5 Tips to Save YEARS of Guitar Practice

Here's some tips that can save you time!
Most current guitar roadmap video: • What to Learn on Guita...
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Here's some Amazon links to help you out. These are affiliate links so I earn a small commission, but you can still trust my recommendation because I can link any gear I want, I choose to link this stuff. I'm not sponsored by any of the manufacturers listed below.
Cheap-ish acoustic I like: amzn.to/44IxFmK
Very cheap acoustic guitar (not great but better than nothing): amzn.to/44teYUg
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Here's the best tuner in the world: amzn.to/3XOizdb
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Really nice guitar cable: amzn.to/46PnChh
Comfortable guitar strap: amzn.to/3pGpt7L
The picks I like for acoustic: amzn.to/3PRCExa
The picks I like for electric: amzn.to/3Ochusn
The picks I recommend for beginners: amzn.to/44l80AC
Awesome amp for beginners: amzn.to/3OoUXJ7
Cheapest amp that's not terrible: amzn.to/43sMOHR
The capo I use: amzn.to/3rsWjcA
String changer tool: amzn.to/44M3meC
Sunglasses I wear at night: amzn.to/46RrNJu
Wall Hook: amzn.to/3rpm0uB
Guitar Stand: amzn.to/3OgngcD
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The headphones I like: amzn.to/46O529k
The microphone I use: amzn.to/3rm53RE
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The audio interface I use: amzn.to/46JjCzb
A smaller (cheaper) version of that audio interface: amzn.to/3JXRr5G
Decent XLR cables: amzn.to/44qRAXp
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Thanks for watching!

[@Casey250]

My favorite part of learning to play guitar is buying new guitars and gear 😁

[@TheServal]

Me too!

[@kevinnickens]

100% agree. New guitars have that new guitar smell

[@chriskitchen4772]

G.A.S. is hard to tame. I just bought a new Fender.😃

[@NovaRedBaron]

That's an important skill to practice. 🎸🙂

[@seanverso6712]

Same lol

[@ivanguliashki]

Tip 5 is actually super important. When I started playing, not three months in, I actually managed to get some colleagues(who've been playing for upwards of 10 years) to form a band(one of them even gave private lessons at a music school as a part-time gig). I was the weakest link. My progress was stupidly quick. Then we finished our first five songs and had to discontinue 'cause med school is a bitch. Point is, playing with people who are better than you is probably the biggest hack ever IF you can click with each other. I've played with other musicians since, and it's not as fun due to differences in style, understanding, and even theory knowledge. I was super lucky to have those people in my life starting out.

[@Srobinson102]

My teacher forced me to learn triads with roots on the DGB and I absolutely hated it but came out the other side with so much value. Good video.

[@CoachMcKie]

I love tip 3. Had a fender acoustic and hated it. Traded it in for a Taylor GS mini and I can’t stop playing it.

[@kevinnickens]

Nice! The GS mini is an amazing guitar

[@malcolmbanthorpe2983]

@@kevinnickensWhen I started playing again after a break of many years, it became fun again when I got a mahogany Taylor BT2.

[@tomprophet7097]

Yeah I have a Fender acoustic and not a fan how is the Taylor?

[@youngsuccess6330]

​@@kevinnickens Im 24, started playing guitar in May of a year ago and ive been playing completely off of ear & feel, ive learned how to improvise on guitar by playing along to led zep, Hendrix and Black Sabbath songs. basically all i know is alot of random notes on the fretboard that ive memorized out of endless playing and theres alot of songs that ive synched in on what the guitarist is doing and its an amazing feeling. Hitting the same notes, being on time and knowing you did it on your own. Other than being able to improvise on my own and with my drummer i know the classic punk power chord and i have an ability to pick out notes really well, this and playing 5+ hours a day has me at a point where i started playing gigs with my best friend since childhood hes been a drummer all his life, i played acoustic guitar in high school but to say i played is a stretch. i messed around with an acoustic when i was 15 and i was intimidated by the electric guitar and after seeing how far ive come in the last 13 months (i regret not making the switch to electric guitar sooner,) (something about a wah pedal combined with distortion made me want to play all the time)!! ;) basically imitating all my favorite players all of a sudden i had that tone that would excite me as a kid. The solos that i make up on the spot occasionally impress me and all i think about is how much faster and better id be playing if i had switched to electric sooner everything i can do now would be amplified id also have much more experience playing shows. To anyone listening, who put down the electric guitar or is in a rut, mess around with your tuning same with your knobs and pedals, experiment and find a tone that you like (you should be excited to play learn new things i am just now practicing chords i learned the basic chords but i have to begin practicing switching between chords, the songs my band has performed have solos i composed in my head drum beats and fills my bro did in his head lol and simple rythym guitar but im starting to dedicate time to more theory it cant hurt. People like our songs more than we do and it can only help if you USE what YOU LEARN. Love your channel Thank You.

