What is Windowing in Music?

 
Windowing is a content distribution strategy where you’re making your content(music) exclusively available on a platform, channel or format for a limited time before it is made widely available. The goal is capitalize on the initial demand by generating as much revenue upfront within a short window before it goes to other distribution channels that don’t pay as much. Essentially, it’s a practice where you intentionally stagger the availability to maximize how much you can generate.

For a music release, this means charging fans for early access to the new music and other perks before the release is on all streaming platforms. You want to generate as much money upfront so you’re not depending on any revenue from streaming royalties that won’t even start showing up until at least 2 or 3 months later.

The practice of windowing isn’t new, but the need and appeal for this strategy in music have grown over the years with the increasing popularity of streaming and low royalty rates.
 

How Should You Window Your Next Release

 
Before we get into specific platforms, I wanted to share some ideas and tactics to consider to ensure windowing can be successfully implemented.

The basic execution of this windowing strategy can be as simple as making your new release available to listen to and download on a specific platform (i.e. Bandcamp) before the official release date where it will be available on all streaming platforms.

For most artists, this is probably all you’ll need since it doesn’t require any lead time and is easier to execute. However, you do have the option to customize and test different tactics.
 

Physical Products
 
Windowing is easier done digitally but you can also do this with physical items like vinyl and CDs. Launch physical and digital download formats together a month in advance of the official release date on streaming platforms.

If you really want to try and milk the release upfront, consider windowing with a 3-step process where you separate the physical release first for a few weeks. Maybe another 2 weeks later, you make it available for digital download. Then after another 2 weeks, it’s available everywhere. The only thing is it requires much more planning ahead and having all the physicals pressed beforehand. 
 

Other Perks
 
You can also attach other perks to incentivize fans to purchase the music physically or digitally before the streaming release date.

• Signed vinyl or CDs
• Merch bundles and fan packs
• Raffle for merch, tickets, meet & greets, etc.
• Video shout-outs (i.e. Cameo-style videos)
• Deluxe album version as a download
• Invitation to listening parties (in-person or online)

If you’re someone who cares about charting on Billboard, you can do ‘fan packs’.
 

Time Frame
 
How long should you stagger each window before the official release on streaming platforms?

If you’re only doing a digital release window, I would say 2 – 4 weeks before the official release date.

If you’re incorporating physical releases, you’ll want to widen the window more to account for fulfillment and shipping so 4 – 6 weeks.
 

Best Platforms for Windowing

 
These are the 3 most popular and accessible options for you to window an upcoming release. There are other options out there, but what you’re mainly looking for is the ability to sell, listen to the music and potentially limit access.
 

BandCamp

 
Bandcamp is a great option because it has everything you would need to successfully window a release.

They have a storefront that allows visitors to listen to the new releases and purchase digital downloads or physical merch. Visitors are limited to only 3 full plays (can be disabled or increased) of a song before they are prompted to buy.

You can also host a listening party to celebrate with your fans exclusively on the platform.

The cool thing about Bandcamp is it’s built on a strong community around supporting artists on the platform. Fans also like the ability to select the file types for downloading, including MP3, FLAC, WAV and AIFF.

Although it doesn’t cost money to create an account and host your releases there, there are fees involved.
 

EVEN

 
Started in 2022 and officially launched in April of 2024, EVEN is a direct-to-consumer music platform that allows artists to maximize revenue from their releases in a world now dominated by streaming.

Understanding that low payout rates from streaming platforms aren’t changing anytime soon, they essentially positioned themselves as a windowing platform with an unofficial tagline of:

Empowering artists to sell their music first and stream second.

The growing popularity of EVEN has been largely due to rising independent Hip Hop star LaRussell, who initially put the platform on my radar. More recently, J.Cole has used the platform to monetize the 10 year anniversary release of his 2014 Forest Hills Drive album.

Like Bandcamp, EVEN offers a “pay what you want” model where you can set a minimum amount you accept. When setting up a release, you can include various rewards or perks (EVEN calls them access points) like bonus content, merch, events and fan experiences to incentivize fans to support.

Signing up is easy, but your artist account will need to be verified by their team before you start. As for fees, EVEN does a 80/20 revenue split so you keep 80% of the money you generate through their platform.

Check out their artist playbook for more information.
 

Patreon

 
Patreon is a monetization platform for creators to earn money from memberships/subscriptions. The tools and features available on Patreon give artists a lot of flexibility, especially for something like windowing. However, I would not recommend starting a Patreon solely for windowing a release.

This option is ideal if you already built a membership community and you’re looking for a way to window your release to attract new potential members to your Patreon. For example, you can promote early access to the new release on social media and an email list by encouraging fans to join.

Patreon supports audio files so fans can easily listen to the new release in the Patreon app, Spotify or other podcasting apps (via RSS feed). You can choose to enable or disable downloading as well.

However, the one drawback is you can’t upload multiple audio tracks into one individual post. You would have to create either a post for each individual song or an edit that contains the entire album in one seamless track. This is where Bandcamp or EVEN have an advantage since those are music-centric platforms that accommodate multiple tracks.

As for selling physical merch for windowing, your best option is to create a secret, password-protected shop page and give Patreon members access. You can easily do this with e-commerce platforms like Shopify and Squarespace.

Even if you have fans who don’t want to pay monthly subscription costs, you can sell access to an individual post containing the new release with a one-time charge. You can also include an album download for sale in your digital store.

For more on Patreon for Music Artists, I wrote some blogs and an ebook for you to check out.
 

Conclusion

 
As convenient music streaming is for the fans, the low payout rates on all platforms aren’t changing anytime soon. For artists looking to adapt, windowing new releases has become a viable strategy.

Just be aware that windowing a release strategy is typically reserved for artists who have a sizable fan base and multiple releases under their belt. In other words, this is not effective for newer or developing artists.

If you’ve tried windowing a release, I would love to hear your results. What platform did you use and how did you approach it?

The post How to Window Your Next Music Release to Maximize Revenue appeared first on D4 Music Marketing.

Looking for free exposure for your music? Getting on a Spotify editorial playlist could be a good way to get one of your songs out to a new audience. Editorial playlists are curated by Spotify’s team.

In late 2018, Spotify has allowed artists the ability to submit a song to be considered in their editorial playlists. It’s completely free! Although there are no guarantees you’ll get added, there’s no harm in trying.

If you prefer to watch a video, I created a full walk-through where I go through the process from the beginning of uploading a song to your distributor to being accepted onto a playlist. It is outdated but it should still cover the basic process for you.

You can watch that to see the process visually or just follow the directions below.
 

Getting Started

 

The first thing is you need a Spotify for Artist account and claim your artist profile.

If you’ve released music before on Spotify through a music aggregator / distributor (like DistroKid, CD Baby or TuneCore) but haven’t claimed your artist profile yet, here’s how:

https://artists.spotify.com/faq/promotion#how-do-i-claim-my-artist-profile-before-my-first-release-goes-live
 

Step 1: Upload Your Music

 

You need to upload your new song(s) to your music distributor (like CDBaby, TuneCore or DistroKid) and make sure Spotify is selected as an outlet.

DistroKid Users: You must have the Musician Plus or Label plan to schedule releases for a future date in order to submit to Spotify. If you have the basic Musician plan ($22.99/year), then you cannot submit your release for Spotify playlist consideration. The only way around is to upgrade your DistroKid plan or use another distributor.

Once you’ve received an email or notification that Spotify has received your music in their system and is scheduled for release, then you can proceed to the next step.

IMPORTANT

 
You have to have something new that is unreleased. You can’t submit a song that has been already released and live.

You need to submit the song to be considered at least 7 days in advance of the release date. I would do at least 10 days because it can take several days for Spotify to get your new music into their system from the distributor. However, for the best chances, I would give yourself 2 – 4 weeks before the planned release date to upload your music to your distributor.

It is possible to still get your track on a Spotify Editorial playlist if you pitch a week before release, but it is not recommended.

A song I pitched a week before the release was added to Spotify’s Editorial Playlist.

Step 2: Log into ‘Spotify for Artist’ account

 

Log in to your Spotify for Artist account on Desktop. You can only do this on desktop and not the Spotify for Artist app.

From the Home screen, go to the ‘Music’ tab and select ‘Upcoming’. Your songs should be listed here. It can take several days before it shows up. For one release, it took us about 2 days to get an email from Spotify that it was ready to go out on release day. On another release, it took about a week.
 

Step 3: Select a Song to Submit

 

From the home screen or the ‘Upcoming’ tab in Music, choose a song and click ‘Submit a Song.’

Couple Notes:

• You are only allowed to select one song per artist profile to be considered in each release. So if you are releasing a 6 track EP, you can only choose 1 song.
• If you have multiple releases scheduled, you have to wait one of the songs you submitted goes live first before you can submit the other song.
• So if you want to maximize your chances, you’ll want to release singles but make sure to schedule the releases far apart enough so you have enough time to submit. 2 weeks between scheduled releases should work.
• You also have to be the main artist so you can’t select a song you’re featured in.
• Spotify editors have the right to choose a different song from your release than the one you submit. Assuming you’re releasing an EP or album, they may choose another song that they feel fits better creatively for a playlist.

Step 4: Fill Out Form

 
Fill out all the details as completely and accurately as you can. This increases your chances of being selected.

Location – Confirm where the artist is from

Add song details

Add a description

 
For your convenience, I included all of the questions so you can see them ahead of time and prepare. Keep in mind, the questions could change, but I’ll do my best to make sure it’s up to date.

Step 5: Submit the Song

 

The last page will be a review of your responses. If everything looks good, hit ‘submit.’ You can always go back and make edits if you need. Not sure if it affects the process, so I wouldn’t do it too much, just in case.

If you change your mind, you can delete your submission and select another song.

If you have been added, you’ll get an email letting you know you’ve been selected, the playlist your song is on and how many followers are on the playlist. An artist I worked with back in 2019 got the email 5 days after the song was released, which was on a Monday. Spotify let us know it was added on Saturday morning. I imagine it will vary by artist.

In 2024, another artist that I submitted for got an email saying they were added to Spotify’s editorial playlist 2 days after the song was first released.

If you didn’t get added this time, don’t give up. You can keep doing this for each new release.
 

You’ve Been Selected, What Next?

 

Congrats! The next thing you want to do is to maximize this opportunity. There’s no set time that you’ll be on the playlist, so make the most out of it while you are on it. According to Spotify, how long you stay on the playlist depends on how it resonates with listeners, meaning based on their data and analytics.

Once your song has been selected for an editorial playlist, you can’t remove yourself from it or request a different playlist.

Here’s what you should do:

• Share the playlist and let people know you’ve been added to a Spotify Editorial Playlist.
• Build on the momentum by letting people know to listen to the song, share it, save it and even add the song to their playlists. These are important signals that Spotify’s algorithm monitors to determine how well a song is engaging with listeners on the playlist. Who knows, if it does well, they may add it to some other playlists.
• Keep releasing music. Chances are you’re going to get some new people who will like your song and possibly follow you on Spotify.

Conclusion

 
That is how you submit your song to be considered for a Spotify editorial playlist. As you can see, it’s a fairly simple and straightforward process. If you want to see a video walk-through, you can watch this.

Lastly, it’s important to keep expectations in check. Although it’s great to be added, it’s most likely not going to make you the next Lil Nas X or Post Malone. However, it will give you more exposure to people who would never have come across your music. Just make sure you’re promoting your music in other ways as well.

I know a relatively new artist who had 3 of his singles added to Spotify’s editorial playlists in a row. He now has over 60k listeners a month, with his top song receiving 149k streams because of this. For the average independent artist, getting 1,000 streams on a song is not easy. I’m sure there have been crazier stories of what being added to an editorial playlist could do to one’s career, but it’s still impressive.

Looking for more about Spotify?

How to Get More Spotify Followers (Tips for Musicians)

Spotify Playlist Guide: How To Improve Discoverability For Your Music

Amazon Music has also launched their own free playlist submission tool for their curated playlists. The process is very similar to Spotify.

The post How to Submit Your Song for Spotify Playlist Consideration appeared first on D4 Music Marketing.

As of this writing, the remix of the song has been streamed 400+ million times on Spotify alone and has stayed on Billboard’s Top 100 for 17 weeks straight. This officially beats the Billboard record for the longest a song has been at number 1.

The Atlanta artist ended up signing a record deal with Columbia Records and has released an EP so far through the label. He has become a music star, posting photos on his Instagram hanging out with the biggest names in music and culture.

He also claimed to have intentionally created “Old Town Road” so that it would go viral. Did this rapper, who only started rapping since May 2018, in fact, figure out the secret to going viral?

In case for some strange reason you have not heard the song yet, here is the video for the remix version with Billy Ray Cyrus that took over popular culture:

Stories like this are always interesting to dissect. Even if you’re not trying to go viral, there are definitely things you can learn and apply to your own career.

In this blog, I share his back story and all my thoughts that I think other musicians should learn from his viral success.
 

The Back Story

 
Before the Country Hot 100 controversy, where Billboard decided that the original version of the song didn’t meet the criteria to be categorized as country, “Old Town Road” was actually becoming a viral hit on its own.

The surprising thing about Lil Nas X’s rise to fame is that he started rapping for less than a year before blowing up. Within that span of time, Lil Nas X released about 16 tracks on his SoundCloud (his older songs have been removed by the label), including the original viral hit “Old Town Road” that he posted on December 3, 2018. Most of his songs didn’t get much attention compared to the funny memes, unrelated to music, that he would post.

“Old Town Road” first came about when Lil Nas X bought the beat from a Dutch teen Young Kio through a website called beatstars.com for $30 dollars. The banjos in the song, sampled from a Nine Inch Nails song, inspired him to write a song with a “loner cowboy runaway” vibe that reflected his current life situation.

Side Note: If you want to learn more about the story of the song from the perspective of the young producer who made the beat, Young Kio, you can check out this article.

