Photo: Ben Cumming.

I have been encouraging several artists starting new projects, and the accepted workflow and landscape has changed so much, it’s forcing them to sit down and truly think about what they have to say, who they need to say it to, and why. Sinking into oblivion is all too easy with tired shotgun approaches to no one in particular with some vague idea about stardom one day. Questions about what to measure, what success means, and where to focus limited resources become crucial. As they wade into writing, recording and releasing their new material, they almost have to bring as much talent to their marketing plans as they do to their music. With the abundance of music at our fingertips, fans are more discerning than ever, and artists cannot keep using the old models if they expect to thrive.

The good news is that innovative companies create and test new models every day. While focusing on your art, you must keep your eyes open. Or make sure someone on your team does. Take for instance, my current favorite called Sponsored Songs by ReverbNation and Microsoft. Artists can sell ads along side their digitally downloaded album covers and give the songs away for free. Advertisers pay the artists now instead of the fans. Head smack brilliant!

Even though the major record labels are holding onto whatever they can of the past, many new artists are realizing that they do need the business help labels traditionally offered them. Just because the Internet levels the playing field doesn’t mean an independent artist can play fast or smart enough to sustain. Between social and mobile media, video, globalization, and upcoming technology not even on the radar yet like holographic technology, all beaming and streaming your concert or message around the world instantly, every middle man between you and your fans are crumbling fast. And it’s not slowing down.

John Mayer posted a great little diagram on his blog called Battle Studies, which tracks his entire journey to create his latest record. I typed it up below:

Workflow Chronology

FIG. 1 – “The Old Way”

|— write —|— demo —|— record —|— mix —|— master —|— photos —|
|— artwork —|— press —|— tour —|

FIG. 2 – “The New Way”

|— write —|
|— demo —|— mix —|— master —|
|— record —|
|——- artwork + visual media ——–|—> tour
|——————- press ——————|

Just the visual of the process condensing down is enough to see how much faster artists can launch new projects with the right tools. They can be writing, demo’ing, and recording while their designers complete their album art and videographers shoot their video blogs. While they are at their photo shoot, which is streamed live directly to their fans’ mobile phones and browsers, they are simultaneously shooting their documentary film, tweeting their favorite local cuisine and being written up on the latest music blogs. By the time they hit the road, their new single has been downloaded by thousands, streamed on Internet radio by thousands more, and their fans feel so connected to them that they have to come to their show.

And it doesn’t stop there. Creative video blogs from the road, like this one by Mat Kearney, further build rapport with fans. The best concert idea I’ve seen lately has also come out of his last tour – the photobooth concept. How do you make your name, new album, and tour viral? Plaster your fans’ faces all over them at the show. Then tell them how they can get their photos online to post on all their bloggity blogs and facey spaces. As an added bones, the photobooth creates a memorable experience for his fans and produces an unforgettable keepsake. Double head smack brilliant!

If this sounds like an overwhelmingly fast race you cannot win, it is not. Don’t compare your music, art, ministry, process, or marketing to others. Stop. Breathe. Think. You are the artist. You have the most tools, models, and ideas available to you than any other artists in the history of the world. Now go out there and inspire us. Lead us. Save the world. Just don’t blink.

Video: Michael Masnick at Midem '09.

If you are an artist who feels stuck in your art and not sure what direction to head, you are not alone. What I have found though is that you are only limited by your own creativity. I personally have been in a rut artistically, especially in this transitional time in the creative industries and greater economy. I feel like there is so much opportunity, so many tools, and so much freedom, that I am paralyzed. I feel like a painter given a huge white canvas and told to paint anything. Outside distractions easily keep me from using my creativity to find ways around my perceived limitations. The good news is that there are ways to break out!

Are you a musician? Take notes on how Trent Reznor builds his business. Are you a photographer? Take notes on how Chase Jarvis builds his business. Are you a cartoonist? Take notes on how Hugh MacLeod builds his business. The list goes on and on. These men are thriving in the arts during a time when others are hanging it up and throwing in the towel. The difference? Simple creativity.

Creativity costs nothing. Except maybe brain power. Stop. Think. Write down your crazy, impossible, wacky, fun ideas. Don’t limit yourself. Make a list. Then only share it with others you know can think bigger than these ideas. You may not know these people. I know here in Nashville, they are plentiful. If you do not know any big thinkers, you are smart to keep this list to yourself. Pick one idea that you like most, and then figure out ways to pull it off for free. You may need volunteers. You may need to recruit students needing class credit. You may need to borrow gear. You may need to exchange something you have of value for something you need. You may need to politely ask someone for something. Do it!

Only after you have accomplished your new idea I believe, should you then share it with those who think smaller than you. Watch their reaction. They may say you cannot do it. They may call it stupid. They may point out where you will fail. Then you can kindly share that they are wrong. Because you already did it, and you know what works. It might even nudge the dreamer asleep in their heart.

Wash. Rinse. Repeat. Trent Reznor is innovating so fast, those that follow his marketing moves cannot even keep up. The last I heard, he was rolling out his own iPhone App for his fans to connect better. According to Michael Masnick of Floor64, he follows this business model:

CwF + RtB = $$$

This translates, “Connect with Fans” plus “Reason to Buy” equals “Money” to sustain. Chase Jarvis recently gave a talk entitled The Consequences of Creativity where he shared a very similar model for the photography world, or more accurately, the content publishing world:

Create >> Share >> Sustain

His point was to share everything we create, no matter how large or small, and that the results of those creative moves will spawn ways you can sustain your creativity.

