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Get Your Paper - Other Revenue Streams for Artists
I’ve said it over and over, the music industry is changing. No longer can artists put out a hot track, get signed to a major label, and live fat. You’ve gotta put a total package together. Youtube, ringtones, endorsing products, blogging, iTunes and twitter. These are all different areas West Coast artists should be looking into and attacking aggressively.
It’s been clear over the past 6 years that major labels aren’t giving the West Coast a shot, so what to do? Whine and complain or sack up and start creating an independent fan base on your own?
Put thought into your promotion. Posting the same MySpace bulletin 15 times over the space of an hour isn’t doing anything but pissing people off. Your time would be MUCH better spent contributing to the discussion at Dubcc or Sohh. People will pay attention to you if they know you’re posting on the same site they are. It’s a quick and easy way to gain fans and see feedback on your product. Sure there will be haters, but fuck them. They don’t buy music anyways.
Didn’t get a track on the new Madden game? Sponsor a Madden 09 tournament or player. Sure it’s nerdy, but you can bet you’ll create “Die Hards” and you’ll get your music out to a WHOLE new market. Look for a local beer or product and include it in one of your songs. I don’t want to tell you to “think outside the box” because that quote is trash. What’s happened with the internet is that the box has become so big, ideas that you think wouldn’t have a chance in hell, work splendidly.
Stay ahead of the curve, but not so far ahead that people don’t understand what you’re trying to do. Try and identify upcoming trends and catch them early. With the internet, there are a LOT of different avenues to make money off your music and personality. There are hundreds if not thousands of ways to reach new fans. The hardest OG in Comptfuon and a 12 year old French boy can both be your fans thanks to the Internet, so market accordingly. Sure some of these ideas might be hot trash, but if I’ve even got you thinking about marketing yourself in different areas this post has done it’s job.
Remember: There is no rule saying how you can market yourself, so throw some shift at the wall and see what sticks. What’s the worst that could happen?
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