Lil Nas X deliberately wanted to make a viral song. He spent the whole month of November writing the song and released it early December. A couple of days after the release, he sent the below tweet:

twitter please help me get billy ray cyrus on this pic.twitter.com/UDoeiOZqc1

— nope (@LilNasX) December 5, 2018

As we are all aware of now, the irony of the tweet from this unknown kid in Atlanta at the time was that he did get Billy Ray Cyrus on the track months later.

By marketing and promoting his song through numerous memes, “Old Town Road” reached the top 50 Country list on SoundCloud around December 19th:

OLD TOWN ROAD IS TOP 50 COUNTRY ON SOUNDCLOUD!! pic.twitter.com/vtstydGpnU

— nope (@LilNasX) December 20, 2018

In February;, Lil Nas X first uploaded the “Old Town Road” to the short-form video app TikTok. This really helped the song take off.

By March 16th of this year, “Old Town Road” was generated enough streams to make its way into the Billboard charts at number 19. This is where the controversy began and took his viral success to the next level. Billboard disqualified the song because it “does not embrace enough elements of today’s country music to chart in its current version.”

Lil Nas X then signed a deal with Columbia Records and got Billy Ray Cyrus on the remix of the song, which allowed it to be on the Billboard Country charts in April.

That was an overview of what happened in case you were not familiar with his story. We’ll get into the details.
 

What exactly did Lil Nas X do to go viral?

 
As I mentioned earlier, Lil Nas X claimed he purposely wrote “Old Town Road” to become a viral hit. A lot of times songs that actually go viral aren’t done so intentionally. However, this may be an exception.

He crafted the song around cowboy culture, including the title itself, and injected western lingo throughout the lyrics. Unlike the other songs he put out that didn’t do well, it was the first time that he wrote a song to formulate a viral hit.

According to Lil Nas X, the viral song had to be:

• Short
• Catchy
• Quotable, with fun lines and lyrics that people want to use as captions
• Used in memes

Once it came out, he promoted the song nonstop by retweeting horse and cowboy memes with the song from his friends and followers. From there, it slowly caught on a couple of months in.

I tried digging up his old tweets as examples of how we went about promoting “Old Town Road” and these were what I found. I’m sure there was a lot more, but this should give you a good idea of the memes he was creating:

good morning buckaroos lets get this mf cattle ?⚡️ pic.twitter.com/MYhVTMeamD

— nope (@LilNasX) December 12, 2018

country music is evolving pic.twitter.com/BEZIw3TE8l

— nope (@LilNasX) December 3, 2018

pic.twitter.com/qbExBTU78G

— nope (@LilNasX) December 21, 2018

Although there are other factors outside his control that went in his favor that allowed the song to become the global hit (discussed below), he spent a lot of time pushing and promoting the song. In other words, the song didn’t just magically catch on, there was work being put behind it.

Next, I’ll go over 6 key factors that allowed Lil Nas X to go viral that you can learn and adapt in some way to your own career.
 

1. Make a “good” song.

 
With all this being said, it leads to one of the first principles of virality – practical value. It is one of the 6 research based principles for something to go viral, according to marketing professor and bestselling author Jonah Berger.

Another way of saying it is, without the story, hype, controversy and memes, is the song likable as it is? Does the song provide some sort of value or benefit to the listener?

It sounds obvious, but it’s easy to let your own personal biases about your music get in the way of what you think is good or not good. The producer who made the beat to “Old Town Road” actually said it was his “throwaway beat,” yet it was good enough to later become one of the hottest songs in our culture. It works both ways.

The point here is that your song needs to be good at whatever it is you’re trying to accomplish. Lil Nas X wrote the song to be fun and entertaining so it could go viral. Clearly, he accomplished that. Without the song actually being catchy and quotable, could the song have become the global hit that it became? I would doubt it.

How do you know if your music is “good”? You promote it the best you can and see how people respond. After all, something that is considered “good” is very subjective to different audiences. You need to make sure you put in the proper time and work to get your song out there to the right audience to see if it’s good and resonates with people. Just posting it on SoundCloud or Spotify is not enough, especially when you haven’t established yourself yet.

At the very least, you should:

• Get your friends and network to help promote it
• Share it with your community (if you don’t have one, find one)
• Post it on all your channels using the right hashtags
• Pay for Facebook, Instagram or YouTube ads
• Reach out to influencers and content creators

Lil Nas X clearly knew he had a good song, and you can read the responses from his old tweets indicating that people liked the song when he first started promoting it on Twitter.

When influencers, with large followings of their own, reach out to you to use the song because they know it’ll make them look good if they shared it, you know you have something good. This was what helped “Old Town Road” go viral and leads to the next point.
 

2. Get people talking about you with a good story.

 
Whenever I first hear about an artist that has gone viral, it has always started the same way.

When my friend first introduced me to Post Malone’s White Iverson, he said, “Check out the video with this goofy looking white guy who thinks he’s like a white Allen Iverson”.

When another friend introduced me to Rich Brian, he asked me to guess the race of the rapper based on just the music without seeing the video.

The same thing happened with Lil Nas X when a friend asked me, “Did you hear about how this black kid wrote a viral country trap song and was kicked out of the Hot 100 Country Billboard list?”

All of these cases were through word of mouth when I learned about them in person. I didn’t ask my friends to introduce me to music. There was something interesting, funny, surprising or different about the artist that they felt inclined to share with me.

Why is this important? It’s this concept of social currency.

In subtle ways, we share things based on how something makes us look and how others will perceive us. Social currency is what helps make the person who shares something look good or valuable to the other person they are telling it in a social context.

For example, if I share a really funny video with you, it makes me look good if you really like it because it puts me in a positive light in how you perceive me. If I tell you about a hot, upcoming artist you never heard of who becomes really famous it makes me look good when I introduce you to them. This is because it demonstrates that I have good taste in music or that I’m in the know.

When it comes to virality, you need to do or create something that carries social currency so it’s worth mentioning through word of mouth and sharing with others.

On top of good music, there needs to be some other element, like a good story, that makes people feel inclined to talk about it with others. Humans are hardwired to be receptive to stories. Notice how in the cases above, it never started with “check out this really good song.” There’s always more to it.

To see the power of story in this particular case, let’s look at Google search trends.

You can see that Lil Nas X didn’t really go super-viral until March when the controversy with Billboard occurred. From then, that’s when he really took off. The story about the Billboard controversy generated so much social currency that the media, news and blogs all had to share.

Lil Nas X on Google Trends

We can’t give Lil Nas X credit for the story aspect as I’m sure he didn’t anticipate his song charting on the Hot 100 Country list and getting kicked off before teaming up Billy Ray Cyrus.

However, as covered earlier, Lil Nas X did other things that led up to this point and deserves credit for. This comes to show that you really can’t control virality as much as it seems. If you do things right knowing what you know in this blog, you’ll be in a better position to do so.

These are the principles that power of word of mouth marketing and fuels virality. We all know that when you can spark discussion or better yet, debate and controversy, that is how things can really spread. This leads to the next principle.
 

3. Generate debate / controversy and evoke emotions

 
Is it country? Is it rap? Is it country trap?

Is “Old Town Road” not country enough? Or was Billboard being racists because the artist is a young black kid from Atlanta?

These are the types of questions that got people thinking when the song was first disqualified from Billboard’s Hot 100 Country list. I would argue it was the big catalyst that allowed the song to see the type of success that it did.

When looking at it more broadly, there’s often an emotional component to things that go viral. Then, when you get people triggered by controversy, emotions get entangled even more, which creates a perfect storm.

From my understanding, race in country music has been an ongoing issue for quite some time. When issues of racism and cultural appropriation get into the mix, it’s bound to cause some debate.

Although Billboard denies it had anything to do with race, there have been other white Country music artists who incorporated elements of hip hop into their beats and production techniques. Examples are artists like Florida Georgia Line and Sam Hunt.

This doesn’t necessarily mean you should do extreme things that are controversial just to get attention. People who try different things and push the boundaries may naturally generate some discussion or debate. This leads to the next point.
 

4. Trying something new or different.

 
When I say this, it doesn’t mean it has to be something no one has thought of or tried, because combining country and rap is not new nor is “country trap.” Lil Nas X has helped to put this sound on the global stage, but he credits Young Thug for pioneering Country Trap. The influence of country music in hip hop music has been around for quite some time.

For Lil Nas X, “Old Town Road” was completely different from anything he put out before. He came across the beat and was inspired to try something he never did in his short career in music.

With so many people doing the same thing, you have to be willing to experiment and take artistic risks. It doesn’t have to be something that has never, ever been done before, but hopefully, it’s refreshing and creative. There’s power in combining or blending things that don’t normally go together or uncommonly done.

And of course, there are risks involved because it doesn’t always mean that everyone will like it. That’s why it makes the reward worth it if you have something special, as it can be the fuel you need for exposure. Post Malone is a good example of this as well.

“I believe whenever you’re trying something new, it’s always going to get some kind of bad reception.” – Lil Nas X

Having heard this story, I’m sure people are inspired to do their own genre crossover in hopes to get exposure. Don’t force it though, because I feel people can sense it. But if you ever come across an idea or opportunity to make something different or uncommon, do it.
 

5. Incorporate Visuals (Video / Memes / Dances)

 
Another element that all things that go viral seem to have in common is some visual component. Things that have gone viral, at least from what I can recall, was never just a song. There was always some video attached to it.

As mentioned in my blog on virality, one of the core principles of virality is when something is public, which I would extend to say something we can visually see.

With Lil Nas X, there were visual elements:

• Videos
• Dances
• Memes

When Lil Nas X first released “Old Town Road,” he created some visuals to go with the song. The first was a “music video” with the song synced up to some clips from the video game Red Dead Redemption 2.

A couple weeks after, he created a lyric video using video game clips as well.

These are nothing spectacular, but it got the job done. It comes to show that you don’t need high production videos, but it should complement the song and the goal you want to accomplish with it.

The other visual component that he credits for helping to promote the song were the memes. Some of them were shared above. He had a knack for making memes, and knew that it was a powerful way to market his song. Memes are a big vehicle for virality and attention because they essentially are designed to trigger shares or retweets.

Because he purposely created and promoted his song with a cowboy theme in mind so it was easy to establish the visuals for it.

However, what took the song to the next level was when it caught on to the video-sharing app TikTok. For weeks, people were dancing to his track while dressed up in cowboy attire. We should all be familiar with the power of dance attached to certain songs and how that can catch on quick.

It should be no surprise that visuals or things that are in the public eye help are a crucial mechanism for virality.

This leads to the final point about virality.
 

6. Capitalize on what’s trending online.

One of the big cultural trends that took off at the time when “Old Town Road” was released, which worked in his favor, was the Yeehaw Agenda.

What started out as memes, the Yeehaw Agenda became a movement of appropriating cowboy fashion and culture as seen with many celebrities rocking various cowboy aesthetics.

On top of this cowboy style trend, the song also gained traction on the social network app TikTok as a part of the #YeeHawChallenge where people would dress in full cowboy attire and dance to “Old Town Road.” It quickly became the soundtrack and anthem of this cowboy movement. This is what allowed it to climb up various streaming charts and led to the Billboard controversy.

An influencer on TikTok known as @nicemichael reached out to Lil Nas X to use his song and claims he was the first one to use “Old Town Road” in one of his videos. After he posted a video of him dancing to his song as a cowboy to his 123k followers on TikTok, which created a wave of people doing the same thing for weeks on the platform.

@nicemichael how’s this for a country boy #foryou #funny #dance #countryboy ♬ Old Town Road – Lil Nas X

Did Lil Nas X create “Old Town Road” knowing that he could capitalize on the YeeHaw Agenda? Possibly.

The big lesson here is to keep a pulse on what’s going on in the news, culture, world events and social media. Attention is the currency of the digital age. If there’s something trending that has people’s attention, it might be an opportunity for you to capitalize on it if it makes sense for your brand.

Another principle of virality that Lil Nas X had successfully implemented has to do with this concept of triggers.

A good example and explanation of triggers is from one of the early viral internet songs “Friday” by Rebecca Black. Because of the song’s association with the day Friday, many people shared it and used it as memes once a week all on the same day. Yup, when Fridays came around, this triggered people to think about the Rebecca Black song, which was what helped the song and video become a viral hit.

With Lil Nas X, he successfully created a song that would associate with “Old Time Road” when they were triggered through cowboy memes and fashion.
 

Conclusion

 
So did Lil Nas X really figure out virality? Yes, but it’s nothing we didn’t already know.

As I’ve laid out in this blog, he did everything that one would need to do to go viral, but there were a lot of other factors out of his control that went in his favor to be successful with “Old Town Road.” With some luck, every piece needed for the song to take off lined up perfectly.

The reason why I don’t advocate for going viral is that it’s not as easy as it seems and you’re not in full control of the outcome. It’s like trying to become a millionaire by spending all your money on lottery tickets every week. Lots of people get caught up in wanting overnight success and growth hacks because they are impatient. The chances are never in your favor, which is why you shouldn’t solely focus on going viral.

A big takeaway from this blog is to be aware of what’s going on in culture and around your own life. With the virality principles in mind, know when to capitalize on certain trends and opportunities that make sense for you. Knowing the mechanisms of virality should help you maximize the potential exposure of everything you do to help get you where you want to be just a bit quicker, even if it’s not to be a viral superstar.

If you want to read more about virality, check out this blog I referenced throughout this blog:

Going Viral: 6 Research Based-Principles to Increase Music Exposure

The post Going Viral: Did Lil Nas X Hack the Secret Code to Virality? The 6 Keys to His Success appeared first on D4 Music Marketing.

The music industry can be overwhelming. Just like running your own business (because that’s what it is!), there are a lot of things to think when it comes to managing your enterprise. When you’re working solo and can’t afford to build a team yet, it helps to have a solid overview or plan on how you should go about making a living from your music.

As an independent artist, you have 4 general business models you can adopt to mold and build your music career around. These aren’t “official” models, but it should provide some clarity about which approach is best for you.

