The Savage Animal 10.17.07: Music Marketing in the 21st Century
Posted by Mikey MiGo on 10.17.2007
The word “marketing” may be considered evil by a lot of artists, but it in itself can be an art form to master while still maintaining your credibility and creativity. In this week’s Savage Animal, 411’s Mikey MiGo takes a look at a few of the more unique marketing art forms that have taken place during the new millennium.
This past Saturday we attended Gothicfest in Chicago. This would be the second day of the event this year. It was pretty much what you'd expect, a festival celebrating the Goth live style. I'm not Goth or anything, but it's an image and lifestyle that I've always enjoyed going back to vampire movies and musical tastes. Luckily, there were probably only a half dozen or so people that were "annoyingly goth". Seeing a live suspension show wasn't as weird as I thought it would be. For those who don't know, it's basically a showcase of young women who get meat hooks dug into their flesh and hung by them in various positions. Yeah, I hope you're not attempting to enjoy a meal while reading this by the way. I saw a lady hung by different flesh sections of her backside as if she were Superman, after her was a lady hung by her mid section as if she were levitating, but what I missed as we were outside the venue was a woman being suspended by her neck. I heard from more than one person that being suspended gives off a huge high. Rock on for them then. It was still very cool to watch. They had bands from across the globe performing all day on two stages, which was pretty cool. I ended up hanging out in random areas of the venue and missed a few bands that I might have enjoyed. I did catch the two bands I went to see though. I got to see Fashion Bomb rock the Club Vision stage with a good set. They played "Avarice" for the first time in a long time, which was a very cool surprise and of course the crowd erupted for their "I'm Afraid of Americans" cover. Then to close the night was Bella Morte. I saw them for the first time almost exactly a year ago and really enjoyed it. A highlight with their set was their cover of "Earth Angel" made famous due to it being in Back to the Future. Andy (vocals) showed his awesome charisma as he wandered the crowd and sang as a lot of people started dancing. Basically, we went to a Bella Morte concert and a prom broke out. It was surreal and a great way to end the night. My only problems with the event were the high ticket prices and lack of parking. I'd suggest a more open venue with an actual parking lot like maybe The Pearl Room in Mokena, IL or somewhere in Wrigleyville. Still, it was a great time and if the chance comes again I will go to next years festivities.
MUSIC MARKETING IN THE 21st CENTURY
In the 1900's music marketing has been fairly simple and only a few routes were taken. In many cases it's as simple as: first single, first video, touring, and then it's repeated depending on the success of the album they're pushing. Toss in some interviews with press, magazine and television advertisements, and the normal stuff you still see everywhere today. In a viral marketing world, musicians are expanding as artists, so is the promotion for their work.
Before I jump right in, I want to make sure everyone knows I'm not cheapening the great ideas and art that these people have done. "Marketing" is basically just creative promotion in order to create a buzz about ones self or one's product. That's not anything dirty or disrespectful, it's just who we are as consumers and suppliers.
RADIOHEAD LETS YOU PAY WHAT YOU WANT.
411: This past month Radiohead has embarked in a new form of providing music to their fans and a fresh new idea to generate marketing buzz. On October 10th, they released their seventh studio album, "In Rainbows" on their website for fans to purchase. Okay, so that's not so revolutionary, but what is unique is that they're allowing their fans to pay what they want for the album. Basically, they're relying on their reputation and music to sell their albums instead of the normal marketing blitz. Yet, this whole thing has generated a lot of buzz. They are already wealthy men so giving it away isn't that big of a deal for the most part. It's common sense in the industry that a band makes more money touring than through record sales. But their record sales won't be hurt that much. Like a Tool, Nine Inch Nails, or Pearl Jam, they have a die hard fan base who will buy everything they release and get them to Number 1 on the Billboard charts for at least one week. And let's not forget they're releasing a deluxe edition of the album with fancy packaging for $80 soon! So, if we take into consideration the majority of new releases are $10, each one of the diehards is buying EIGHT albums to make up for anyone who decided not to pay anything for the digital download. So basically what I see this as is a huge middle finger to the record label, while not losing any money or indie cred.
KANYE WEST vs. 50 CENT: THE RELEASE WAR.
