If rising artists would be investing more time in their story than their music they will be shocked with the results.
Yes > Rising artists should be investing more time in their story than their music.
This may seem like a strange and counterintuitive statement, but if an artist wants those streams, brand deals, ticket sales, merch sales and untimely to support themselves with their music, they need a story.
The value of the artists story and the effects it has on fans will drive their career in music.
No story no fans, no fans no money.
I see many talented artists dropping amazing music just to get little to no meaningful traffic.
Sometimes hiring top producers, songwriters and pouring money into marketing campaigns to funnel traffic to their new song with little to any satisfying results. Sadly, an even more dismal reality for the artist is that no one really cares or has a connection to their music.
Perplexed but driven the artist goes back to the studio and works even harder on a song thinking;
“If I just write the perfect song everyone wants to hear, this time I’ll make it.”
This hope model fails time and time again in the industry and leaves the artist exhausted and ultimately broke. It is not about writing the perfect song. Understanding the connection between their music and their story is vitally important.
It is not about writing the perfect song.
The story is what attracts fans, and fans are who opens the gates of reward, financially and otherwise.
What makes for a good story?
Fans love real, they love authentic, they love seeing the artist as themselves. Fans want to get behind an artist’s beliefs, likes and dislikes. Fans crave to live vicariously and sometimes alongside.
The exposed humanity of the artist, their vibe, humor, imperfections their ups, downs and their unprotected emotion around music is what captivate fans.
The introduction of such a raw journey becomes a currency and ultimately binds the connection between story, fans and music.
In 2019 Rapper NF with no real media push Hits No. 1 on the Billboard Artist 100 Chart and beats out Chance the Rapper. Chance, has way more authority in the hip hop world and a great story himself however NF’s super fan base is what drove his success.
Forbes earlier noted
“with his strong fan base and his incredible drive, the success of NF’s Real Music is a true testament to his status as an emerging talent in the hip hop world.”
The real driver are the super fans which are supporting the artist as a person.
There is a fine line between building a brand story and being authentic. The balance of tying to produce songs the artist thinks people want to hear vs being real is a slippery slope but being real always wins. Not being afraid to be human!
Helping artists create a story behind an authentic brand is what I like to do.
It makes them interesting, attracts fans and ultimately will drive sales for a successful career in the music industry.
Questions? Have I missed something? Need to brainstorm about the music business? Share below in the comments — I’d love to help and hear them!
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