Although I will talk about them distinctly in their purest form, their characteristics aren’t mutually exclusive. This means you can technically incorporate different aspects of all four models at once. Certain characteristics will overlap so there’s not a black and white distinction between each model. In time, more business models for music will certainly emerge as the industry and technology are constantly evolving. For example, the rise of blockchain technology and NFTs in Web3 will certain reshape how the music industry operates in the near future.

Also, this is not a discussion about musician income streams, but more of a big picture view of how to manage and grow your business.

Please Note: This blog was written more for singer-songwriters, rappers and performing artist types in mind, but it can still be applicable to producers, DJs, beatmakers, music composers or even music teachers.
 

What are the types of business models in music?

 
The distinguishing factors between these models are how you:

• Approach monetization for your music
• Get discovered (growing your audience)
• Manage and distribute content

Here’s a brief overview of each model with a focus on how content is managed and distributed first. This will be followed by a breakdown of how the models approach monetization and discoverability.

Streaming / Accessibility Model

 
The music streaming model is the most popular business model we see out there for music. You can look at it as an evolved version of the old school major label model, so it could also be dubbed the “new” mainstream model. This is generally what more established artists do and what most emerging artists strive towards.

In this model, you favor making your music as accessible and available as possible on all digital and streaming platforms to remove any barriers to music discovery. A big component to get exposure for songs are playlists and leveraging social media platforms to push out free content (music, videos). Fan bases are built around social media platforms and email marketing lists, which are used to engage fans.

This model is a response to the fact that buying physical music has been on the decline over the past decade, so other income streams have become more of a priority for musicians such as live performances, merch sales and brand deals. For artists still trying to make a name for themselves, a standard day job is often needed to fund their music side hustle.

The drawback of this model is that you are in direct competition with a majority of musicians, including major label stars, on social media platforms. This highly saturated and competitive climate makes it harder for you to garner attention and build momentum.

Sales-Driven / Direct-to-Fan Model

 
In this approach, the main income stream is through direct-to-fan music and merchandise sales by limiting or restricting your music distribution to maximize the income potential. This could be done either by windowing it, making it only available through direct purchase from the artist (digital and physical).

This can be done using a platform like Bandcamp where the number of times you can stream a song can be limited so people can get a sample of the music. You can make songs or albums accessible on more streaming platforms at a later time. Or, you can decide to not make it available on any streaming platforms.

A sales-driven approach is more closed off where accessibility of your music is a threat to your ability to maximize profit. However, some musicians feel they don’t have a choice because of the unethical practices and unfair pay outs of major streaming services (like Spotify).

Online music marketing expert John Oszajca from Music Marketing Manifesto is a big advocate for this model. The intention is for artists to make a living relatively quicker, at least in theory. However, it is much more dependent on a planned out online marketing strategy and training/expertise to execute.

Part of the allure of this model is there’s less dependence on performing live in front of a physical audience, but you can still do it if you’re able to.

John is someone who falls deeper on this model, where you’re still able to raise awareness and create interest through social media ads. But you’re theoretically maximizing the ability to profit at the expense of discoverability.

Membership / Subscription Model

 
Another variation of the direct-to-fan model are membership platforms, like Patreon, where fans can become members of your private community, get more access to you as an artist and subscribe to get your exclusive content. Fans can directly support you financially by pledging a certain amount on a monthly basis, often with different pricing and tiered rewards.

Although Patreon has been around since 2013, it is a model that has not been largely adopted by musicians for a number of reasons, which I will get into later. It is the most popular membership platform, but it also encompasses a wide range of categories where music ranks as the 4th most popular category with over 14,000 music-related creators.

Even before Patreon, the idea of memberships for music has existed in the form of fan clubs that started offline. For example, Pearl Jam’s Ten Club started in 1990 and is still going strong. They offer an analog and digital version of their annual membership for their fans. Many of the rewards and perks of becoming a member are similar to what you would see in Patreon.

For simplicity, I grouped membership and subscription together. You often see them paired with each other, but there are differences between the models. One is based more around community while the other is more of a transactional relationship. For example, Spotify and Netflix is a subscription-based service that gives access to content for a recurring payment.

Patreon is community-driven, but you can set up your membership to have a transactional component where a fan/member pays a set amount each month to receive new content. This is not to be confused with crowdfunding campaigns like Kickstarter or IndieGoGo, although they are similar in some ways.

For those who use WordPress as their website platform, you also have the option of using Memberful to host your membership / subscription feature on your very own website. Patreon and Memberful (owned by Patreon) basically do the same thing, except Patreon is kept separate from your website and lives on Patreon.com. You can read more about the two here.

For example, Carrie Underwood hosts her online fan club membership on her website through Sparkart.

In response to the shortcomings of Patreon, new music-centric platforms that can host a membership / subscription model have popped up. They are still in the earlier stages, but you can check them out:

• Currents
• Ampled

Another platform a membership model can be hosted on is Facebook Groups. I’ve never seen a musician use it to host a membership with it, but it’s possible. You can learn more about it here.

You can technically facilitate a subscription model with OnlyFans. Although the platform tends to be more associated with adult content, musicians were on there briefly when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020.

A PG-13 alternative to OnlyFans is FanHouse. Their platform helps creators grow and monetize their fans through paid subscriptions. The featured creator on the platform is The Chainsmokers.

Lastly, you have Bandcamp that offers a subscription function as a way of getting monetarily compensated for the release of consistent content. A subscription based model can be viewed as an extension of a sales-driven / direct-to-fan model.
 

Livestreaming / Subscription Model

 
This is a newer model for musicians that is still evolving. A livestreaming model is where an artist uses a broadcast platform as the foundation of how content is distributed and monetized. With your own broadcast channel, you’re in control over the content and programming you want to share with fans.

The defining characteristic of this model is that fan engagement primarily happens on livestream, which influences other aspects of a music career. What helps with audience growth is the fact that the model is largely community-driven.

Livestreaming capabilities on social media platforms have been around for years like Instagram Live, Facebook Live, YouTube Live and Periscope (Twitter), but the lack of monetization sources early on made it challenging to make a sustainable business model. I have heard of musicians making a living off donations and tips from Facebook Live, but it’s rare.

As a result, livestreaming is treated more like a side hustle or marketing tool.

In 2015, a broadcasting platform called YouNow popped up to allow livestreamers to earn money. Musicians like Emma McGann were able to thrive there.

However, things have changed in the past few years. Making a living off livestreaming has become more feasible because of the monetization opportunities available. Platforms like Twitch have led the way to make this model more sustainable for creators. Raquel Lily and JVNA, musicians on Twitch that I follow, are good examples of this.

Even though a livestreaming model is more common for video game streamers, I feel there’s a lot of opportunities for musicians to build here. Twitch is associated more with video games, but their music community continues to grow and provides an opportunity for independent artists.

Twitch is the most popular livestreaming platform, but other major platforms are catching on and implementing similar monetization features to stay competitive.

For example, YouTube also can support a livestreaming model as they have introduced membership / subscription features similar to Twitch like custom emojis (emotes as they’re called on Twitch). They also have their version of Twitch’s virtual currency ‘bits’ and cheers called Superchat and Super Stickers. YouTube’s Channel Membership now feels like a cross between Twitch and Patreon.

Facebook looks like they are slowly rolling out with more monetization options for livestreamers and video creators with fan subscriptions and stars.

In order to qualify for these exclusive livestreaming revenue sources, there are certain requirements you must meet on Twitch, YouTube and Facebook.

Even TikTok has the ability to go live and creators can earn donations (called coins).

I will focus on Twitch when discussing this livestreaming model because it’s currently the standard that other platforms are imitating.
 

Monetization

 
As mentioned earlier, what differentiates these music business models is what you’re focusing on or building upon to make money.

Before jumping in, I want to touch on a commonality all these models have. It is less about profiting off the music itself and more about monetizing the brand.

Many of us are so used to the concept of music being the product that it may be hard to let go. Although you can get paid from your songs (i.e. licensing), it’s role and utility has evolved in today’s society.

Your art is a marketing tool to build brand loyalty so you can push other brand-centric products like tickets to live performances, merch, livestream subscriptions and sponsorships. The idea is to drive brand awareness and fandom through your content to the point where people are devoted and willing to financially support artists in more profitable ways than music streaming.

Your objective is to get people to invest in who you are as an artist and not just in your music alone.

In its purest form, a sales-driven model treats the music more like a product, but you are leveraging branding to build that relationship.

Music Streaming / Accessibility Model

 
In a music streaming model, independents are often at a disadvantage when competing against bigger name artists and major-label megastars. It doesn’t help that major labels have a strong influence on what songs are included in popular, curated playlists so their artists get more exposure, and ultimately a larger share of streaming royalties. This makes it difficult for independent artists to depend on music stream royalties and payouts from streaming services.

The bigger issue is that these services don’t pay out enough per stream with the payout system they use.

Generally speaking, platforms like Spotify and Apple Music calculate payouts based on total revenue they get from monthly subscriptions divided by the total number of all streams. Depending on how many streams your songs generated, or stream shares, as Spotify calls it, you get a percentage of that total revenue after the platform takes their cut.

So let’s say Spotify brings in $1,000,000 of revenue and takes 30%. This leaves $700,000 to split for all artists on the platform. If you generated 1% of all the songs streamed, you will get roughly $7,000.

Even though one of your fans may exclusively listen to your music on Spotify, their $10 monthly payment is still split among everyone else, with big-name artists getting a larger share of the pie. Definitely not fair. This means that monetizing your music on streaming is a non-factor as a good majority of independent artists will not get anything substantial to live off of as an income source.

Of course, each streaming platform pays differently and it will fluctuate. Every 1,000 streams on Spotify could pay you roughly about $4.37. For Apple Music, it’s $7.35 for every 1,000. With over a billion users, Youtube is counted as a streaming platform for music as well. The downside is for every 1,000 streams on Youtube, you would only net $0.69.

Most artists I know would be lucky to get 10,000 streams, let alone 1,000,000.

I should note that none of these music business models have music royalties as the main focus. It serves as a nice source of passive income that can grow over time with a deeper back catalog, especially if you’re a songwriter who owns rights to all your music and sound recordings.

If a music streaming model is shown to not be financially lucrative for independents, why would anyone continue to play along? By forgoing the short term income for improved music discovery, you can set yourself for potential long-term success. Music streaming is about maximizing discoverability and raising brand awareness to grow an audience. The focus isn’t on generating income initially, so it’s important to incorporate a sales-driven component as you build your brand equity.

Russ is a good example of this model, releasing all his music for free through SoundCloud. In theory, you are sacrificing short-term profits by making your music easily accessible everywhere online for a potential increased long-term success. The songs are used to build a fanbase while offering small invitations to your brand.

In other words, you’re not making money directly from the music because it’s being offered for free. You’re removing any barriers to music discovery to make it easier to grow your audience. The music serves as a tool to attract potential monetization opportunities in the future.

In most cases, you may still sell physical music because fans will want to support you in other ways. However, artists adopting this model make money with a day job, side hustles, doing live shows or selling merchandise, rather than making money directly from music sales or royalties.

It’s about using your music and content, whether it’s on Spotify or Instagram, as a vehicle for fans to consume your brand. Your songs are not the product. The goal isn’t to get people to make money off the music, it’s to make money off your brand. Your songs bridge that gap so fans get to know you on a deeper level, which is why understanding branding is so important.

However, not everyone wants to work a day job or is willing to play the long game, which leads to the next model.

Sales-Driven / Direct-to-Fan Model

 
As the name entails in this model, you let music sales directly drive your relationship with fans.

In a sales-driven model, you are maximizing your earning potential by limiting or restricting access to your music. After all, the logic behind it is that there’s less incentive to pay for music or support an artist if you can access it for free through streaming.

The reason why many artists and record labels have been heavily impacted by this shift towards music downloads, and now streaming, over the years is that selling physical music has a higher profit margin. In addition, music sales were driven by scarcity since tapes, CDs and vinyl records were the only way to listen and discover music outside of the radio.

It wasn’t too long ago you could make at least $9 on each CD sold by charging $10 to $15 dollars for a CD that costs about $1 to press. If you compare, selling one $10 CD makes more money than getting one song streamed 1,000 times on Spotify or even Apple Music. It will also cost artists much more than $1 to generate over 1,000 streams to see the same type of return a CD would bring.

Of course, even with this model, it’s not all profit because you’ll most likely have expenses from making the music itself and marketing it to your fans/new customers.

In a sales-driven approach, you are leveraging Facebook Ads, landing pages (or squeeze pages) and email marketing to attract and nurture a loyal following to monetize directly. You can sell your music to fans with platforms like Squarespace, Shopify and Bandcamp to keep most of that money as profit.

The fact is there are true fans who will support you financially out there, so this approach is really about seeking out those people through various marketing strategies.

There’s less need to perform live so it’s great for people who have issues with travel restrictions. But remember, live performances are currently the most important income source for full-time musicians, barring any global pandemic like COVID-19, of course.

The obvious downside with this approach is you’re putting financial barriers on content that people in society are accustomed to getting for free. Also, this windowed approach to music releases is that it can hinder your potential to reach a larger audience because it’s more limited.

Membership / Subscription Model

 
In the membership model, fans pay you a monthly amount or pledge to become members of your community to receive various benefits. The highlight of this model is in the recurring, predictable income directly from your supporters that allows you to build a sustainable career.

The average amount fans or subscribers pay (patrons as they’re called on Patreon) is $6.70. Getting 1,000 people to pay you $5 a month should allow most artists to live comfortably from this income alone.

Just like in a sales-driven model, there may be some level of restricting accessibility to content like you would see in a subscription model. In that case, you may want to create content exclusively for Patreon like what Eligh does for his channel. The difference is you’re actually getting paid a set amount directly each month for your work.

In some cases, you will have to figure out what kind of extra value you can provide in Patreon that people can’t get anywhere else.