Now, many creatives just starting off like myself may argue that these business models help only those with money, connections, fans, time, publicity, or the benefits of old-school traditional marketing that make launching new ideas easy. I hear this argument loud and clear. And for some, it is valid. For most, however, including myself, it is totally an excuse to feel better. To let our inner realist kick our inner dreamer around and feel good about it. But bullies never change the world.

If you’re a small thinker, hater, or safety chaser,
whiner, realist, or black coffee maker,
take just a moment to visit a dreamer,
or even better yet the King of all dreamers,
and find an idea that tickles your fancy,
create it, connect it, and share it where all see
the incredible fruit of your creativity.

Photo: nati.

So I’m here in Nashville with my ear to the ground. The music industry is in upheaval. The game is changing. Some are holding on to the ‘industry’ as Seth Godin describes, while others are done predicting the future and starting to react to the tools and platforms available. Gary Vaynerchuk makes this point clearly. Reactionary business is now the name of the game. Spend time on what is happening now instead of worrying about the future or holding on to the past.

I recently went to hear a buddy play downtown, and he had been touring on his own to small crowds as any hardworking musician does these days. His CD sales were lacking, and he was racking his brain on what to do next that would get him to that next level. He gave a solid performance, and after the show he had several well wishers pat him on the back as they walked out. His eyes lit up in gratitude as he stood around his merch table.

I congratulated him for a job well done and watched for the interactions at the table. Almost everyone who said they had a great time, enjoyed his music, or were glad he came kept walking. They didn’t buy his CD or t-shirt, or even touch them. Maybe they remembered his name and how to spell it, will go home to Google it, find his website, and buy his music there. Or maybe they were all fans already. I doubt it. They paid to have a relaxing time after work. They weren’t interested in being a fan or following anyone. They got what they wanted. The question is, did he?

Did he get what he wanted when he drove all hours of the night and day to get there? When he lugged his gear in and sound checked it? When he played his heart out? When he heard the cheers from the crowd? When he was the star for a moment and all eyes were on him? When he belted out that melody? When he fought the club owner for his fair share of the door? I hope so because without sales, these are his profit.

I asked him what he thought about giving his music to all those that talked to him after the show. His face immediately scrunched up. “No way!” he said with conviction. “I don’t believe in giving music away for free. I worked hard and spent a lot of money to produce a quality product! I’m not just going to devalue my work like that.”

His mind stood exactly where many in the industry still stand. In the past. The accepted way you make money as a musician. Somewhere between the radio and the internet, artists forgot that they had been giving away their music on the radio for years in exchange for mass exposure. The blind spot? Mass market exposure is on the way out; word of mouth is on the way in. Radio play doesn’t guarantee much anymore, but personal word of mouth does. Niche markets with small groups of people do. If the new radio is the iPod, you must ensure you are getting airtime. If that involves giving your hit single to thousands more tiny radios, it’s time to start using that creativity. I am of course speaking specifically of the unknown artist trying to stand out.

“Can I ask you something?” I paused, hoping he would following me. “Did any of those people who said they loved your music buy anything?”

“No.”

“So it’s safe to say that they probably won’t buy anything when they get home either, even if they remember your name?” I asked as nicely as I could.

He started to squirm, “Maybe.”

“What if you gave them a CD or a free download?” I said as he started listening. “You would have not only gained potential new fans for the future, but they might have told some friends about you, as they relayed what a brilliant time they had tonight at your show. They would have probably listened to your music all the way home and sang it in the shower in the morning.”

He was starting to nod like he was swallowing some not-so-tasty medicine.

I went for the closer. “How much is it costing you not to give your music away?”

He had to think about that one. I’m sure he had to think about his goals and what he was trying to accomplish driving to Nashville to play. Was it for the love? For the money? For both? I started to think about it too. If you set aside your ego and doing music purely for the love of it, and break it down into a monetary transaction, you are left with customer acquisition cost. Not a phrase artists like to think about. How much money does each new fan cost you to win over? This is an important measure to think about because without fans, or potential customers, you are not in business. You are in a hobby.

Now, you could argue that the club was really his customer and if he made enough to profit after all his expenses and time, he came out on top and can sustain his music career. And that argument might work if you are in the business of selling beer. But most artists I know are selling the experience, their music, their message, to their audience, not other businesses. Of course, this begs the question, is the game leaning more toward music as an advertising vehicle? Or has it always been? How will you react?

Photo: JEKY.

I just read about Joaquin Phoenix deciding to put down acting and pick up hip-hop. I couldn’t be more inspired! Why do so many people have to hate on him? So what if he plays a great Johnny Cash in Walk the Line, the brother wants to rap.

I find it unbelievable how people just cannot handle it when someone builds a reputation for doing X and then decides to do Y. Life is short. There are 50 billion things to do in this world, and the man wants to do more than one. Something that gets his creativity going more than acting. Cut him some slack. Seriously. And it matters little why he is making this decision.

How many white boys want to bust it straight up, but the stereotype is stacked against them? I hear all the time that hip-hop is an attitude, a movement, something that crosses all barriers to unify people with music. Joaquin’s a test, and so far, all I hear is negativity. Just like when Michael Jordan tried to play baseball. Just like when Garth Brooks went emo.

I had tinkered around with hip-hop when I played in a rock band back in school because I admire its passion, energy, and simplicity. Now, I just might pick up where I left off. Thanks Joaquin.