I recently tweeted the statement above. Yes, I was frustrated. I was putting together a show roundup. I like to sample music from musical artists that I am unfamiliar with. This is necessary so I can decide whether to recommend you check out their show over someone else’s. So, even though I was half kidding, upon further introspection, I stand by this. The year is 2022. There are so many streaming services that you can upload your music to.
I do realize that there are exceptions to this. I have seen artists promoting their first single. I think promoting singles is a great idea. However, can I find any clips of your music anywhere? Think about this, I visit your Instagram and your TikTok. You have nothing up. You don’t have a one minute clip or a live show. You don’t have a one-minute clip of you strumming your guitar or singing a capella in your bedroom.
Instead, all I can find are many beautiful selfies or even professional photos. This is so frustrating. Even more frustrating was the singer who had no clips of her singing, but instead was lip-syncing to another song on TikTok. Have fun on TikTok, but please give us something.
How can your audience discover you without an example of your work? I realize that we humans are visual creatures, but if you are making music, don’t you want to share it with us.
Cultivating fans is, in many ways, much easier now than it has been in the past. In the late 90s and early 2000s before streaming music, we had to use street teams to go out and physically distribute fliers and stickers for bands to get people interested. Theoretically, you could still use a street team, but why not just have your fans share a link or video to your music with their friends and followers? It does not have to be difficult or professional. We just want to see what you have got.
