Creativity Is Everything

And you've got to be everywhere.

The reason influencers are such is because of their creativity. There's a spark, a je ne sais quoi in their posts that attracts fans, who spread the word to other fans. It all comes down to inspiration.

And that inspiration is too often lacking in music marketing.

Making the music is not enough. Oh, don't tell me you don't want another job, posting to social media, that's the wrong way to look at it, see it as another outlet for being CREATIVE!

Hits are all about ideas. You can get people to play. You can hire the best tech people. But to create a hit song, a song people want to listen to again and again, never mind all the way through, it must contain a nugget of creativity that sparks the interest of the listener.

This is why me-too music is inherently limited. It might reach the target audience, but it never supersedes the progenitor and the act lasts an even shorter period of time. If you want to have success in the music business you've got to be original.

Forget the Spotify Top 50, that's a completely different world. If that appeals to you, go for it, the rules are clearly defined. But if you want to have success outside of that sphere...

First it comes down to the music.

Then it comes down to the marketing.

Informational posts are for fans only, they do not go viral. Furthermore, most fans don't even see them. I've got 60,000+ followers on X/Twitter. If I post someone will see it, but the number is tiny. There's just too much in the channel, Twitter posts are made to be evanescent, they're not made to last.

So don't bank on your followers, that's the wrong way to look at it. You're not feeding the already converted, you're trolling for newcomers.

Once again, the music must be of a certain standard and almost none of it is. If it was about raw skills, the charts would be dominated by Berklee graduates, but that's far from the case. Just like Belmont graduates don't run record companies or talent agencies. It's more than knowing the ropes, as a matter of fact you're oftentimes better off not having the skills, because then you won't be constrained by the delineated game.

The reason you want to be on TikTok is ByteDance doesn't care about your prior success. You can go from zero to hero nearly instantly. Everything comes down to the clip itself. If you're a successful creator with a bad clip it's not going to be shown to most people. But if it's a creative clip?

Don't post your new video. Don't post your tour dates. Don't do anything that's been done before. You want to do something innovative.

And it's not as simple as filming your life.

If you're a metal band, a member should go in leather to the food outlet of the moment and film themselves eating the offerings, whether it be a doughnut or a fine dining restaurant. This is cognitive dissonance, most in metal are so skinny they look like they don't eat at all. And they're known for drinking and drugging lifestyles. The key is to play against type.

Or if you're a pop singer start talking about your favorite metal tracks, and sing them a cappella.

I could come up with a million ideas, and most wouldn't go viral, but there's a chance some would.

But you're the one who has to come up with the ideas.

If everybody else is doing stupid pet tricks, come down off your throne and do one. Imagine Bill Maher in a suit getting down in the dirt.

Or a diva getting into a false argument with their manager or agent. Screaming about the tuna fish at the catering table. You said you wanted CAPERS!

Clips need changes just like songs, hooks. Bridges, choruses. That resonate with the public.

Don't take yourself too seriously, unless your image is as a doofus.

Talk about the movies you watch on the tour bus.

Tell how it's taboo to go number two on the tour bus. Most insiders don't know this.

Film yourself getting up every morning, talking about how much sleep you got each and every night, showing the stress of the road.

The idea is best when it comes from the ARTIST, not a company hired for social media, not any third party. The same reason people love your music must be evidenced in your clip.

Imagine a TikTok wherein Bob Dylan talked quickly about his life. This guy is available nowhere and talks cagily and slow when he does. He's famous for telling lies. Imagine if he told the truth!

And you can start off by telling the etymology of songs. People are dying to know the points of inspiration. The people, the places. This is easy. But it can't be by rote, it must be intimate.

Once again, don't see yourself as a rock star, as a celebrity, but just another person in the pit of the social media app. If you come across as equal, ironically, it boosts your cred.

You're trying to get lucky. And you can only do so if you're in the marketplace, each and every day. You need to see it as your full time job creating for online. It pays much bigger dividends than a piece in the newspaper or a spot on TV. I mean look at the views of these social media clips, they far outweigh the audience of almost any TV show.

And you can build an audience. Which only burnishes your career down the line. You've got a personality, an identity, this is key to bonding the fan to you.

And you must be everywhere. Of course Instagram Reels, and YouTube and Snapchat...

You're throwing a line into the ocean. You're hoping a fish wanders by and is so intrigued that they tell every other fish.

This is where it happens. On social media.

Forget press releases, a waste of time. Most PR firms are clueless.

If it's been done before, you shouldn't do it. Unless you put a personal spin on it, with a wink of the eye.

View it as a good SNL skit. Like from the first five years of the show. But shorter. Brief works.

And since you're making so many, on some you play your music in the background. Don't beat people over the head with your music, they've got to like you enough to be curious about your music, to pull it. You've got to leave it to them, not push it on them.

Spreading the word, getting attention in the new world is nearly impossible. The old methods don't work. You're an artist. And this is in your wheelhouse. So many musicians learned technical skills, built their own studios. But they can't create viral clips?

And unlike in the days of MTV today's clips are not expensive, and each and every one gets airplay.

This is an OPPORTUNITY!

If you see it as a burden you're missing the point.


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