Fresh off his summer tour, John Mayer showed up at Berklee College of Music to play some tunes and give artists some advice.

One student taped the whole thing for the world to see and I’m glad she did.  Whether you like him or hate him, the dude is a smart guy.

There were a few key points I thought were very well said.

1.  The Public is Smarter than You

Just because you think a song is a hit, doesn’t mean the people will. Believing in the music is great, but people are the ones that will decide if you’re good or not. Yes, marketing and promotion are important, but at the end of the day, do the people dig what they hear or not?

2. Success is How You Define it

“I know artists who have sold 2 million and are still unsatisfied, because they haven’t defined what ‘making it’ is. Those are the type of people who feel consistently unfulfilled.” Have you really thought about what you want to achieve and why?

3. Converting Information to Inspiration : Songs are About Connecting with People

You can know all the right chords and be scientific with the formulas and all that, but does it have soul?

The volume of the vid is not so great, so turn it up: