From Subways To Blogs: Why Your Music Isn't Getting Heard

Have you ever been in a subway in any major city and have seen a musician with a box of tapes or CDs saying 'hey check out my music!'? Maybe that musician was on a street corner or outside of a club, but it’s all the same idea. These musicians are pushing music at you, expecting you to listen because they say it's good.

Now take a step back and look at what musicians, yourself included, are doing through social media: 

Pushing, Pushing and PUSHING! 

Whether you realize it or not, 'promoting', or spamming your music in this sense is exactly the same as sitting in a subway stop and telling people to listen to your music. It is a complete waste of time and is not by any means a recommended way to build a strong fan base and increase sales.

What is the biggest problem with this situation?

There is no loyalty and trust in what these musicians are saying. The same reason why you might ask yourself 'who would believe this shady looking character in the subway, when he says that the music on this CD is the best you'll ever hear?' is why people don't listen when you throw your links, videos or music out there on Twitter or Facebook. Your music may be good, hell it may be great, but the typical listener has no reason to believe you and doesn't have the time to investigate all of the music from every musician to find out who is the real deal. Typically, listeners are going elsewhere, to a trusted source for new music recommendations that has become a reputable filter of what’s hot and what’s not.

So the obstacle becomes, how do YOU go about building trust with these listeners? Well, plain and simple: it’s all about who you know. Association with these filters gives you instant credibility and trust with listeners. With few exceptions, this has been the only way to make a real name for yourself and your music. Years ago, it was getting signed to a major label, getting your music video on MTV or getting spins from a popular radio station. These were the important tastemakers of the time and any association with them meant that your music was good and worth listening to.

The music tastemakers of today are blogs.

Blogs have become THE important filter for the new music industry. While terrestrial radio and MTV have become whores to pop culture, it is the music discovery blogs that are now the respected tastemakers. As music blogging becomes a more popular, established blogs at all levels, ranging from small to huge, are gaining more credibility. What this means for emerging artists, is that blogs are now the most influential, and more importantly accessible way to receive promotion.

Blogs work as a system of leaders and followers - similar to a tribe. Many well-respected music blogs (aka the leaders) have become infamous for their own take on certain genres of music. The readers (aka the followers) have developed a trust in the opinion of these blogs, knowing that whom-ever is featured, reviewed or interviewed in a positive manner is someone important. The loyalty to the blog is immediately transferred from the blog to the music.

So as an artist looking for promotion, trying to spread the word about how great your music is, you should be less focused on telling people, as you should be focusing on getting others to speak about you. Right now, you are a Nobody. I know, it’s a big blow to the egomaniacs out there... but its true none the less. Now these music bloggers? THEY are actually Somebodys! It’s time that you shift your focus from marketing (subways) to networking (blogs).


How do you make that shift? Though it is certainly an attainable goal, It is slightly more complicated than a few bullet points. So tomorrow I will post another article for you that will explore some of the many ways to properly make the shift, allowing you to build up new relationships with bloggers and ultimately to build loyalty and influence with new fans.