When it comes to direct-to-fan monetization, I feel a membership/subscription is the best case. The problem is it’s not easy to do as I will address in the next section.

Livestreaming / Subscription Model

 
When it comes to monetization, a livestreaming model often incorporates income sources found in all the other models. However, there are some revenue sources that are exclusive to the livestreaming platform.

There are three income sources Twitch offers their creators – ad revenue, subscriptions and bits (virtual currency).

Twitch allows anyone to tune in and watch any channel for free so there’s no paywall or barriers to access live content. But a 30-second ad will often display before you can see the steam. As a creator, you can get a piece of that ad revenue as an affiliate or partner. You can also press a button to show an ad to all your viewers, which you can get paid for as well.

Viewers of your livestream channel can pay a subscription fee each month to receive a set of benefits or perks. There are 3 subscription tiers at $4.99, $9.99 and $24.99. Twitch gets 50% of this money and you get the rest. If you’re a top-tier creator, you get 70% of this revenue.

Bits is a form of virtual currency that fans can use to tip livestreamers during their broadcast. The cost of bits will vary depending on how much you buy. There is a discount when you buy a larger amount. At the base level, it costs $1.40 to buy 100 bits. Streamers make about 1 cent per bit.

On top of this, livestreaming can help with driving demand for music streaming, touring, merch and sponsorships.

It’s important to note that you have to meet certain requirements before you are eligible to earn livestream monetization. This does mean you have to become more invested and established on one platform to see the full benefits.

As mentioned earlier, other platforms like YouTube and Facebook are competing with Twitch in this space so you’ll see the same monetization opportunities but possibly different pay splits.

Discoverability / Growing a Fan Base

 
To have a successful music career, you will need devoted fans and paying customers. It’s important to understand how growing a fan base is approached in each model. There are various ways to get discovered and each of these models focuses on slightly different aspects.

Membership / Subscription Model

 
As amazing as it sounds, platforms like Patreon have a major drawback.

A membership model heavily depends on you having an established audience or fan base somewhere else in order to be successful. You would need to attract your fans from other platforms like Instagram or Facebook to financially support you on a regular basis.

However, this is not for everyone. Even with a large following, there’s no guarantee that you’ll be successful as it requires a different way of operating.

From my research, I discovered that if you execute a membership model properly, about 1% of your social media following will likely become paying members. This is a best-case scenario so a majority will see less than 1% convert.

The key distinction is that discoverability on Patreon is non-existent. It’s entirely up to you to convert your following from other platforms into patrons. To achieve this, you have to get fans emotionally invested in you as an artist and brand first, before they are willing to consider committing to a membership.

In other words, a membership model is not suitable for new or emerging artists looking for a quick payoff. It’s not going to happen. A business model that offers a recurring monthly income is very lucrative, but it will require a long time investment to build up to that point.

A surprising statistic I learned in my research is that around 70% of musicians on Patreon have less than 10 paying members. This means that a lot of artists are launching campaigns without building a sizable following first.

One big challenge is that the concept of being a member of an artist’s community and paying a subscription to a music artist is still foreign. Because of this, it can be difficult to convert people over to a membership model no matter how well known you are.

I’ve seen a number of independent artists with a large following try Patreon, only to fail and completely abandon it months later. I was involved once with such an artist.

On the other hand, I have also seen a membership model executed successfully. I helped Eligh launch and manage his Patreon page for over 2 years now, which has been quite successful so far with over 600 patrons. He is ranked in the top 100 in the music category, but I can tell you it’s not easy to get there.

Social media ads could be used to grow subscribers. For Eligh, we use Facebook and Instagram ads every month to promote new exclusive content to bring his fans on other social media channels into his Patreon funnel.

There’s one tactic that was used for him to grow over 600 patrons. You can learn what it is and much more in my Patreon for Musicians eBook.

Livestreaming / Subscription Model

 
When talking about a livestreaming model on Twitch, it will help to have some following on other platforms. Creating an account and going live isn’t going to do much for you just like starting a Patreon isn’t going to mean you’ll get members flocking to you.

The good news is, unlike Patreon, Twitch does have discoverability features built-in. These are algorithms that will recommend viewers some channels that they feel are similar to what they already watch.

Twitch users can also browse categories. As of this writing, all music is lumped into one category so it’s not organized by genre or anything. Because their music and performings arts category is still growing, there’s plenty of opportunities to build here while it’s still not heavily saturated.

Because livestreaming is very community-driven, networking and building relationships with other musicians and creators on the platform can help.

At the moment, a livestreaming model is best used as a side project while you use other tools and platforms to build your following. Just like with Patreon, it’s not the best idea to start livestreaming on Twitch if you’re starting your career from scratch.

Sales-Driven / Direct-to-Fan Model

 
In a sales-driven model, you will be heavily dependent on using Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads and email marketing to grow a fan base. Part of this model is to enable you to make money from your music/products without having to tour and do live performances, which I like to think of as important avenues for exposure and quality face to face engagement.

In general, the way it works is you use Facebook Ads targeted towards certain types of people who are likely to enjoy your music based on certain demographics, locations and interests. The most effective media to do this is with a video and leveraging video views custom audiences for retargeting.

The goal is to get people to click on your ad so they are taken to a squeeze page where you entice them to give you their email address in exchange for content such as a free download of your music. Once you have their email, you would take them through a series of automated emails that can help to nurture your relationship with them, which eventually leads them to buy music or merch directly from you.

This model depends more on technical online skills, understanding branding and writing effective ad copy as well. Not to mention, you need consistent money for an ad budget.

Streaming / Accessibility Model

 
When it comes to discoverability in a streaming model, you’re often focusing on social media sharing (word of mouth), YouTube and playlists on streaming platforms. For example with Spotify, you want to take advantage of their playlist system and the opportunities available for discovery.

There are also automated playlists like Spotify’s Release Radar that show your new music in the playlists of those who follow you. One type of playlist that can help push your music to new potential fans is Discover Weekly, which is algorithm-based.

You can also submit a song to Spotify to be considered for one of their editorial playlists.

In my opinion, the biggest mistake that musicians make with a music streaming model is limiting themselves to only organic social media posting and playlisting.

Like with a sales-driven model, you want to utilize social media ads, email marketing and understand online marketing to get more exposure, but you would also want to do live performances as much as possible. It’s not scalable and can be slower trying to get fans one by one, but I just feel there’s nothing more authentic than recruiting fans through real life.
 

Which model is the best for me?

 
There are a number of things you will need to evaluate so you can decide which model is best for you and your goals. What works for one artist, may not work for you.

Here are some factors to consider:

What are your career goals? If you’re mainly looking to sustain financially as soon as possible without having to “blow up” or “make it big”, then a sales-driven model makes more sense. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a larger audience potential and influence, then a music streaming model should be your focus.

Where are you in your career? If you’re a relatively new artist, a membership model may not be where you want to start. This is not to say it’s impossible, but I see it more like a next step once you’ve built an audience and become more established.

Are you a solo artist or in a band? Being in a band makes it a bit challenging because you have more mouths to feed. A streaming model where you can eventually incorporate a lot of paid gigs would be ideal. Solo artists often find more success through livestreaming so that’s something to consider.

What skills or talents do you have? Are you good at improvisation and talking to people? Can you do looping and make beats on the spot or do freestyle raps? Are you able to perform a lot of cover songs? If yes, then a livestreaming model may work for you. Or maybe you’re an instrumentalist or beat maker who doesn’t want to put yourself in the spotlight, a music streaming and sales-driven model is for you.

What type of music do you create? Certain genres can reveal fan listening habits. If it’s Hip Hop, R&B, Latin Pop or Metal, then it may make more sense to focus on a music streaming model.

What’s the demographic of your audience? Your audience or target market may be a generation from the “old school” who still prefer physical music over downloads. If that’s the case, a music streaming, membership or livestreaming model may not be ideal.

How soon do you want to make money from music? I think it’s safe to say most musicians want to make money from their music as soon as possible. Theoretically, an accessibility/streaming model would take longer for you to make a living while a sales-driven could help you get there faster. The downside is that a sales-driven model requires more specific training in online marketing and ad budget to make the most of this approach.

Do you like to perform live and interact with fans? A big source of income for an independent artist is live performance. If it’s something you’re good at, then a music streaming can eventually work out for you. However, if you can’t perform live (disability, family, living situation, etc), then a sales-driven model or livestreaming model may be for you.

Are you comfortable being transparent and accessible? From a fan’s perspective, one of the major attractions of a livestream or membership site is being able to get to know an artist and interact with them. Whether sharing your music-making process or revealing details of your personal life, fans like to connect and engage with their favorite artists this way. If this is what you’re comfortable with, a livestreaming and membership model is ideal.

These are some things you’ll want to think about in deciding on a business model. There is no right or wrong model, but each has its strengths and weaknesses and are suited for different types of artists. You can technically incorporate elements of 4 models at once, or some hybrid combination of a couple.
 

Conclusion

 
I know the music streaming model gets the most attention, but hopefully, this blog helps to show that there are alternatives and the different variations that can come about.

I’m not fond of a sales-driven model in its purest form. This was what initially triggered me to write about music business models in the first place. I understand there are some artists who feel music streaming isn’t right for them and there should be other options. But romanticizing music as the product and focusing on direct music sales is holding on to a reality that is slowly fading.

There’s no doubt that there’s always going to be people willing to support the musicians they like by buying their music, but the trend is showing that it’s an uphill battle.

I’ve met a couple of people who have used a sales-driven approach they learned from the Music Marketing Manifesto with some success. The big problem is that even music downloads are slowly becoming irrelevant, so it’s hard to monetize music, let alone capture someone’s email address.

However, the online marketing skills learned from a sales-driven approach is still very valuable and applicable to other models. In reality, most musicians are going to operate with some combination of elements from the different models. After all, you need to incorporate as many income streams as you possibly can to be financially successful in music as an independent.

Personally, what I use and advocate with the artists I work with is a hybrid between a music streaming and sales-driven model. My big focus is on sustainability for artists and I feel it would be best to eventually transition into something a membership/subscription model. However, Patreon is something you need to be ready for, which is why I feel there are 6 key factors you should evaluate beore jumping in. The two platforms I’m really high on to help facilitate that are Patreon and Twitch, which is why I wrote eBooks on them.

Hopefully, this blog helped you figure out what’s the best route for you. At the end of the day, your number priority is producing quality content and building an audience first. The money will follow once you can show you can develop a strong brand and fanbase.

The post Choosing the Independent Music Business Model That Works For You appeared first on D4 Music Marketing.

During this trip, I had the chance to consult and create content with Marcus Miller alongside his wife and manager, Brenda Miller. One of the things we created was a video of Marcus eating ramen at Ippudo, a popular ramen chain from Japan known for their Tonkotsu ramen. We were in Fukuoka, where Ippudo was founded in 1985, and ate at the very first location.

Here’s the video I made that got 190k+ views:

Seems random for a musician to post, I know, but it actually performed quite well and exceeded our expectations.

This month’s blog is going to be a bit different from what I usually post since I didn’t have time to work on something while I was in Japan. I’m going to share my experiences working with Marcus Miller on things like that ramen video and touch on some key points on content creation.

My original plan was to do an in depth blog and e-book on content creation for music artist, but this could be a nice introduction for it.

I’m going to use Marcus Miller as a case study for creating content so it can help you think about how you approach your content.
 

Who is Marcus Miller?

 
I imagine many people reading this won’t know who Marcus Miller is. To be honest, I didn’t know who he was either, due to the fact that I don’t listen to jazz. I learned that he’s a legendary bass player who has worked with Miles Davis and other many other big names in music.

You might think that this blog doesn’t apply to you because you may not have 600k+ Facebook followers. Or simply because you’re not a legendary jazz musician. However, I still believe there’s something to learn from this, even if you don’t have the fan base, brand or reputation he has.

Because of the type of music he does and the generation he comes from, Marcus hasn’t really made the most out of social media. They’ve had a Facebook page since 2010, but only recently created an Instagram account in 2015. Even then, they weren’t really active on Instagram until May of 2018. In other words, they are still learning and exploring what works for them.
 

What is Content Marketing?

 
Content and content marketing have been big buzzwords within the online marketing world for many years now. For those not familiar with the concept, this is a good starting point. Otherwise, you can jump into the next section.

The goal of content is to either inform, engage, educate or entertain the consumer to develop a stronger relationship with the brand or company. Through this blog I publish on, I create content that aims to educate and inform artists and musicians like yourself.

The thing is, this idea of creating content to build a brand and fan base has been around for a very long time with traditional media (TV, radio, print). Articles in a newspaper or magazine is content that is meant to get your attention so companies can get ads in front of you. It’s no different than media companies (before Netflix) creating TV shows for you to watch in order for them to make money off advertising.

In this digital age, we have the ability to quantify it much easier and accurately with social media followers and subscribers. In fact, as an artist, you have the tools and ability to become that TV station, magazine or newspaper.

It’s important to understand that as a music artist or musician, you are a content creator. The songs and music videos you create are content. Typically, that is the extent of what musicians put out on social media, but it doesn’t have to be.

As an artist and brand, you should see yourself as a media company. Social media is your distribution channel for the content you create. What you decide to create should aim to reach new people, deepening relationships and defining your brand. Your music is always going to be a big part of it, but you don’t have to be limited by it. By thinking of yourself as media company, I believe it’ll allow you to build your brand and grow your audience more effectively.
 

Brainstorming Content

 
Prior to the shooting of the ramen video, we discussed and shot a few other pieces of content related to the Japan Tour. With Butterscotch as a special guest, we did an intro video where they did a little beatbox and bass jam.

The idea was to showcase Butterscotch to Marcus’s audience since the tour was promoting her as the special guest. I put some clips of them performing together during soundcheck and the live show which we ended up posting on their channels.