[@nomadexplorer6682]

Thanks for the motivation Kevin. You spelled out the right path to success with the guitar. You have hit it hard and hit it right....

[@Just-Some-Knowledge_foryou]

thank you. you deserve 10 mil subs

[@kevinnickens]

Wow, thanks!

[@CanalCruisers]

Memorise the fretboard like your life depends on it

[@andrelin0913]

That is what many guitar players don’t know, the notes on the fretboard are important

[@youngsuccess6330]

Started playing again a year ago, 23 years old and started gigging with my best friend (drummer) recently, a huge thing that helped was committing time. (4 hours a day) in my case some days more and without fail everyday and i made it a point to practice what i was bad at or wanted to do but couldnt and i focused on that. Time was a huge factor for me im 24 now but i feel like if i had played more in seriously in my teens, id be much faster now. But i really have come along way in a year a part of it is the amount of hours teaching myself to improvise and playing with a drummer

[@devilninja5922]

Thank u sir. I have been playing for 4 years there was a time when I didn't know what to learn no progress and confused then I found your videos. It's been a year and I have learn a lot❤

[@uncertainlyluke6719]

Good vid man. Appreciate it being straight to the point

[@Emrys345_Guitar]

So this speaks a lot of truth. I've been learning, hey Joe lately, and keep going over the part of the intro I'm good at, but not the slide into pull off sections.

[@gzackerman]

Great advice! Thank you!!!

[@kelly2105]

Brutal, but based on learning things other than guitar using the same mindset and techniques... I know he's not wrong about this.

[@Jeronimo365]

Great advice. 👍

[@imparatore9377]

Bravo. Super points

[@astewart9410]

I needed this, even after 30 years of playing. Especially that stare into my soul. :) Thank you!

[@tonytahmasebi1926]

Thanks Kevin you are the best...

[@Aresmusic.official]

You're amazing, always.

[@keek1337]

I have a cheap beater guitar Im using right now and it doesn’t get me excited to play, but I know I can do damn near anything with it and bring it anywhere with no fuss or worry. It prolly doesnt sound the best but it gets the job done and is always there when I need it 👍

[@thestreetdisciple3955]

Thank you

[@youngsuccess6330]

@kevinnickens u always read my mind man. I film everything and its funny it drives my drummer crazy hes been my best friend since we were kids and hes a much better drummer than i am a guitar player. And people tell us we sound good together but its great to tell ourselves no but what about that thing i couldve done better Over here, and he’ll be like yeah and i coulda done that drum fill better. And we stay on our toes, we can improvise and jam very well together i think thats HUGE. For musicians playing with others if u can find them.

[@ccopps69]

Recently started recording myself.. good advice, I try harder and play full songs this way. Fortunately or unfortunately it also highlighted my singing is actually worse than my guitar playing! 😢

[@chriskitchen4772]

Fear not, both can be improved.🙃

[@RanLavi]

Great video! Some general thoughts on your points: Recording yourself helps a lot not only for your technique, but for your sound as well. Yes, you should practice what you're bad it. But, leave time to just play, cause that's part of the fun. Playing with someone 10% better than you is kind of vague. I used to play with guitarists that were around my level, but had skills I lacked. That really helped emphasizing things I needed to work on. But that can also hurt your confidence, be aware of that.

[@perfumetherapie]

I’m an adult student at the School of Rock (so I pay them, they don’t pay me! lol!). I highly recommend their adult band program. I’ve been playing in their bands for a year and a half now, and through the experience I now play the bass as well as sing. Every season you have two shows you’re preparing for: a mid-season and end of season show. We play all genres of music, from metal to prog rock and everything in between. The students are all at different levels, but you all improve with each other. There is no greater incentive to practice than knowing you have a gig coming up! There’s a School of Rock in practically every major city. I now have my own band as well as my school band…which I’m staying in because I keep learning so much! To me, being a musician means the goal is perform, and SOR (and programs like it) really move you quickly to that next level if you are willing to put in the work 👍

[@ChandruB-wp1xm]

Good video.

