The Annual Review (Artist Edition)
A year as an artist is never just what people see from the outside. Of course there are releases. Shows. Announcements. All the things you can list when someone asks what you did this year. But that's not really the year.
There's also everything else. The tiredness. The moments where you feel relief instead of excitement and you don't really know why. The doubts that come and go. The feeling that something shifted, even though nothing clearly went wrong.
This is the part I think artists should really look at once a year. Not to judge it. Not to panic. And definitely not to immediately change everything. Just to acknowledge it.
Start with what worked
For me, the first thing I would always do is look at the positive side. And I really mean that.
We forget this so easily. Artists forget it, agents forget it. We just move on to the next thing. But saying thank you matters. Sending a message matters. Giving someone feedback matters. It changes the whole energy of how you look at the year.
Saying thank you matters. It changes the whole energy of how you look at the year.
Your setup and who shapes it
Then I would look at the bigger picture of your setup. Your "business", even if you don't like calling it that.
That can be management, labels, visuals, PR, collaborators, or even expectations you slowly took on without noticing. The question isn't if this is good or bad. The question is: does this still feel aligned with what you actually want to express?
Creative development
I see so many artists constantly looking ahead. Where will I release next? Where will I get booked next? And yes, that's part of it. But very often it replaces something else.
Taking time to experiment, to go deeper into your direction is not failure. It's part of a long-term artistic life.
The problem is when you don't allow yourself that space because you're afraid of losing momentum.
Calling things out early
Another thing I find very important is calling things out early. If something didn't work well this year, name it. But try to start from a constructive place, not from frustration. Look at what was good first, then talk about what was difficult.
This applies to collaborators, teams, and also to yourself. And again, say thank you. Give feedback. Even small messages matter more than we think.
Look at what was good first, then talk about what was difficult.
This review isn't about making decisions now.
It's about understanding where you are, how you feel about your work, and what you might want to carry forward or leave behind before the next year pulls you along again.