A fun idea I’ve thought about was Butterscotch teaching Marcus how to beatbox while Marcus teaches Butterscotch how to play the bass. I didn’t think Marcus would do it, but Brenda ended up suggesting it, and he was down for it. We recorded on my phone to make it feel more personal but we haven’t posted it yet. I think it’ll be a fun video to share so I’ll be updating the blog once they post it.

Screenshot of the video Marcus teaches Butterscotch to play the bass.

Screenshot of the video I made of them together.

Marcus Miller recording voice overs for a video I recorded.

How the Ramen Video Came About

 
Before I get into the ramen video, most of the content ideas were premeditated. A majority of it was just being able to come up with ideas in the moment and recognizing the different opportunities based on what’s going on.

The night before we flew into Fukuoka for their last show, I was told by a local in Nagoya that this is where popular ramen chains like Ippudo and Ichiran first started. As a big ramen fan myself, I was excited to try it at the original locations.

My first idea was to have Marcus and Butterscotch eat ramen at one of these places together and document the interaction. Unfortunately him and his wife got lost, so I ended up eating with Butterscotch and the band. It just so happened that they were playing jazz music.

When they eventually found us leaving, I stayed back to film Marcus trying out Ippudo for the first time on my phone. The fact that they were playing his favorite era of jazz music in the background, was a perfect tie in for the video.

Surprisingly, the video did really well and exceeded our expectations considering the video was 4 minutes long of him eating ramen and commenting about the music playing in the background. It’s quite slow with a few funny parts of him not knowing how to open the door and struggling with the noodles.

As of the publishing of this blog, the video has hit about 190k views on Facebook. It’s the third highest viewed video he’s put out.

The two videos with higher views are extremely good pieces of content, one related to his father, and the other was a video clip of him playing with Verdine White (Earth, Wind & Fire).
 

Compared to His Other Videos

 
Although he’s only put out about 27 videos on Facebook since joining in 2010, there’s no way this ramen video would have topped these two other videos. I share my thoughts on why and what makes it good content.

Preacher’s Kid (354k views)

The video is a song dedicated to Marcus Miller’s father, who recently passed away in 2018. Aside from the beautiful song in this 11 minute video, he starts off by sharing an amazing story about his father and the context for the song. It’s a touching and emotional video considering he posted this for Father’s Day.

When you share something like this with a lot of sentimental value, it tends to get good engagement. This should be obvious when you share content that triggers strong emotions.

Playing with Verdine White on stage (194k views)

For those who know who Verdine White is, this would be considered a somewhat epic video. I honestly didn’t know who he was either until last year when Butterscotch opened for Earth, Wind & Fire. Verdine White is the bassist for Earth, Wind & Fire and one of the original founding members.

In the video, Marcus Miller jams out with Verdine White during an Earth, Wind & Fire set in Japan a few years ago.

Live show footage tends to be overdone and get boring when posted, unless there’s something cool, novel or unique about the experience.

For this video, it was great to have two legendary, bass players jam out together so you can see why it got a lot of traction.

Not All About Views

 
When accessing if a piece of content is successful, we have to remember that it’s not all about views. For platforms like Facebook and Instagram, a view is counted when someone watches a video for 3 seconds or more. Watching something for 3 or even 10 seconds isn’t going to get you the impact you want from a piece of content. A metric like audience retention or minutes watched is a better measure.

What we should be evaluating is the engagement numbers, such as comments and shares in relation to the number of views. Likes aren’t as valuable because you can just click a button and without really having to watch it.

Essentially you just divide the engagement metric (likes, comments or shares) by the number of views and multiple by 100 to get the engagement rate. This just tells you the percentage of people who take an action from viewing the video.

Here’s a breakdown of how I would evaluate the performance for a video:

Ramen video (Published in January 2019)

Views: 157k
Likes: 5.6k
Comments: 203
Shares: 712

Engagement Rates
Likes 3.57%
Comments 0.13%
Shares 0.45%

Verdine White video (Published in September 2016)

Views: 194k
Likes: 6.2k
Comments: 184
Shares: 1,833

Engagement Rates
Likes 3.2%
Comments 0.09%
Shares 0.94%

Preacher’s Kid video (Published in June 2018)

Views: 354k
Likes: 7.4k
Comments: 826
Shares: 5,874

Engagement Rates
Likes 2.1%
Comments 0.23%
Shares 1.66%

Even though the ramen video had a higher rate of likes than the other 2 videos, it doesn’t compare to the other two important metrics of comments and shares. It got more views, but the ramen video didn’t really activate viewers the same way as his top performing video, the Preacher’s Kid.

I know this breakdown is on Facebook and I believe Instagram is the more important platform at the moment, especially for more of the younger artists out there who are reading this. Instagram doesn’t have a share metric, but hopefully this section demonstrates how you might evaluate a video’s performance.
 

Conclusion: What can you learn from all this?

 
1) Being an artist or musician today isn’t all about music.

One of the very common themes I write about in my blog is the idea of building a brand. A brand can have, and should have, different facets to it outside of just the music. Of course, as a newer, less established artist, this may not be an easy process.

I’ve written a lot of blogs on branding so I suggest checking them out.

Even though a video of someone eating ramen is a bit random, it was still entertaining and relevant to Marcus Miller’s audience because of the jazz music playing at the ramen shop. Most musicians reading this won’t necessarily recreate his success if they just went to some ramen spot and record themselves eating it, but I think the more important message is how the idea came about rather than the idea itself.

2) Good content doesn’t need to be “professional.”

The ramen video I shot and made was all done on my iPhone on a gimbal. I used an app called ProCam to capture the footage and pieced it together with the app called inShot. It’s really amazing what you can do with just a smartphone nowadays.

Don’t think you need expensive equipment or software to make good content. The trend I’ve noticed is that people seem to respond more to lower production value because it comes off as more authentic and personable.

3) Don’t worry about the length of the video.

The average attention span for humans in our digital age is about 5 to 8 seconds. Generally you want keep things as short and to the point as possible. People who are scrolling in their timelines or news feeds aren’t necessary there to watch long pieces of content.

However, don’t let this dictate the length of your video. If the content is good, it shouldn’t matter how long it is (within reason of course). Obviously on Instagram, you are limited to a one minute video unless you post multiple one minute clips or post to IGTV where there’s a 10 minute limit. For lengthier videos, it belongs on Facebook or YouTube. You actually will get better organic reach for videos 3 minutes or longer.

The ramen video was slightly over 4 minutes. It has its moments, but it does drag a little bit. In the midst of getting this video out quickly, I didn’t have a chance to really review the video otherwise I would have shortened it a bit. Don’t get me wrong, it did well, but just don’t fall into this idea that everything has to be short and quick.

4) Know your audience.

One of the things that we theorized was that Marcus Miller’s audience doesn’t really care about anything other than seeing him play the bass. Because his fan base tends to veer towards an older crowd and generation, we figured they may not care to see him eat ramen or show his personality outside of the music.

The better you know your audience, the better you can provide content they will like and resonate with. Best way to know your audience?…

5) Keep experimenting.

The big key takeaway from this blog should be to experiment. You still want to try to tie your content to either your music or brand.

We had no clue that this ramen video would perform the way it did. You just don’t know until you try. When experimenting, try spacing things out so people don’t get thrown off from what they are used to seeing.

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A post shared by D-4 (David) Nguyen (@deefur) on Jan 8, 2019 at 5:27pm PST

The post Content Creation: Musicians Can Learn from a Legendary Bassist Eating Ramen in Japan appeared first on D4 Music Marketing.

I had the opportunity to attend the 2018 Forbes Under 30 Summit in Boston where he performed and did a 20 minute talk to entrepreneurs on the factors that contributed to his success. I managed to record the entire thing so this was perfect to share.
 

Here’s the video of his talk on October 1, 2018:

1) 2:20 – (Save money for taxes, TuneCore)

2) 4:05 – (Leverage)

3) 4:43 – Can you walk us through your creative process?

4) 5:19 – As aritsts get bigger and bigger, they often stop often interacting with fans cause they don’t want their personal life everywhere. How do you feel about fan interaction?

5) 6:24 – Do you see a benefit in hiring a marketing or P.R. team to go through your social media?

6) 7:09 – What’s the one thing you wish you would have known before started your process?

7) 8:56 – How did you strengthen your emotional intelligence?

8) 9:24 – How much of life do you think is transparent on social media? Percentage?

9) 9:50 – So you’re talking about having people invest in you and knowing your song. You’re clearly a celebrity, how can a founder of company, who’s not a celebrity, get people to invest in them?

10) 11:35 – When it comes to your music videos, how much creative ideas are other people bringing to the table versus you? So are you coming up with all of this, do you have a team or is the label coming up with them?

11) 12:34 – It seems like a lot of your brand is about the hustle and putting in what makes you “you” and showing that to the world. Is there an artist or a level of your DIY that you aspire to? In the sense of how much of yourself is involved in that process. When do you step back and let your celebrity live as it is?

12) 13:31 – What’s your favorite skill you possess?

13) 14:29 – As an artist, how do you balance collaboration in buliding up your own platform?

14) 15:23 – (Skill is developed, confidence)

15) 16:52 – How do you find the balance of chasing your dream and having a regular life (going school)?

16) 18:10 – Greatest full circle moment?

I was able to attend because Butterscotch, an artist I work with, performed before Russ for the opening night of the summit. It was actually my first time seeing Russ live so that was really cool.

Butterscotch opening for Forbes 30 Under 30 Summit

Russ with Butterscotch after his set for Forbes.

For those not familiar with Russ

 
From a marketing perspective, Russ is an Atlanta based rapper known for building his fan base from the ground up by basically releasing a song every week for 2 years. From December 2011 to August 2014, Russ released 11 albums and 87 singles consecutively all for free on Soundcloud. Additionally, Russ produced, mixed, mastered, engineered, written, and perform the songs all by himself.

In 2015, his break out song “What they Want” was released on Soundcloud, which eventually went double platinum. This lead to a partnership (record deal) with Columbia Records in 2016.

His album “There’s Really a Wolf” became the first ever in hip hop to be certified platinum with one artist handling all the production alone, and all the vocals with no features.

The moral of the story is it took him at least 10 years of making music and putting out 70+ songs before one took off. Not only does it take persistence, but you need to have patience.

Key takeaways from his talk

 
Although I encourage you to watch the entire 20 minute talk, here are key points you should take with you:

• Hard work beats talent. No matter how talented you are, you still need to put in the work. If you’re not that good, it’s possible to get better over time. Russ sucked when he started in 2006, but he had to work hard to get better at everything.
• Put aside money for taxes and stop spending money on stupid shit. Treat your music career like an actual business. This means reporting your income and invest your money back into the business. It’s already difficult to make a sustainable living as an independent artist, so be very mindful of what you spend your money on.
• Consistency. Although Russ doesn’t address it directly, it’s clear from what he’s done that you need to be consistent with the content you produce.
• You have to believe in you first, before others can. A lot of people give up even before they start. It doesn’t mean be arrogant or cocky. It doesn’t mean ignore criticism or constructive feedback. You just need to be able to be persistent and adaptable so failures don’t slow you down. Find ways to build your confidence like developing your skill set.
• Having patience isn’t about waiting. It’s about being able to accept that the road to success is a very long journey of hard work, failures and passion.
• Build leverage. If you want things your way and not have to keep depending on others, you need leverage. In other words, you need to have or create things that others see value in and can benefit for themselves. This is often in the form of building a good social media following or fan base and quality songs.
• Find what works for you. Don’t assume everything that worked for someone else will work for you. Be willing to experiment and try different things that make sense for your circumstances.
• Be careful with who you surround yourself with. Having driven and ambitious people around you is so important for success. You want people on the same page as you to bounce ideas off of and stay motivated. Having the opposite can hinder your career.
• You need to struggle. It’s safe to say that most artist are going to face challenges and obstacles in music. You need to have the mindset that it’s part of the growth process. It’s okay to make mistakes, but learn from them and don’t dwell.
• Find a balance on social media. Fan interaction and engagement is important to build stronger relationships with your supporters, but you have to deal with negativity as well. Don’t let negativity win. Know when to take mental breaks.
• Get people to invest in you. Having good songs people like is obviously important, but you want to get people to invest in you as an individual, artist and brand.
• Don’t let fear paralyze you. Putting yourself out there as an artist can be scary, but you gotta face your fears. Don’t be afraid to do things that are uncomfortable because you know it will make you better. Fear is an opportunity for growth.

Quoteables

“Patience to me is putting out a song, putting out beats, putting out albums, none of it working, and just not losing enthusiasm. I think bouncing from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm is like patience in a nutshell.” – Russ

“Embrace the struggle. It’s fire, embrace it.” – Russ

“If I feel scared of something, I’m going right towards it head first because on the other side of this fear is growth.” – Russ

The post Forbes Under 30: Russ on Dominating with DIY Marketing (Video) appeared first on D4 Music Marketing.

As the saying goes, “your network is your net worth.” Your value and potential for growth are largely tied to the people you choose to surround yourself with. As emerging artists, it’s important you put yourself out there and start building these relationships.

Starting with a community-oriented mindset can potentially lead you to key allies for your music career and a support network to keep you going.

In this blog post, you’ll learn the importance of a community-oriented mindset in a music career, what exactly does it entail and how to find a community you fit in.
 

How can communities help me to build a successful music career?

 
I’ve had the chance to see first-hand through some of the artists I work with the value of being community-oriented. Although I’m not an artist myself, I know that being an independent is hard work, especially if you’re trying to tackle it alone.

A music duo I worked with recently moved out to LA, leaving a community they’ve already established themselves in, to push their music forward. However, for the first few months, they weren’t getting booked for any shows or building a stronger supporter base, mainly because they weren’t making as much of an effort to network with the communities there.

One of them decided to start attending some local open mics to get better at her songwriting and performance skills. She regularly played sets and observed other musicians. By watching several individuals repeatedly perform at different open mics – and as there is a community niche surrounding the open mic world – she was able to create conversation just by telling these performers that she had seen them before and complimented them on their work.