[@Therapyxx]

9 Months of learning guitar here... I saw a lot of tips, but those are really important aspects, which helped me the most. Some extension to all those points with my experience :) 1) This is only how we improve.... Hard-trying worth it and this is only way to grow. Just playing what you already can perfectly - wont make that improvement. Correct. 2) I did like: Taking 1st composition and learning it completely, just to be able to repeat slowly with tabs, starting second one and training first one, especially goal from Nr 1. at 50% of 2nd composition, starting next one... First completely done? Take 4th. Second done? Take 5th. And so on 3) Beautiful guitar is like beautiful woman. Think about it - which one would you take in your hands more often ;) A lot of people underrating this aspect. Coz music instruments are about practice in first place and the more you play, the better is it. If I have to spend additional 2000$ for passion and will to play more - I will do it. And you don't throw this money away - you can always resell good equipment. I.e. I already tried to start 3 years ago and bough yamaha silnet guitar for 650$ to play at night. But after just 2 weeks I stopped playing and all the time this guitar was just hanging on my wall. When I started to learn seriously 9 months ago, I already moved to another flat with good walls, so there was no need for the silent guitar. I sold it for 600$ as the price got higher :D otherwise ok, I would sell it for 500. You can always get back most of your invested money if did it properly and cared about your equipment. Unfortunatelly it doesnt work with womans this way :D 4) This is extension of point Nr 2. Composition is ready - record it and you will definitely hear mistakes, which you didn't hear if you play it live. Repeat Nr 1 and correct it. This is normally MOST diffucult parts, because you didn't hear that, but you have to rework that. 5) A bit problematic. I started to meet with other people, but: - Another music styles - They are all much more experienced as "musicians". Ok, some things I'm able to do better technically, I can play some classic-similar compositions about nobody cares and most of people even don't know what is it. But they can play together. For example one starts to play and sing a song, another adds beat, 3rd starts playing solo for that, just "by ear". And me... ok, I can just open a text on mobile phone or look on rthythm guitar hands and repeat the chords with slightly different strumming pattern :( + other (non musicians) start singing with different intonation and floating rhythm, which makes the work even harder :D but its definitely good experience, like a crash test. Playing with other people or in front of auditorium is totaly different experience, than playing alone at home So this point is really hard to achive for most of beginners.

[@3129021jc]

5:20 really needed this man thank you 😂😂

[@100thJojo]

Kevviiiin, I've been watching your vids for a while now. Honestly, your guitar roadmap has helped me make more progress than ever! Youre the GOAT 🐐 Im sure ya got some more tutorials planned, but if you can do one on triads thatd be awesome! Im trynna learn those and their utility right now. Im kinda stuck on those, but i can tell they're super useful Regardless, dude thanks for everything. I love how ya teach and you're really an inspiration thank you!

[@kevinnickens]

Thanks for the kind comment my friend!

[@DavidKerner-en1ww]

Bro... That Stare 😮. Ok im on it

[@GB-rb1up]

All good points. Tip 3 especially hit me, but even though I have the right equipment that I like, I had a bad habit of leaving the guitar in a case, and the amp and pedals were not plugged in. ALWAYS HAVE YOUR GEAR READY - plugged in with your guitar on a stand, so that you aren't fiddling around with it and wasting time.

[@kaboomsihal1164]

The "your guitar should make you excited to play" part is sooo important. I got a guitar purely for fun because I really wanted to learn. Not with any aspirations to get awesome and join a band or something, purely for sitting on the couch and strumming a bit, pulling some loops with the violin. If I don't look at my guitar and think "I really wanna play that" then it's wasted money. What is the point then. Why would I touch it.

[@kevinnickens]

I 100% agree!

[@anonomyss]

When you want quick progress absolutely with tip #1, but I just play for fun and my personality makes it so that I need encouragement by playing something right first. That's why I also play the parts I play well.

[@louiedabarber2106]

Kevin da 🐐

[@stefi29]

Hey Kevin, I love your videos! I've been watching them for a few months and I want to say that you motivated me to actually enjoy playing guitar. I follow your roadmap and I am currently on level three, I have started wearing sunglasses inside:)). Jokes aside, I have a question for you: is it possible to learn guitar really well self taught? There aren't many guitar instructors in my town and the few ones that are good are very expensive.

[@kevinnickens]

It's 100% possible. The only snag is that it will probably take longer if you don't have an instructor, but you can absolutely still get to the same level

[@bishrantbaral4700]

Love you brother!!(Platonic love)

[@learningguitar7220]

Kinda irrelevant but what's your wallpaper? how do the album covers change like that?

[@robthewaywardwoodworker9956]

Tip 3 made me sub! LOL

[@jayusnyx8850]

additional tip, watch videos of people(preferably that you strive to be like/like listening to) and pay attention to how they work with the guitar, such as fretting or general hand placement :) for me, watching someone like kurt cobain play helps me improve A LOT as he was self taught too :)

[@mrodriguez4879]

It was the staring that made me realize the importance of these tips!

[@dreamhiking1032]

Is that iMac? Could you please share the details?

[@Riteshplayssomethin]

My hand bones started making sounds when i played guitar for 12 hrs straght

[@mrf7352]

Ur learning videos 0-6 are with non acoustic guitar still usefull?

