a music blog
Since starting Blogmas earlier this week, I’ve been thinking about my blogging strategy going forward into 2026. The last few years I’ve only been reviewing sporadically but now I’m looking for new writing motivation and different ways of sharing my posts.
Continue reading “Why I Finally Started a Substack Newsletter “
Earlier this year I noticed a new pattern under my blog referral statistics. Social media referrals had plummeted due to well noted algorithm changes, search engines were thankfully staying strong and I always had a collection of random scattershot ways people found the blog. One of these was a new ‘referrer’: ChatGPT.
Continue reading “AI and the future of Music Blogging”
Since I started my blog a few years back I have always begun the year with an overview of what my plans are for the year ahead. 2020’s list is pretty depressing looking back now, with my talk of live shows and improving the speed of my writing, both things which the pandemic managed to curtail.
So even though this year is hugely uncertain I think we can all benefit from a moment of reflection and positive planning. Here are some of my resolutions for the year ahead in music blogging. Continue reading “Blogging Resolutions for 2021”
Yesterday was the day that the music industry paused in response to the murder of George Floyd and the subsequent horrific treatment of protesters across America. It was supposed to be a day where the collective industry stepped back, elevated black voices and planned how we could do better to support diversity moving forward. Perhaps for some the intention became lost in a sea of meaningless black squares but I took this opportunity seriously. Continue reading “On Music Blogging & Diversity”
January is one of my favourite times of the year in the blogosphere. Firstly new releases are slow, so there’s actually time to breathe, as well as look back and think about the future in positive ways. I have a tendency towards cynical pessimism (well I’m Scottish – it’s in our DNA) and for me the new year helps me rise above that and brings hope in the possibilities of renewal, letting go and starting over. Resolutions don’t have to be about hating who you are or regretting what you’ve become – they can be about tiny changes and trying to achieve the things in life you want. Fail again, fail better. Continue reading “2020 Blog Resolutions”
I was reading a great interview with Marissa Moss the other day which outlined some thoughts she had on the difference between journalism and music blogging. This got me thinking about some of the wider issues that I have observed since starting my own blog.
When I first started Highway Queens I had dreams of creating a professional level magazine and writing to the same standards as a paid journalist. Soon I realised that not only was this an impossible task for one person, it wasn’t what blogging was for at all. Here’s my thoughts on what those differences are and why we all need to work together anyway. Continue reading “The Differences Between Music Journalists & Bloggers and Why We All Should Work Together Anyway”
At the start of last year I set myself some new year goals for the blog so I thought I would begin 2019 by reflecting on those and setting myself some new resolutions. These will be quite personal and specific which may be completely dull to some (you may prefer to read my general overview on the state of music blogging). Continue reading “2019 Blog Resolutions”
As the year draws to a close I thought I would contemplate the state of music blogging in 2018, both as a result of my own personal experiences and from observing the blogosphere itself. Continue reading “Reflections on Music Blogging in 2018”
Earlier this year I bought a book in a charity shop for 25p called ‘The Happiness Project’, which is kind of a self help manual for privileged people with too much time on their hands. Despite the simple writing style I freely admit that THIS BOOK CHANGED MY LIFE. The writer Gretchen Rubin encourages people to start their own blogs, explaining how blogging gave her ‘a new identity, new skills, a new set of colleagues and a new way to connect with people.’ After reading this I felt inspired and started Highway Queens the next week. I had a simple purpose: write about the music I love. Gretchen’s book proves that not every piece of writing has to be high art in order to have value. Continue reading “In Defence of Music Blogging”
Highway Queens 