Do:
1. Focus on what makes you different.
2. Experiment until the cows come home
3. Nurture the unexpected.
4. Make a crazy quantity of work.
5. Influence & teach like minded artists.
Don’t:
1. Copy what’s on trend now.
2. Worry about what every one else is doing.
3. Focus on something you’re not good at.
4. Dilute your ideas
5. Stick with safe ideas.
P.s. It is important to understand the history of music and its trends. But trends are started by people who understand this, then start their own thing. If a trend is already established, respect it, appreciate it and move on.