[@jonesmiller8405]

I’ll cut you a deal and I’ll do the first 3 😘😘 thanks for another good video

[@davelackey5943]

That’s kind of hard to do if you’re a senior just learning to play the guitar,there really good tips we’re doing a lot of things, when I was learning to play baseball, I threw the ball off the top of the garage and threw it over the other side of the garage and ran over and tried to catch it on the other side down the roof, why because I was the only one that able to play with at the time guitar would be the same thing finding people to play with as difficult.

[@bipinjungbasnet7799]

Bro wtf i was watching your bar chords video and seen this lol 😂

[@krishanuchattopadhyay7006]

Please upload your father's guitar learning videos 🙏🏻🙏🏻 love from India ❤❤

[@ryanbartlett672]

Pragmatic!

[@davelackey5943]

This is the same concept that Tony Robbins has to do they can give you all the advice in the world but until you put it into action, it’s just information

[@my.1ove]

2:42 yeah if im being honest i look at my guitar and i feel so disappointed cuz i wanna learn electric so bad but my parents are making me learn on a couple years old acoustic and the strings sound horrible and dull no matter what and i only have the guitar not a pick or a tuner so i had to get a tuner app but i just dont get excited when i practice

[@henryhunch1724]

Bro just switch strings and get a guitar pick🤷🏻‍♂️ the tuner app works fine as well

[@my.1ove]

@@henryhunch1724 im a literal kid and my parents refuse to buy me anything guitar related till i know how to really play.

[@phillipdavis7388]

Great tips! But one tip I think you should’ve added is, try to play with a Metronome! Rhythm is King!

[@stonednbroke1]

Off to learn sultans of swing. 😎😋🤘🏻

[@NewSCAccount]

I love how this video is exactly 5:55

[@maxime1776]

🎉

[@FrankGruden]

what if you're bad at everything?

[@kevinnickens]

then brother you got some practicing to do

[@KevinsdadNorb]

I would get a better guitar

[@chriskitchen4772]

Nothing that CONSISTANT practicing won't change.😁

[@Therapyxx]

you can not be bad at everything. It means that you played everything without point Nr 1 at all. And instead of making 1-3 things good and continue with others, you started doing everything else, just to avoid hard parts of prev. techniques. If its really the case. Make a list of all things where you bad at (Nr 2 on this video). And continuously use Nr 1 to improve it, one by one, one by another. Then use Nr 4 and check it - > Repeat. Its hard work, don't expect that learning a new song, which you easily can play is even close to correct one bad habbit. Prepare yourself for hard work, but it will worth, every day.

[@a-mb9373]

WHY are u watching me? Lol

[@jamessullenriot]

Wow this was actually a good vid and not the same generic nonsense. Could also be applied to more than just guitar

[@captian390]

🤙

[@Silberbembel]

best 5 seconds of awkwardness ever! 😄

[@Gustavo-e9i]

Is it possible to learn to play the guitar without taking lessons?

[@ericheine2414]

1) Buy your guitars already tuned. 2) Buy a lot of them 3) The strings go on the outside. 4) Get a music stand and a chair. 5)Get a quartz tuner and a metronome. 6) Buy a Looper 7) Make playing guitar part of your daily ritual like brushing your teeth. 8) Write lyrics. 9) Take voice lessons 10) Get away from drugs and alcohol. 11) Don't waste your time learning other people's songs. Write your own songs and get other artists to produce them and present them.

[@306medo]

"We PLAY guitar we don't WORK guitar" - Justin Sandercoe aka Justin Guitar

[@kevinnickens]

100% agree. Justin is the GOAT

[@Therapyxx]

it applies to people, who already broke the starting point. To be able to be "good" at any thing in our lifes - we must work. Work really hard. This is why so many people leave their hobbies. They start and think that it will be a rainbow lawn since beginning :D

[@bipinjungbasnet7799]

Beginners here 😢❤

[@stifnasjhon3977]

Hey man what's up Bro seriously I love your content and I'm from Pakistan I want to learn guitar from you but as you said in your ( level 1 to 10 video) I'm scared if I'm not able to pay so plzz make some discount Patreon videos with road map plzz man plzzz. God bless you! 😇

[@bruthaniall]

funny wee man

[@ArthurGenius]

Another argument to buy Bocchi's guitar, thanks

[@antonystark2290]

LOTTA MONEY THO XD HAHAHAH , it's a slick guitar and well who says no to BOCCHI.

[@markdonnelly6921]

great advice on playing stuff you suck at thats one way to improve

[@monkeyjocks]

AHH MAN.......now my soul hurts.....uhm...and i can totally explain the "incident" ..that youve now seen..in my soul....it was '91 and i really needed the money..

[@kevinnickens]

we both know you didn't need the money THAT bad...

[@ndxd]

bro is black pill guitar youtuber, and im all in for it.