Even if your immediate friends and family don’t know any producers, ask them if they at least know other local musicians or artists that they could put you in touch with. You might be able to find producers locally through them.

You could also check if local music programs have any events like concerts or networking events that are open to the public that you could attend to try and meet people in the local music scene.

Keep in mind that the bigger the artists, the more busy and expensive their producers are likely to be. You probably have a better chance of getting in touch with a producer that works with a singer you personally know than one who worked on the latest #1 single on the radio.

If a local recording studio doesn’t have any regular producers that work there, you could also ask about some of the artists that have recorded there. You could then try to find out what producers those artists worked with locally either by asking them or looking at the production credits for their songs.

For example, a message you send might say something like this: “Hey Miami Beatz, I really like your sound. I’m an artist looking for a producer to build with. Let’s work!” You can look around at different producers’ profiles and see what other hashtags they are tagging posts with, then search using a bigger variety of beat-related hashtags.

If you’re just looking to purchase a one-off beat or instrumental from a producer, many beat videos on YouTube have links in the descriptions to where you can directly buy the beat from.

You can also post in the SoundCloud forums that you are looking for a producer or look for threads posted by producers looking for artists to work with.

For example, if you live in the U. K. you could check out the Music Producers Guild directory at: https://mpg. org. uk/members-directory/. Songwriter Universe also has a list of producers and studios in various regions across the U. S. , Canada, Europe, and the U. K. here: https://www. songwriteruniverse. com/producerstudiolist. htm.

If you already have music you’ve made somewhere online, include links to it so producers can listen to it and evaluate whether you’re an artist they might want to work with.

You can check their online profiles on Instagram, YouTube, SoundCloud, and anywhere else you can find to listen to a variety of work. You can also find published music of theirs on a platform like Spotify. For instance, if you want to record rap songs, you might be better off finding a producer who has made types of beats similar to your style, rather than a producer who produces electronic music. Keep in mind that some producers can handle many different styles of music, so this is just one factor to consider.

For example, if you want to record songs with a lot of different live instruments, ask the producer if they have space in their studio for a full band or at least a full drum set. Ask if they have any instruments there to use or have contacts who can come play instruments for recording. Though the gear a producer has is an important factor, don’t rule someone out based on what they have or don’t have. Many producers can make world-class music with very limited equipment. There are also work-arounds for certain things like getting live drums or other parts of a track recorded elsewhere and sent over.

For example, if you live in Seattle and are an artist just starting out with a limited budget, it probably doesn’t make sense to choose a producer located in New York. This isn’t as important if you are just looking for beats and instrumentals from a producer and plan on recording over them on your own or elsewhere. You can buy beats and instrumentals from producers located anywhere in the world.