everyone in society; the question is whether you’re doing things differently from most artists.


- When you don’t think for yourself and simply “follow the leader,” you end up with the same results as the people you’re following. So, who are you associating with, and what books are you reading? This is what determines your future.


- Understanding your true value as a musician. You aren’t just a skilled craftsperson, but also an entertainer and a healer. Music has so many benefits – including how it supports the development of the brain – that continually get minimized and marginalized.


- You must get it out of your head that you’re playing a zero-sum game. Pilzer’s book, God Wants You To Be Rich, shows that there are riches enough in this world for every single person to be wealthy. If this isn’t your core belief, you may have cognitive dissonance surrounding your financial future, which is sabotaging it.

Subscribe to The David Andrew Wiebe Show


Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed this episode of The David Andrew Wiebe Show, take a moment to subscribe. You’ll receive updates for future episodes, PLUS weekly digests and empowering music career recommendations sent directly to your inbox. Let’s make your passion goals a reality.

Until next time, stay empowered. https://davidandrewwiebe.com/?p=28963

Click the “play” button now to watch David’s video review of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Be Useful.


Be Useful Review


Arnold Schwarzenegger has climbed to the top of multiple mountains – bodybuilding, Hollywood, politics… and beyond. For that reason alone, he’s someone worth listening to.

And he actually says it like it is. His recipe for success is proven and on point, not buried in pretense or theory. Does it require work? Absolutely. Do you have a better chance at your version of success if you work your ass off? Undoubtedly. But wouldn’t you rather that than beating around the bush?

David gave Arnie’s Be Useful a rating of 3/5, noting that the book didn’t add anything in particular to his experience of the legend, but that the book itself was easy to read and had some worthwhile chapters. The Netflix doc, on the other hand, is a must-see.

➔ Get your copy of Be Useful https://davidandrewwiebe.com/be-useful-review/




Wouldn’t it be great if Spotify (and streaming sites more generally) paid more per stream? Wouldn’t it be awesome to earn $0.01 every time your music was played, instead of the current $0.003?

In this episode of The David Andrew Wiebe Show, David expands on a blog post he originally wrote in August 2020, explaining why a cent per stream won’t save the music business. While he agrees with the movement in general, he also illuminates the many threats that would make a cent per stream a drop in the bucket.


In This Episode:

- Why a cent per stream isn’t going to save the music business


- What “decimal money” is


- How the economics actually work out when you’re paid a cent per stream


- Why increasing income from streaming would be like a drop in the bucket


- Why there will always be societal issues looming over artists

Key Resources:

- The Renegade Musician: Step out of the shadow of the old music career model


- Why I Don’t Think 1 Cent Per Stream on Spotify is Going to Save the Music Business: the blog post referred to in this episode

A Cent Per Stream on Spotify


In this video, David alludes to a blog post he published in August 2020 titled “Why I Don’t Think 1 Cent Per Stream on Spotify is Going to Save the Music Business.” Here are the key takeaways from this resource:

- Oftentimes, it’s just as easy (or hard) to get people to pay $300 for a product as it is to get them to pay $0.0003. So, why put all your time, energy, and resources into Spotify? There are so many other ways to earn a higher income on the effort spent – advertising, donations, affiliate marketing, merchandise, bundles, memberships, and more.


- Increased restriction and policing of the platforms. Whether YouTube or Facebook, it seems like new policies go into place every other week, restricting creators from speaking their minds, reaching their audiences, and getting clicks. Banning, shadow banning, account closures, and even active censorship frequently put creators in a position of compromise, especially when relying exclusively on big tech platforms.


- The harmful effects of net neutrality and localization. This is already happening. The internet is no longer the same, across the world, for every person. Access depends on where you live, the device you’re using, who you identify as, and more. If you weren’t already feeling like a needle in a haystack, net neutrality and localization reduce your chances of being seen, heard, and discovered. And wasn’t that the core value proposition of the internet for artists, that you could reach a worldwide fan base?


- The possibility of mass consolidation of the internet. What if the internet wasn’t a massive collection of websites and apps, but rather a single central hub where people were forced to go to do everything? What if a single company made all the rules? What if they controlled and regulated all your activities? This hasn’t happened yet, but it poses a greater threat to independent creativity on the internet than just about anything else.

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Until next time, stay empowered. https://davidandrewwiebe.com/the-renegade-musician-a-cent-per-stream/

The “starving artist” cliché has been perpetuated through the ages. Stereotypes exist for a reason, but you can’t just yield to accepted norms if you hope to be successful. After all, successful people are abnormal. Which should tell you something, namely that questioning and abandoning the norms is part of the hero’s journey.

In this episode of The David Andrew Wiebe Show, David illuminates the often forgotten value of creativity and its many benefits and applications, the key reasons artists starve, and why setting meaningful boundaries is crucial to becoming a Renegade Musician.


In This Episode:

- Why creating is godlike


- The devastating trend that plagues creativity in the education system


- How creativity benefits the development of the child (and individual)


- Why creative and innovative solutions in business are essential


- The real reason artists starve


- Why taking initiative is the real flex

Key Resources:

- The Renegade Musician: Step out of the shadow of the old music career model

The Starving Artist Syndrome


Starving artist stereotype notwithstanding, no artist needs to succumb to a full-blown syndrome. The way forward? Question everything. Disconnect from unhelpful individuals and advice. Don’t let others steal your dream. Don’t listen to those who say you can’t do it. Your purpose is uniquely yours, and only you can bring it into reality.

To be a Renegade Musician means to be different. Not just different from people who don’t call themselves artists, but also from artists who are doing things exactly as other artists are doing them. “Because everyone else is doing it” is a horrible reason to get drawn into a game of “follow the leader.” You can’t let others write your story. You must write your own.

For a step-by-step guide to accomplishing this, pick up your copy of The Renegade Musician on Amazon.


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Until next time, stay empowered. https://davidandrewwiebe.com/the-renegade-musician-starving-artist-syndrome/