Develop your musical skills. Creating yourself as an artist starts with learning music. For anyone who is just starting out, this could take a significant amount of time, as learning music is a process that takes time. Practice as much as possible, as long as possible. If you are going to be a solo artist, then this is much easier, as you can practice anytime you want. If you are going to start a band, this is more difficult, as the band needs to be together in order to collaborate.
Formulate an idea. All great music comes from an idea. Creativity is the lifeblood of music. For example, you will need to create an idea for a name as a solo performer or as a band. Also, you will need to draw ideas and inspirations from your life, in order to start composing music.
Create a song. This will include lyrics and instrumentals. Every musician makes tracks differently. Some prefer to create the instrumental first, then write the lyrics. Others prefer to write the lyrics first, then match the instrumental. Try out both methods and decide which works best for you or your band. Continue to practice the song until it is perfectly how you want it to sound.
Record the song. Now that the song is perfect, it is time to start recording. To record the song, you have two main options. You can buy studio time or you can use your own recording equipment. If you are just starting out, it is best to use your own sound recording. It is much cheaper. Self-produced music recording is done in one of two ways, through computers or through dedicated recording hardware. Computer recording is done by using a music editing program to record and edit tracks and an audio interface converter. The audio interface converter allows musical instruments, such as a guitar or microphone, to interact with your computer. One popular type of audio interface converter is the Digidesign Mbox. The Mbox connects to a computer through a USB connection; and all instruments plug into the back of the Mbox. Some popular music editing programs are Pro Tools, Apple Logic Studio, and Apple Garage Band. Rather then recording through a multi-purpose device such as a computer, dedicated recording hardware is a stand alone recording solution. One popular example of dedicated recording hardware is the Tascam 2488. The Tascam 2488 has eight audio inputs, allowing direct connection of musical instruments.
Repeat the song creation process. One song is not enough. You should have at least 10 songs to fill an album. Using the knowledge that you have gained from your first song, and try and do better on your next. After a while, you will naturally progress, and song creation will become a much easier process.
Piece together an album. Gather all of your songs together. Give them all a hard listen. Meaning, listen to each song over and over, making sure that it is perfect. Weed out your best songs from the rest of the collection. Depending on how many songs you want to be on your album, compose a list of songs. Look at this list as one entire piece of music, and arrange the songs in an order that you would want to hear them from a listener's point of view. You now have your first album.