The internet is now one of the biggest ways to listen to music. A 2015 government study found that 15 million Brits listen online, showing just how important it is to have a web presence for your sounds. We all know about Soundcloud, Mixcloud and YouTube, and how big names like Bugzy Malone found fame through those following. But what other ways can you take it to the next level and find ears for your music?
Not having a properly constructed online presence is doing yourself a disservice. Potential hits can go unheard, only to be picked up later. Keep reading for the essential tips to boosting your online listeners.
Maximise Social Media Presence
First among the rules of building your online presence is to use all of your avenues on social media. Too often tracks can get lost in the middle of Soundcloud and YouTube, making it difficult for would-be fans to latch onto your music and keep up with it. Limited communications mean that except through social media, your releases and news don’t find traction. This is a key factor of how to promote your music online, and can’t be understated. London crew 67 gained significant traction by catchy marketing on Twitter, and their success is now finding them representation on the BBC – without a generic website.
Krept and Konan got their big break in this manner – collaboration. They used social media and YouTube to gain a following that found grime impresario Skepta’s attention.
Blogging
Blogging might seem like the hallmark of would-be journalists and enthusiasts, but hip hop communities can use them to serious benefit. To hop over the water for a moment, the tragically late A$AP Yams famously used his blog to build fame and attention for the A$AP Mob, Rocky included. This can also help collaboration – a well represented and respected blog can encourage other artists to come and work with you, offering up lucrative features and helping to build your music together.
Email Campaigns
Now, as a foreword, we’re not talking about spamming people. When people click that button to subscribe to updates, they often do it in good faith, not as a succinct agreement to listen to everything you think is important. Bearing that in mind, you can employ email campaigns to garner attention. A great example of this is Mass Appeal records, home of American duo Run The Jewels, who have used well timed email campaigns to bring attention to their smaller artists or new releases. Email campaigns aren’t hard either, requiring the use of basic smartphone email apps.
An online presence is essential for making it big in the music industry. The question is, how exactly do you do it? Hopefully this article sheds a bit of light and will help you have your name up in lights.
Photo by Álvaro Bernal on Unsplash