Saturday, September 27, 2014

Marketing

In music, as with any business, one of the most important aspects to be successful is being able to effectively market yourself.  Making yourself appealing to potential investors (Record Labels and Executives) is vital to not only getting signed to a label but staying signed to a label.  Marketing includes everything from your public image to who your friends are.  In most local rap/hip hop scenes you can find the cliques.  The groups of friends who are local heroes but will never make it out of their local area.  The main reasons for this can be seen all over their Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and all other social media.  Here are three examples I have personally witnessed in my local area that will and have limited artists from being marketable:

1. Blatant and over usage of drugs and alcohol.  Now anyone who doesn't realize most rappers have or do currently smoke weed, dab wax, or drink while partying is obviously blind.  In this case multiple times a day you will see them post their wax, drug paraphernalia, or them doing the drugs.  This is a sure fire way to turn investors off.  They do not want to inherit a "Problem Child" or someone who is addicted to these things so much it limits their productivity and availability.  If you need to be high or drunk at all times during the day while not on the road you will definitely over do it while on tour and cost the company money.  That is why groups like the Kottonmouth Kings and others have limited their reach.  Are they successful?  Hell yes but they came in at a different time where there was no social media.  Today your life is on peoples screens 24/7.  At any given minute people can log in and find out what you are doing, who you are with, and what you had to eat for dinner.  Social media allows fans and investors alike to see you scrapping for every dollar while still posting all your drug and alcohol pics.  If these artists invested that money back into their music and image they could be a lock for a contract.

2. Your friends.  In social media everyone knows who you hang with, get drunk and high with, and what you are doing at all times.  If you are hanging out with bums who can't hold job, act like thugs or gangsters, or post anti-establishment propaganda you will most likely not get any interest, no matter how good you are.  Your friends and associated are a direct extension of who you are.  In some cases give the best possible look into your personality and habits.  The days of Gangster rap are long gone so having a ton of pics or tags with you and your friends flashing gang signs is probably not the best idea.  Posting anti-cop posts is also not going to help you.  No label wants the authorities eye because of an artist who yells Fuck the Police every other post or tweet.  Another way this hurts you is that you may be in a group of 5-10 guys and no label is willing to sign all of you.  In most cases there is one or two guys in that group worthy and the rest become D-12.

3. Associates or political causes.  Not since Public Enemy came out with Fight the Power has there been a really successful political rapper.  Sure there are big names that have taken up causes like legalizing weed, helping foreign nations, or brought awareness to political candidates.  Most of the time these people are anti-establishment and it is ok because they have made it and are already huge stars.  There are very limited people who are unknown and new to the business that are successful when trying these things.  With popularity and money you can afford to tarnish your image a little and still be successful.  If you are struggling to make it this is a sure way to make them pass and move onto someone else.

There is way too much competition in this business to fall victim to any of these things.  All three of these are easily avoidable.  Now before anyone hits my comment section with "Yo I am from the street, this is who I am.  Fuck them if they don't want it." remember that your image is important. 

If you pay attention in your local area you too will see these artist and realize I am 100% right in this case.  I understand there are exceptions to these rules but for a majority of artists these will hold true.  The ones who make it are called out as being fake or selling out.  When in reality they did things the right way and made the right first impression.

MMFWFL,

Juggalotus

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