Those initial conversations led the duo to eventually become a part of the support team for one specific open mic called “Sunday Jump”. Fostering relationships within this community eventually led her group to start getting booked as features in other events and open mics. They were able to go from having zero gigs to having a handful of gigs a month. All it took was the initial effort to collaborate with a community for them to move her music career forward.

For another established artist further down her career, I have seen first-hand how community and networking opened so many doors for her. It ranged from corporate gigs with Google and Facebook to performing for TED and those incarcerated at San Quentin Prison.

It should go without saying that a community and networking relationships aren’t enough to take you far on its own. You still need to build your brand, put out good content and be musically skilled. But having a community in mind early on can serve as a supportive environment to help develop you as an artist.
 

What is a community-oriented mindset?

 
Adopting a community-oriented mindset is one of the best ways to get your career on the right path. To better understand what a community-oriented mindset is, we should define what a community is first.

A community, by definition, is a feeling of fellowship with others as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals. A community helps to nurture our sense of belonging.

When you are able to expand the number of people you surround yourself with, you also expand potential work opportunities, access to resources (physical and educational) and network connections to spaces outside of your own personal bubble.

What does having a community-oriented mindset mean then? It simply means you actively seek like-minded, goal-driven people to build a network of mutually beneficial relationships. You understand the importance of collaborating with others, especially in specific groups/communities that you feel you belong to.

Another way of describing this mindset is what we commonly know as “networking.” I feel networking can have a negative connotation, which is why I prefer to reframe it around the concept of community. At the end of the day, it’s about building a network of authentic relationships with people who have the potential to affect your life/career positively and vice versa.

It’s no secret that music is a tough industry to thrive in. Having a community and professional network can serve as your own personal street team that would promote your new projects and advocate for you when opportunities arise. They can also serve as an emotional support system to push you through rough times.

Now I’ll go over 3 components of a community-oriented mindset.

Please Note: Although I talk about community in a more literal, broader sense in this blog, a community-oriented mindset applies to how we approach individual relationships as well and not just for groups.
 

1. What do you have to offer?

 
You need to start with a self-assessment. With where you’re at in your life and career, what do you have to offer that would provide value to a community?

For an established artist, they have brand recognition, a sizable following and a catalog of good music. If these are things you don’t have, you’re going to have to figure out how to build up your value and reputation.

Building value often starts with serving others first. In other words, you should prioritize the community, rather than serve your own personal interests. When talking about potential collaborators, this means being an actual fan and supporter before thinking about what you’re trying to gain.

There are several ways to provide value to a community. For example, your value to a community can be your time, like volunteering. Once you’ve built up good relationships, then maybe find ways to offer your musical talents. There may be a local organization doing a fundraiser that needs musicians so you start off by performing for free.

You could even integrate yourself into a community that you are already a part of by providing musical support. You often hear a lot of famous musicians getting started singing or playing music in churches growing up. If you are part of this type of community, maybe try joining the choir or band if your church has them.

Perhaps adding value to a community may be more abstract than directly integrating yourself within a musical environment. Sometimes the message in the music you create can provide value to a community as it helps to further their agenda. If you’re a musician who writes about social justice, then social justice communities and organizations are going to find a mutual interest in what you do.

If you try to add value to the communities that you would like to participate in, then you will create a mutually beneficial relationship with your networks.
 

2. Give to the community first (it’s not all about you)

 
You found a community or network you’d like to be a part of. Next, it’s very important to understand that being community-oriented means you’re not just there to serve yourself and promote your music. Having this mindset isn’t a business tactic or shortcut. Think of it as a long term career investment.

It’s a common mistake musicians have where they are just thinking about themselves. If you come in pushing your music and trying to get followers, it can come off as disingenuous. You need to be a supporter and contributor first to build trust and respect within a community.

You also have to keep your expectations in check. Your action and contributions should be in the interest of building authentic relationships to help both sides grow and benefit.

Look to collaborate with your community members and fellow artists. This will not only help you build relationships with other like-minded people, but it will help to establish yourself within your chosen community. I will talk more about collaboration next.
 

3. Focus on collaboration rather than competition

 
The fact is we live in a highly competitive world. For artists and musicians, you’re fighting for attention against so many other people, not just in the world of music.

However, you may come across other artists in your community or city who have similarities to you – the same audience or target market. It can be intimidating if they’re more established or further in their career than you.

There’s no denying that healthy competition amongst peers can have its benefits to push and motivate you. But these other artists should not be viewed as your competition. Instead, look at them as possible allies to collaborate and connect with.

They may not think the same way and choose to think of you as competition. Don’t feed into it! The idea of a community-oriented mindset is about finding common ground with your “competitors” as a way of serving the same community or common goal.

If you are able to switch the competitive mindset into a collaborative mindset, you also have the potential to make a creative outcome exponentially more powerful than being on your own. There is also potential to expand access to those things mentioned before, like resources, cross-promotion, knowledge and more.

Now, I say “potentially” because the other person has to also be open to collaborating as well. Just like with a community, it comes down to what you can offer that can be of value for both sides. This often starts with you being a genuine fan first. Being transparent that you are both there to help one another expand is the healthiest way to ensure a collaboration that benefits both sides.

At the end of the day, collaboration is what brings a community together and allows it to flourish. Bringing that energy with you in this setting ensures that everyone wins.
 

Tips for Finding Your Community

 
Now that you have the right mindset, it’s time to find communities that you can belong in. You can find a community based around anything! There are many communities that are dedicated to singer-songwriters, specific genres, lifestyle choices, goals to understand the music industry, LGBT+ supportive spaces, social movements, and eco-friendly practices. It would help too if this community is tied to your target audience or niche.

Think about what community you want to be a part of based on your geography, what you stand for as a brand, your goals, and what makes sense for the type of music you do.

Keep in mind that a community can be online or offline (real life). It could be an online forum, a local music organization in your city or an artist collective.

To be clear, an audience or fan base is NOT a community. It can be if organized and activated a certain way, but in general, your community is often made up of goal-driven people like yourself or other artistic peers.
 

Online

 
Use Instagram Hashtags: Find people to engage with by exploring hashtags that are relevant to the community you are looking for. Use these tags in your posts too.

Twitter Advanced Search: You can search tweets and find people talking about certain topics or interests within a certain geographical location. This could be a good way to find relevant communities and people to connect with.

Follow artists you like (Established and Locals): You should already be doing this, but local artists you like may already be connected to certain communities you may want to be a part of.

Online forums and communities: A simple Google search with the type of community you are looking for.

Reddit: Reddit is a big online community with tons of sub-communities (subreddits) of almost anything you can imagine.

Facebook Groups: Facebook Groups is another way to find relevant online communities. The more often you interact within these spaces, the more the people within it will start to recognize your name. It can be a good step to perhaps eventually meeting them in person, or them connecting you to bigger opportunities surrounding your common community interests.
 

Offline

 
Local Music / Art Collectives: This is a perfect space to connect with people who are already in the creative mindset. The love of music and art is a great primer for conversation. Do a quick Google search of your city to find nearby collectives to start building with.

Make friends with other local artists: Networking also means hanging out with other people like normal human beings. Go and get coffee together. Work on music. Go hiking together. When you can make a connection feel fun, easy, and stress-free, there is a higher chance that the relationship will get stronger. Then your access to more opportunities comes with that stronger relationship.

Open Mics: Performance is a huge element of music. People at open mics are often all beginners at connecting and sharing their art in front of people. This is a perfect space to practice your ability to connect, communicate and collaborate. Doing something as small as attending an open mic and making an effort to complement participants is a great initial step. There, you can learn how to interact and connect on similar interests and values through conversation. The more genuine the comments, the more genuine the connection and potential for long-term supportive relationships.

Find Music Venues: Check online and in local magazines to find who gets booked at what venues. You can also take it a step beyond by talking to the organizers of venues, expressing your thoughts about the community space/event, as well as thanking them for fostering a space for the community to gather around it.

Causes / Nonprofits: Are you passionate about giving back? Communities that surround a philanthropic cause often are in need of entertainment, and creative initiatives bring more interest to their cause. If it’s something you resonate with, it’s a perfect opportunity to grow with their community.

Ask your friends: Don’t forget to tap into your own network of friends. There’s a chance that one of your friends may be involved in communities that you want to be a part of so ask for an introduction. If you aren’t able to find a community that already exists around your specific interest, you can definitely create a community around it.
 

Conclusion

 
Developing your career with a community and network can help push your music career much further along than doing it by yourself. The benefits of being community-oriented can lead to:

• More gigs and opportunities
• Collaborations with like-minded musicians
• Expansion of your professional network
• Potential team members to help your career directly
• Access to resources and knowledge you didn’t have before
• A support group when times get rough
• Serve a community or cause you care about
• A community of new friends/fans who advocate for you every step of the way

Like I said previously, the community approach has been beneficial to many musicians that I have worked with. Even as a music marketer, finding the right community is something I prioritize in my own career.

In 2018, when I volunteered for an annual hip hop education conference in the bay area, called Rock the School Bells, someone in my network of close friends introduced me to head organizers. I became a part of their leadership team, which would never have happened if I wasn’t part of a music community.

It may seem like an obvious approach for many of us, but I’m sure there are plenty of people out there who think they can do this alone without much help from others. It’s not impossible, but I think you’re at a big disadvantage with those who know how to leverage the power of the community.

In my opinion, building a network and growing with a community are two under-looked components for aspiring artists who want to make music a full-time career. Hopefully, this blog post has helped bring clarity to why a community-oriented mindset is needed.

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My first year on the leadership side of @rocktheschoolbells has been completed! Very honored to work along side these amazing people and see the impact all this hard work into these events has on the community. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I remember the first RTSB conference I stopped by at 2 years ago with @astralogik. I thought to myself that what they had going on here was something really special, using hip hop to educate and engage the youth and local community, and I hoped someday I would be a part of it. Now, looking forward to the next one! ✌️

A post shared by D-4 Nguyen | Music & Health (@deefur) on Mar 24, 2019 at 2:55pm PDT

The post What is a Community-Oriented Mindset and Tips to Find Your Community appeared first on D4 Music Marketing.

In the last 3 months, Hobo Johnson has:

• Reached 700k+ Facebook followers (up from a few thousand)
• Gained 256k+ Youtube Subscribers
• Sold out shows all over the U.S. and U.K.
• Reached #11 on Billboards Heatseeker’s Chart
• Had at least 4 of his songs at the same time on Spotify’s U.S. Viral 50 Playlist
• Booked his first big festivals – Bumbershoot in Seattle and Outside Lands in San Francisco

In the world of virality and mainstream artists, this is relatively impressive. But to the average independent artist, this is an astronomical feat for a 20 something-year-old adult from Sacramento.

How did he do it? It was all thanks to this video he released with this band The Lovemakers on March 7, 2018:

It wasn’t a hot recorded song or album that propelled him to internet stardom. It was a NPR Tiny Desk submission video recorded in what looks like someone’s backyard in Sacramento.

After watching the video, you may be inspired to create your own Tiny Desk submission, but don’t expect the same success.

The fact is Hobo Johnson is a one of a kind artist with his own unique energy.

This story hit home for me, because I currently do live in Sacramento where Hobo Johnson is from. I’ll be honest and admit I underestimated Hobo Johnson. I’ve known about him for a couple years before this happened, but it never occurred crossed my mind that he was capable of this kind of success.

In this blog, I will share what stood out to me about his story that I think other artists can learn from.

Note: The quotes you see are actual comments people have left related to Hobo Johnson. I find that reading and studying comments is very insightful.
 

1) Going viral is still NOT a viable strategy.

“Literally watching this man rise in just the past 2 weeks blows my God damn mind.”

As inspiring as his story is, trying to go viral as a way to become “successful” is not an effective strategy. It’s much harder than it seems.

However, this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t study the various factors or characteristics of a video that can increase the likelihood of something you create going viral. This is a good habit, because it shows you what makes great content that people want to share.

Take a look at 3 artists who have gone viral in the past few years (I tried my best to not include hip hop artists).

2015: Post Malone with White Iverson:

2016: Rich Brian (Rich Chigga) with Dat Stick:

2017: Clairo with Pretty Girl:

If you’re not familiar with these videos, I would watch them and pay close attention to what elements or characteristics these artists have and what stands out in their songs and videos. I will touch on some of these things in this blog. After watching, you should notice reoccurring elements in Hobo Johnson’s song and in each of these 3 example videos.

The fact still remains that you shouldn’t sit around and bank on trying to manufacture a video or song so it will go viral. But, if this is still a channel you want to pursue, there are key elements that can increases your opportunity. If you’re interested in learning the science of going viral, check out my other blog.

One last point. Hobo Johnson even said himself that he was caught off guard that this was the video out of all things that caught on.

More often than not, it would appear that artists achieve viral success when it’s unexpected. I have yet to come across an artist who has gone viral because they intentionally were trying to or knew they were absolutely on the right path to becoming a viral success. Authenticity is so important nowadays that we can detect bullshit and people who are trying too hard.

You don’t need to go viral to be a success, but sometimes it just takes that one song or video to trigger a chain reaction for everything that you’ve worked for to come into fruition.
 

2) You can do something different and still become successful being yourself.

“He is definitely talented and different.”

I’m sure we’re all familiar with this message, but I think it’s important to reinforce in today’s society. It’s easy to get caught up in trends and conform to what is popular, especially in music.

For several years now (thanks to the internet), we’ve been seeing a shift with all types of different people becoming popular who don’t necessarily fit into the typical mold, more so then in the past it seems. There’s a market for all types of people who are: awkward, not physically fit, weird, quirky, dorky, gay, goofy looking, scrawny, shy, unattractive, have different body types or strange styles, dress funny or don’t conform to gender roles.

Because we have the ability to become our own media company (a Gary Vee reference) via social media, there’s more room for diversity and opportunity for different niches in music.

Hobo has created his own distinct sound and style that resonates with others like him. There isn’t anyone that I know that comes close to his voice.

