Write and record songs. Songs are the central component in marketing and selling a rap artist. Songs must be written, recorded, critiqued and revised. Ask or hire an industry professional to critique the final songs to assess their marketability. Make sure to ask for the master recordings. These will be used for duplication.
Create merchandise to sell at live performances. T-shirts, hats, key chains, posters, bumper stickers, and CDs are all common merchandise items. Many merchandise companies offer all of these products. When ordering T-shirts, use a picture of yourself along with your rapper name. Make sure to order several different sizes of T-shirts for both men and women. CDs can be ordered through a mass duplicating company. Using simple home computing software, create a label for the CD and its case. Mass duplicating companies will package the duplicated CD with cases and labels. When selling digital downloads from such online resources as iTunes, upload your picture. This picture will be used to identify what you, the rapper, look like while consumers are browsing song titles online.
Schedule live performances to introduce yourself as a new rapper and your songs to the public. This is where you will have the opportunity to really start making money. Set up the merchandise for sale on a table. If a laptop is available, allow customers to purchase and download digital copies of the rappers music directly to their ipod or phone. Your should also receive a fee for your performance.
Approach music publishers and managers to help elevate your rapping career to the next level. Future potential earnings can be gained by selling your songs to television, movies and other artists. Royalties are also paid from radio play and licensing fees for others performing your work publicly.