#32 Turning Your Music into an Empire
From Legacy Launchpod by Leah McHenry
February 24, 2026 · 35 min · Episode 32
About this episode
Leah McHenry discusses building a sustainable music career online with Gabriel Santiago, exploring branding, revenue strategies, and the impact of AI on musicians.
In this episode, Leah sits down with composer, performer, and educator Gabriel Santiago for a real-time strategy session on what it actually takes to build a sustainable music career online — especially in a world where streaming doesn’t pay, attention is fractured, and AI is changing everything. Leah kicks off by sharing the origin story behind her own online music journey: how she built an audience from home as a young mom (without touring), learned the psychology of sales and marketing through trying to sell music, and eventually turned a small group of super fans into a real business — which later became Savvy Musician Academy. Gabriel’s story mirrors that evolution in a powerful way. Originally from Brazil, Gabriel has built a full-time career across multiple lanes: performing, composing, teaching at universities, private instruction, and his online mentorship program, the Brazilian Guitar Institute. But now he’s at a familiar crossroads that most multi-talented musicians hit: Do you keep everything under one personal brand… or separate the “artist brand” from the “education platform” so it can scale? Leah walks Gabriel through the core question that changes everything…
People in this episode
Host: Leah McHenry
Guest: Gabriel Santiago
Topics covered
- music career
- online business
- streaming challenges
- AI in music
- branding
- revenue generation
Keywords
- music career
- online music
- branding
- AI tools
- revenue engine
- super fans
- education platform
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Savvy Musician Academy, Brazilian Guitar Institute
Places: Brazil
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- #31: How Artists, Authors, and Musicians Can Build a Thriving Business Online | Katherine Leckie · February 9, 2026 · 33 min
- #30: My Teen Made $200,000 in 5 Months · January 26, 2026 · 45 min
- #29 - Pivot, Test, Scale: How One Launch System Generated $24K in 60 Days · January 12, 2026 · 30 min
- #28 - Simplify to Scale | Turning Catholic Gifts into a Premium Brand · January 7, 2026 · 34 min
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