This shift is a sign. People like different. In other words, there’s more opportunity to be accepted for who you are because it’s easier to find and connect with people who are like you through the internet.

This doesn’t mean intentionally trying to be different or over the top just to gain attention. It needs to be authentic, which ties into the next point.
 

3) People really appreciate vulnerability and authenticity.

“I’ve struggled with depression and anxiety my whole life and I think that’s why I enjoy his art. Not too often you see people these days being vulnerable on purpose.”

I think artists and musicians put themselves in vulnerable positions in varying degrees through their lyrics and performances. Music has always been an emotional and personal outlet, but I think we’re seeing a higher level of it now.

Even Kanye West has openly talked about his addiction to opioids, insecurities of being overweight and bipolar diagnosis.

When you really open yourself up, I feel it makes it easier for others to emotionally connect with you and relate to your music. It puts you on the same level as your fans. In a culture of superficiality and status, vulnerability brings out a layer of authenticity that people can trust and resonate with.

Some topics are so sensitive that we are taught not to talk about them, like insecurities, addictions and mental illness. In western culture, discussion of these topics can be seen as a sign of weakness that brings about shame and embarrassment.

There is social pressure to present an image of ourselves in a positive light on social media all the time, because we think that’s what others want to see. I see this quite frequently in artist bios.

Of course we want to highlight our achievements and accolades, but I believe sharing the struggles and challenges we experience are just as important because it makes for a good story. To me, music is about connection and oftentimes as Hobo says, “not feeling so alone.”

Eligh of the Living Legends, an artist whom I work with, is someone who openly talks about his addiction to heroin and is now 12 years sober from all substances. His brand has grown organically around sobriety, and many of his hardcore fans really relate to him, especially ones who deal with addiction themselves. Many of them will reach out to ask for advice and guidance. Because he allows himself to be open and vulnerable, he’s developed a deeper relationship with his fans.

Although Hobo Johnson’s persona can come off as slightly exaggerated, it’s clear that he’s coming from a place of real life struggles when he touches on topics of loneliness, anxiety, low self-esteem, depression and the hardships of growing up in a broken family. How he expresses his emotions clearly resonates with his fans:

“He sounds like he’s on the verge of a mental breakdown… hella relatable.”

“Dude, lyrically your analogies are the shit. They’re honest, creative and still very relatable. You have a lot of endearing qualities that really make you seem very much like the rest of us, shy, awkward, maybe a little ADD. Heard Peach Scone the other day and became an instant fan.”

“It is refreshing to finally hear someone that brings up inner emotions and someone who is so real and in your face and no bullshit. I’m happy there are still people like that left. I like the idea of putting your life in a song and just blast it all out in the open.”

“I have to say, the main reason I am a fan of you, Hobo Johnson, is that you’re real. Your emotions and lyrics are raw and extremely relatable. You’re very very unique. Seems like you have been through a lot of shit in your young life, and I have as well. That’s why I can relate so well.”

Hobo has a unique energy that even if you don’t necessarily relate, you can respect the art and what he brings. Although I knew of him before he blew up, I was never a fan, but I did appreciate his emotionality and vulnerability.
 

4) Nothing gets people talking more than controversy.

“I honestly don’t know if this is rubbish or pure gold. This is like the 100th time I’ve heard it as well.”

We know that beef and controversy in music helps get people’s attention and sell records (back when people use to buy them). In our social media driven world, anything polarizing that gets people debating and arguing is great for exposure and social transmission.

Not that Hobo Johnson is a “controversial” artist, but he has definitely stirred up a lot of discussion and even confusion about the type of music he does.

Common questions and issues that often come up when talking about Hobo Johnson:

• Is this really hip hop or rap?
• Is he a rapper or slam poet?
• Is the song good or trash?
• Is he creative or creepy?
• In Peach Scone, is the crush on his friend scary or unhealthy?
• Is he misogynistic?
• Is he actually talented?
• Is he exaggerating too much?

I think part of this “controversy” has to do with this concept of music genres being challenged from crossover artists and blending of musical styles. Apparently people have a problem when artists don’t have clear genre lines to define and categorize them.

Hobo Johnson has described his style as “low-fi hip hop with folk-punk influence.” A similar thing happened with Post Malone when he first came on the scene and people tried to describe his music. Although he calls his music “genre-less,” others have called it a fusion of hip hop, country, grunge, R&B and electric folk.

As a result of his popularity and apparently ambiguous nature, Hobo Johnson has received a lot of negative attention.

“I keep seeing his name on Facebook, but I have no idea who he is and why he’s getting so much negative attention. He keeps getting death threats, his apartment was broken into and his mom possibly being doxed…”

Here’s what his critics had to say:

“This is just awful. I cringe every time I hear his voice which is all the time because these videos keep getting passed around. Stick something sharp in my ears instead.”

“This shit is garbage. Fake deep. Creepy and cringy shit from some weirdo stumbling over his words and staring oddly into the camera.”

“The musicians don’t have much talent. Neither does he, and all he talks about is being in the friendzone. It’s fucking dumb.”

“Seems like nobody’s allowed to have a negative opinion or critique on this man’s music without an 80 comment reply of people calling that person a dick or an idiot for having an opinion. This kid has some lyrics I can dig, but his exaggerated emotions to give off his persona feels forced …. Like birthing a child forced.”

As you would expect, his fans will defend him and share their perspectives:

“I don’t understand how people believe the lyrics to Peach Scone are misogynistic. It seems like the opposite to me. What I got from the lyrics is that it’s about a man who loves a girl who is in a relationship with someone else. Even though it hurts him, he realizes that he wants her to be happy. The lyric towards the end… I just hope she doesn’t get hurt…is probably my favorite. It shows how much he cares for her.”

You often hear sayings like, ‘you know you’ve made it or become successful when you have haters’. I use to think it was silly, but from a marketing and branding perspective, it actually makes a lot more sense to me now. Hating, controversy and debating get people worked up. As a result, they comment and share more.

You also hear the saying, ‘any press is good press’. Polarizing views feed into social sharing and give you more exposure. This doesn’t mean you should create controversy on purpose to gain exposure, but be aware of its impact.
 

5) The power of social proof and influence is powerful.

“I went from not knowing who tf u were, to wtf is this??, to “ehh its ok”, to “Peach Scone” being stuck in my head and now I’m a fuckin groupie all in a matter of 48 hours. Seriously love you right now! Your music speaks to my soul lol 1.7k people felt the same.”

By now, we’re all aware of the power of social proof. It’s the reason why most artists obsess over how many followers or subscribers they have on social media. You know you are being subconsciously judged by the numbers displayed on your social media accounts.

It’s all about shaping a favorable image to those who don’t know you. We often associate these vanity metrics as a sign of quality. However, it’s not as influential as we might think, because it can be easily faked.

The one thing you can’t fake is when thousands of people share your content, and that’s powerful social influence. People shared that Peach Scone video on Facebook 130k times. The actual share number is even higher, because it doesn’t take into account the people who shared it after that and the shares of the Youtube video.

When things go viral and get passed around like the Hobo Johnson video, there’s a lot of interesting social science going on. What others think can influence our own perceptions of what we think is a “good” song.

You might think that anything that is “good” would naturally become popular or successful, whether we’re talking about music, books, art or movies. Historically, this has not always been the case. Many famous artists and authors have been passed on and rejected many times in their career before making it big. Why is that?

Matthew Salganik, a Princeton Sociologist, conducted a study to understand that very question.

In the experiment, he set up a website where people could listen and download music for free. It contained a list of songs from new, local artists that no one had heard of. Song order was shuffled and participants could see what others had liked and downloaded. Over 14,000 people were randomly placed into 8 different groups, or worlds, that all started with the same initial conditions.

Theoretically, the best songs should be the most popular in all 8 worlds. However, that was not the case. Some songs that were the most popular in one world, were one of the least popular in another. The conclusion was that quality or talent alone isn’t a predictor of success. Social influence plays a big role as well.

In most cases, social influence isn’t enough to make something that is actually “bad” be considered “good” or vice versa. The experiment showed that quality was correlated with success. While it may not completely change your perception of what is “good,” it’s enough to tip the scales to get people to pay attention rather than scroll past it in the news feed, especially when it is seen frequently.

This is only a brief rundown of the study. You can read it in full here:
http://www.princeton.edu/~mjs3/musiclab.shtml

This is why shared content is powerful. When people share your content and it goes viral, we interpret it as being too difficult to fake. As viral marketing expert Jonah Berger states, “Social influence only works when other people’s opinions or behaviors are observable.” In the context of the experiment, we take into account what others think and do to shape our own preferences.

“This randomly came up in my Facebook feed: hated it, couldn’t stop watching it, COULDN’T STOP THINKING ABOUT IT AND MISSING IT FOR DAYS. Found it on YouTube bc I remembered the lyrics, have replayed it 5 times.”
 

6) Even with more exposure, you still need to build your brand.

“Maybe Hobo Johnson will use his music to become some kind of bad ass mental health advocate.”

It seems like many artists out there think that exposure is all they need to become “successful.” To be exposed or discovered is a short term thing. You need people to actually stick around for the long term. This is where your brand comes in.

In my opinion, having a strong brand played a big role for Hobo Johnson becoming a viral sensation and resonating with so many people.

I won’t touch too much more on branding, since I talk about it in a bunch of other blogs. However, the two things I want to point out is that his brand comes from an authentic place and it is consistent.

Hobo Johnson’s persona may seem a bit exaggerated, but at the core of it, it is still an authentic extension of who he is. A self-deprecating, neurotic guy who deals with insecurity and being in the friend zone.

His brand ties very well with his story about getting kicked out of the house and living out of his 1994 Toyota Corolla at the age of 19 – hence the name Hobo Johnson (Real name is Frank Lopes).

For as long as I’ve known of him, his brand, look and style has been unchanged. Same voice. Same weird look. Same delivery and awkward sense of humor. Look back at all his stuff and you’ll see the same consistent characteristics of who he is.

When you look at his content, website, posts and videos, there’s a consistent feel that really comes off as his own. Bad grammar, cheesy and outdated graphics, corny / amateurish style and totally not professional, which makes him more relatable. He comes off as someone who’s doing really badly at trying to fit in; unconfident, unsure of himself, but it plays well to his “hobo” persona.

Even the music video he released after blowing up is consistent with his brand:

“This music video is so oddly aesthetic since it’s the complete opposite…if you know what I mean?”

His tagline on Instagram reads:
Songwriter. Poemer. AbletonLiver. Piano Player Kinda.

His mailing list is titled “join our cult.”
https://www.hobojohnson.com/cult

This is his Kickstarter campaign from early 2017:
Kickstart Hobo Johnson’s Kinda Good Music Career
 

Additional Resources

 
If you’re interested in hearing more about Hobo Johnson and his story, check out the links below.

Interview with Anthony “The Needle Drop Guy” Fantano

DJ Booth Article: I Really Wanted to Hate Hobo Johnson… But I Couldn’t

Hipster Rapper Hobo Johnson Is Going Viral — & It’s All Thanks To THIS Music Video!

The post Going Viral: 6 Important Lessons Artists can Learn from the Rise of Hobo Johnson appeared first on D4 Music Marketing.

For those who don’t know, Gary Vaynerchuk is a successful American entrepreneur, marketing expert and online personality. When it comes to entrepreneurship and the current climate of attention, Gary’s rhetoric and outlook are spot on.

As a music marketer, my core approach to my blog content and developing my personal brand is heavily influenced by Gary Vee. Although his marketing strategies and approach to business are not unique to him, Gary does an excellent job of communicating it in such a clear and practical way that I believe all artists should listen to what he has to say if they want a good chance at making it in the music business.

In a way, this post is a tribute to him and acknowledgment of his role in the creation of my blog, but also to convince artists like yourself why you should listen to what he says.

https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/

Why Should Artists Follow Gary Vee?

Do you ever struggle with marketing yourself as an artist? Do you find making a living as an artist difficult and need the motivation to pursue your passion? Gary Vee is a valuable resource for artists who want to be successful and stay motivated on their journey. If you want to be successful in the music industry, I truly believe you’ll have the best chance if you listen to Gary Vee and put into practice what he has found works.

I’m saying this as someone who has been in the online marketing industry for the past several years. There’s no one out there that breaks down the road map to navigate the current state of business and the internet better than him. The big reason why I even bothered putting this blog together is that some of his content caters to music artists directly (videos listed below).

Not only is he very practical, honest and clear with his approach to success, he actually spends a lot of time talking to other artists and providing relevant advice for those in the music industry.

For some, he may come off as annoying (that was actually my first opinion of him), but he grew on me. The funny thing is, even though he is very good at what he does, it is common for people not to like him at first. He has a very loud and energetic personality that comes as very arrogant and obnoxious. But, I think once you hear his story and really get to know Gary, you’ll love and appreciate him. His energy is contagious to the point where it gives me confidence and motivation when I listen to him.
 

What Makes Gary Different?

 
To be honest, I’m personally not very fond of many other top entrepreneurs and motivational type of people, but Gary Vee is different to me.

When I first came across Gary in the spring of 2016, I did not like him. Like many other people, I was immediately turned off by his personality and his “hustle, hustle, hustle” ethic. Luckily, I continued to listen to him, and as I consumed more of his content, I learned that he’s not what he seems.

He doesn’t flaunt or really talk about wealth or buying expensive things. He’s not trying to sell you on a lavish lifestyle as he lives modestly for someone with his wealth and success. His message is about pursuing what you are passionate about and putting in the necessary work at a pace that you are comfortable with.

Gary practices exactly what he advocates. All his content is basically free and readily accessible. He’s not trying to sell you master courses or programs that cost hundreds of dollars. Occasionally, he’ll put out a book. His fans usually support him because he’s given them so much value that they feel the need to reciprocate the love.

He’s honest and transparent with his approach. He knows that people in our quick fix, instant gratification society want to speed up the process or find shortcuts, but he knows that in reality is it takes a long time and hard work to build a successful business. No one likes to hear or accept that fact, but Gary isn’t afraid to stand behind it. That doesn’t sell in the marketing world, but he’s true to the process and what it really takes to succeed.

By now you are probably wondering what some of his key messages and advice are. I’ve summarized some of his signature themes and best sayings for you below.
 

Here are some of Gary Vee’s signature themes and sayings:

No Regrets

For me, this message was what convinced me. It was that simple. You don’t want to look back at your life and regret not giving that one thing you really loved a shot and never knowing if you could have been successful. You really don’t know if something will work or not until you try. The fact is, you only have one life and you will die. Even it doesn’t work out, at least you know you’ve tried and you can be content in the fact that you have no regrets.

As an artist pursuing your passion, you are doing something many people are afraid to try so it’s something to be proud of, regardless if you make it or not.

Self-Awareness

Gary believes the most important thing you can have to be successful is self-awareness. For him, self-awareness is needed so you can be honest and objective at identifying what you’re actually good at. This allows you to make the right moves to put you in a better position for success, rather than wasting time doing things you’re not good at. He’s about going all-in on your strengths and punting your weaknesses by working with others or paying people to do what you’re not good at.

Don’t Complain

Gary hates people who complain about not seeing the results they hoped or expected. Because of the internet, we have much more control over our ability to succeed, so complaining or blaming others is a sign of failure. Sure, there are things that happen that are beyond our control, but you still have control over how you react and deal with those issues. Often times, people who complain are either impatient or not hustling hard enough.

Hustle

To make it as an entrepreneur and artist, you have to be willing to put in the time and work. As he says, “Hardwork is the most controllable aspect of entrepreneurship and business.” People tend to view hustling as the cool thing to do, but it’s the practicality that matters to Gary. If you have big aspirations, there’s a certain level of work you need to put in to get where you want to be. In other words, the problem he sees is that many people’s ambitions don’t match their actions.

Some might interpret ‘hustle’ as an unhealthy practice, especially when you see how much Gary works each day. He still believes in getting enough sleep and having a work-life balance that you’re comfortable with.

Eat Shit (Don’t Get Fancy)

Building a business (like a music career) takes a lot of hard work. The problem Gary sees is that many people do things for the wrong reasons and get fancy before they make it. When people start buying expensive things for themselves early on, he believes you’re wasting money by not reinvesting into growing your business. If you really want to win, eat shit for the first 5 or 10 years so you can set yourself up for success. You have to pay your dues. He’s not judging what people do with their money, it’s only when people complain about not making it yet and they are the ones splurging money on unnecessary things that don’t grow their business. This way of thinking relates to the last point and ties into the next theme.

Love the Process (Patience)

The other big thing Gary preaches is patience. You have to play the long game if you want to be successful. You have to love the process and the struggle. If you only care about the end result, you already lost. Those who succeed love the grind and the journey.

Many people want short cuts and quick tactics because they don’t want to put in the work. They are impatient. They complain. In order to win and be successful, you need to have the right mindset and it starts with patience. As Gary Vee puts it, religion over tactics.

Succeed with Positivity and Kindness (Optimism Always Wins)

Despite his loud, aggressive persona, Gary is all in on optimism and positivity. We live in a very opportune time that there’s enough for all of us to win. Don’t waste time by putting others down, or as he puts it, tearing other people’s “buildings” down. This applies not only to how you treat others, but yourself as well. If you make a mistake, learn from your losses, but don’t dwell on them. Gary has been wrong and made many mistakes, but he doesn’t let that stop him.

Quality Content is Key (It’s a Numbers Game)

Gary’s number one advice for artists is to put out free music as often as you possibly can. It’s about building leverage by giving more than what you take and having the ability to redirect that attention you have from fans.

How many songs can you make a year and create a plan around that? He uses the example of the artist Russ (who he did an episode with) who put out a new song every week for 33 weeks straight. With the oversaturation of free content out there, attention is a commodity. To be able to grow an audience, you need to be able to put out consistent quality content like new music. Since it’s numbers game, there’s no guarantee you’ll make it because of all of the factors involved. Each new song you put out gives you one more chance to get noticed.

Provide More Value (51/49)

Give more than what you take. We tend to focus on what’s in it for us more than the other person. As an artist, you always want to be giving your fans more value than they give you. Why? This gives you leverage down the line when you really do need them for something. Obviously don’t have expectations, but know that people tend to reciprocate. This means doing things like offering your music for free, responding to comments, answering questions and taking photos to bring value and build your brand.

Authenticity Wins (Don’t Fake it Until You Make It)

In this age of social media, people tend to use it to present the best PR version of themselves. It’s harder to trust what’s real online, which is why authenticity is so valued nowadays. As Gary likes to say, “You can trick all the other losers, but the winners will see right through you.”
 

Gary’s Music Marketing Content

 
Gary has so much free quality content that it’s hard to go back and find the best ones for you to check out. Since this is a music marketing blog, I curated his music-related content for you to check out.

What Gary is most known for nowadays is his online series The Ask Gary Vee Show where he answers people’s questions with various guests from all types of industries. Even though he covers a lot of topics, his content is applicable to any industry. Here’s a collection of videos that are specific to music artists. You can also listen to all of these videos as podcasts.

Gary Vee’s Podcast: https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/podcast/

My Youtube Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUZsZCakBrh25gMN5yS4fsKdU-IJPVC7a

Logic:

John Legend:

Jewel:

Russ:

Krewella:

Wyclef:

Fat Joe:

T-Pain:

Dustin Lynch:

Black Coffee:

Be sure to follow Gary on social media:

 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/garyvee

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gary/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/garyvee/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/GaryVaynerchuk/

The post Who is Gary Vee and Why Music Artists Should Follow Him appeared first on D4 Music Marketing.

Unfortunately with so much competition for attention now, that number may be more. However, the idea behind this is to help dispel this notion that you need thousands or millions of fans to make it as an independent and that living off music is more attainable than it seems.
 

What exactly is a super fan?

 
They are the diehard fans that will buy everything you put out, rock your merch and come out to your shows. These are the type of fans you can expect to tattoo their favorite lyrics and make any effort to meet you. They want to support you every step of the way, as they feel emotionally invested in your musical journey. Your music strikes a chord with their lives and resonates with their own life experiences. Most importantly, they become one of your biggest marketing tools by promoting your music to their friends through word of mouth.

Super fans also feel a personal, deep connection to your brand. They support you because your music is a reflection of their own identities and experiences.

So, how do you make fans feel more emotionally connected to your brand?

In this blog, I will discuss 4 simple communication changes in how you interact with your fans that will increase the likelihood they will become super fans.
 

1. Speak directly to a fan, not as a group

 
It’s common to address your fans online as a collective group by saying things like:

“Hey guys!”

“Hey everyone.”

“Thank you all for coming out.”

The problem with this is it comes off as a broadcast message that people likely to tune out or subconsciously detach from since it doesn’t feel personal. When you’re more direct, fans are less likely to feel like another person in the crowd and are more likely to pay attention or engage.

You want fans to feel like you are speaking directly to them, whether it’s in person, in emails or in social media. This personal touch is more important now than ever because of the saturation of content and competition for attention.

For your emails and social media posts, tweak your language by using the pronoun ‘you’ instead of referring to a group of fans. Envision yourself as if you’re just talking to that one super fan you know.

This falls into the same concept I remember learning about for team building and leadership back in college. As the leader in a team or group environment, you always want to use the word ‘we’ as opposed to ‘I’ even if you are the only one taking action. It helps others to subtly feel more involved and a part of the group, which increases the likelihood that others contribute and feel motivated. This approach of talking to fans as individuals falls into the same idea. Fans are more likely to feel directly connected to you if you do this consistently.
 

2. Frame your messages to show benefits for the fans

 
Artists can come off as self-centered even if they don’t mean it. As a musician, the attention is naturally on you as the performer. You make music that people love, so of course it feels like the focus is on you. You may end up saying things like:

“It would mean a lot to me if you can support my next project.”

“It would really help my career if you came out to the show.”

“By sharing this video, it would really help get my music out and make me successful.”

Yes, your fans want to support you so you can succeed. However, it’s not all about you, but it can seem that way with the language you use. You can call it the “me me me” mindset. Instead, you need to always think about what’s in it for the fan.

Shift the focus in your language from how it benefits you and frame it in a way that shows how it benefits the fan.

This is a common issue even with artists I know and work with. It’s important to make fans feel like you need them more than they need you. In reality, you can argue that the truth is you need them more, because there are so many artists that they can pay attention to. You want the fans to feel like they are the hero in your story, not you. You are providing the soundtrack to their own journey.

Here are examples of how you would want to frame the message instead: (maybe not as corny or cheesy like I did)

“Please support this project so I can continue to make more music that you love.”

“Doing some new music at my next show. Come say hi and get a picture with me.”

“Help spread the message by sharing this video so we can make the world a better place.”

These phrases show what’s in it for the fan for taking the action that you want and ultimately benefit you as well. Before making a request or asking for additional support, think about what the fans want from you or what they would like to get out of what you’re asking for.

Simple changes like how you frame your message can help fans feel more important and more invested in your brand to become super fans.
 

3. Communicate the larger message through your brand

 
Often times, fans are drawn to certain artists not just because the music, but the message behind the brand.

As an artist, you’re telling your story through your brand and music. What should be embedded in your story is a deeper philosophical message or meaning. How would your music make the world a better place? What do you stand for that resonates with your fans? Does your brand help to push a deeper, larger narrative, that fans can emotionally latch on to?

If your music makes them see the bigger picture of how things should be, or resonates with them because of a shared belief or value, they are more inclined to develop a long lasting connection with your music. By supporting you and your music, fans are helping to push along or support a larger message that reflects their own personal beliefs or values.

For example, Logic is someone who advocates positivity, acceptance and equality for a better world. Not only does his music reflect this sentiment, he consistently talks about it and advocates his message through social media and even live performances. When you listen to his fans, many of them really resonate with this message. Fans of Logic not only support him because he makes music they like, he stands for something greater than himself.

When you communicate your brand in ways that resonate with the beliefs or values of your fans, you’re likely to get them to feel a deeper connection that leads them to become super fans.

As an artist, you really want to communicate in a way that makes fans feel they are a part of something bigger than just your music. If you are unsure about what your brand stands for or what your brand message is, check out these branding blogs to help you on the right path.
 

4. Engage fans with the intention of building relationships

 
This means setting time aside to engage with fans and making yourself accessible. As an artist, your fans may want to connect with you on a deeper level because of your talent or how your music impacts their lives. By acknowledging and engaging with them, it helps to humanize you and plants the seed of them potentially becoming a super fan.

Dedicate some time out before or after a show to talk to fans that want to meet you. Take photos and sign CDs if they ask. Respond to people’s comments or questions online. These small actions are a huge step in building a deeper fan relationship. I like to think of it as branding, providing long term value for fans even if it does not give you an immediate monetary return.

Early in your career, it makes more sense to engage with as many fans as you can wherever possible in an effort to build up those 1,000 super fans. As you become more established, you’ll have less time for it, but it doesn’t mean you should completely stop. As popular as he is, even Slug of Atmosphere (my favorite music duo) still meets fans outside of the venue for pictures before their shows. Not even as a meet and greet package, he just hangs out with fans: (these are actual clips I took)

This doesn’t mean you have to be best friends with every fan, but at least give them the opportunity to connect with you directly. Fans generally understand that artists are busy, so your effort will mean a lot.

On the other hand, you may be someone who is not very social or reserved, so it may be harder for you to put yourself out there. That’s okay too, because people like that can relate. Fans who gravitate to your music or talent may end up being people who are very similar to you.

Lastly, you never know how some fans may be able to help you down the road in your career. Don’t discriminate against the fans you choose to engage based solely on what you think they can do for you. You never know who a fan may know or what resources they have that you need.

One of the artist I work with, Butterscotch, had the opportunity to open up for one of her favorite artists, Thievery Corporation, because one of her fans knew she was a big fan. This fan, who worked for the Las Vegas venue Brooklyn Bowl, suggested Butterscotch as the opener and it happened.
 

Last night was magical! One of the best feeling shows in every sense. As I walked out of the dressing room, I ran into the founding member of @thieverycorporation, Rob Garza, and he remembered when we serendipitously met on a flight to New York a few months ago. As you may know, I'm a HUGE Thievery fan and I kind of freaked out just meeting him, so imagine how excited I was running into him again before I opened up for his band! We grabbed a photo and I ran downstairs elated and started anxiously pacing around, loosening up, and I could get a feel of how big the crowd was by how much noise they were making. I WAS SO READY! The stage went dark and I walked on stage calmly. I grabbed the mic, looked at the crowd and BOOOOM! I started beatboxing and they went crazy. From the first sound to the last note, everything flowed seamlessly. This was perhaps my best set ever and it felt SO GOOD!! I told the crowd how important this show was to me and I feel that Thievery fans are so in touch with the world, that they really felt me on another level. It was beautiful. @rasarmusic and I jammed out at the end and I loved having my partner in crime there for such a special night. When I walked back in the dressing room, the members of Thievery were so thrilled and embraced me in every aspect. I am so grateful!! I could go on with more details, but I'm about to board my flight back to Sacramento and get ready for my show tonight!! Love you. Photos by @artofsonia Special thanks to @theliqueband for supporting your girl, coming through with essential gear!

A post shared by Bᴜᴛᴛᴇʀsᴄᴏᴛᴄʜ (@butterscotchmusic) on Aug 5, 2017 at 1:14pm PDT

Conclusion

 
Reaching 1,000 super fans is not an easy task. By making these 4 tweaks in how you communicate with fans, I believe you’ll be more likely to earn the super fans needed to sustain a career in music. It starts with not only putting out good music, but giving fans a reason to feel more emotional invested in your brand and a part of your journey.

The post 4 Easy Communication Tweaks To Help Convert Fans Into Super Fans appeared first on D4 Music Marketing.