411: On September 11th, 2007 the Billboard charts had a lot more attention than normal. It all started a while before that date when 50 Cent declared that he'd retire from music if Kayne West sold more albums than he the opening week of their respected albums sales. Then the battle of words grew leaps and bounds. The internet, radio, television, and everyone was talking about the Release War. In a post Biggie vs. Pac war, there were no guns drawn or anything violent. It was purely a rivalry with each hyping their music as if it were a local high school's pep rally. They both sold a shit load of albums and got people to actually go out and buy a disc rather than steal it off line (which, many still did). Even my local rock station, Chicago's Q101 got on board and helped push Kanye's album and "Stronger" single to a not-so-common market. Not to get all preachy, but I knew Kanye would win. He has more to say, more talent, and his music is more accessible to more people. I'm just not a fan of thug rap. Now we look back and know that Kanye won and that 50 isn't retiring, but it was still all in good fun.
TRENT REZNOR'S YEAR ZERO EXTRAVAGANZA.
411: Months before the April 2007 release of Nine Inch Nails' "Year Zero" album, clues started to hit the internet. These clues would later be revealed as part of an alterative reality game in order to coexist with and promote the album. With NIN being my favorite band, I got hooked line and sinker on the whole experience. Trent Reznor basically builds an entire world around the concept album and gave fans an experience that can not be compared to anything else. There were phone numbers to call, websites to visit, clues on merch, and so much more that all tied Reznor's view of the future world together. Fans would lose sleep as they deciphered the clues to help the entire community expand on this great interactive experience. While it wasn't the first ARG, the buzz grew on Trent's interactive marketing concept to the point that it's found in many entertainment mediums now. From movies to now even professional wrestling, giving the fans "something to do" while anticipating a release is a great move. While some venues are using it as a blatant marketing technique, Reznor maintained his creditability, self respect, and artistic vision. That and the fact that he turned marketing into an art form is what separate the "Year Zero" experience from most others.
U2 AND THE IPOD.
411: U2 has always had a huge impact on music and their marketing collaboration with Apple's iPod would be no different. The first single on "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" ("Vertigo") was heavily featured a widely-aired commercial for the iPod. It didn't stop there, as they also released a special edition U2 iPod as well as an iTunes U2 Box Set. The album ended up debuting at number one on the charts in 32 countries, setting a record for the band. On the surface this would be considered "selling out", but from what we found out at their induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame from Bruce Springstein this was not the case. The band took not one cent from Apple for the commercials. They enjoyed the product and endorsed it as much as they endorsed them. It was a fair trade and U2 didn't officially "sell out". Realistically, it's safe to say their involvement with those iPod ads really were the start of a whole new revolution. Let's not forget that "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" is a kick ass album as well.
What are some of your favorite band's marketing techniques?
What has a band done differently in order to gain your attention?
MY N.E.R.D "In Search of…" CD REVIEW IN 420 WORDS OR LESS
I wanted to review a random CD from my collection and this gem came up. This debut of Pharrell Williams and the crew was an album ahead of it's time in 2002. The main single from this album was "Rock Star", which is really how I got introduced to them. Other tracks stood out though like the often heard "Lapdance" or not so known tracks like "Run to the Sun", "Brain", or "Stay Together". I remember buying this CD, losing it, borrowing it from a friend, and then never returning it. Rightfully so, I think he kept my Audioslave CD. I am happy to say I got the better deal on that. This album is what started the Pharrell revolution. It wouldn't be long before you heard him and/or his beats on albums by Jay Z, Kayne West, Busta Rhymes, Snoop, and even Madonna. If you like any of those musicians or just good beats with a vocalist with something genuine to say over them this is disc you need to pick up. I'll even go as far as saying pay for it as well. It's worth the money and it'll be something you'll kick yourself for missing when it came out.
This upcoming weekend we're planning to go out and shoot one or two Chicago shows. Unless something comes up, I'll have footage of whatever we shoot in next week's column. And HOPEFULLY, I'll have news on The Moving Men's DVD release date. We were aiming for an October release date and dammit we're going to have an October release date. Until then… Have a Great Week!
