Music is a hard job – there’s a lot of labor involved in developing one’s artistry, projects, and persona. Not only do musicians have to meet the expectations of audiences, but they also have to exceed those expectations, and give them something new.
Musicians do these things in a crowded market. There are over 3 million musicians listed on Spotify, each vying for the attention of audiences.
Even more, musicians must not only attract the attention of audiences, but motivate those audiences to repeatedly engage with their work, transforming listeners into fans. Musicians must not only ‘stand out’ but do so in a way that lasts over time.
The Economics of Music
Why is music this way? In short, it’s because of the economics of music.
Music is what is called a ‘winner-take-all’ market. In a winner-take-all market, small changes in the perceived quality of a good leads to large feedbacks in attention and profit.
In plain English, when something is perceived to be better than others in a market, it gets more attention and money, causing that thing to skyrocket quickly in success. When something is perceived to be ‘good’ or of ‘high-quality’, it develops a reputation for it, attracting new audiences to that good because of its reputation.
In music, our word for this phenomenon is exposure. When musicians have high-quality work and are exposed to audiences, they develop a reputation with them, causing audiences to repeatedly consume a musicians’ work.
Exposure is a snowball effect. If someone is a great musician, becoming popular causes one to continue to become popular. To survive winner-take-all markets, musicians must first win those markets.
Getting Known
To stand out in music, musicians must first look at their audience to get the ball rolling.
Their approaches must be catered to their current and potential audiences. What is the current music present in the genre your audiences are in? What personas and stories are being told in those spaces?
Musicians need to be both broad and particular – they need to not only fit the established conventions of a genre, but lean into some form of uniqueness, exceeding those conventions in some way. Whether it be via superior talent, artistry, storytelling, or character; musicians stand out in the music market by being great at something valuable to audiences.
Furthermore, musicians must be able to communicate that they are great at something to particular audiences. The way in which musicians do this is through a brand.
While branding is traditionally thought of in terms of logos and slogans, the brands that musicians cultivate are different from those of other businesses and firms. They are not about products; they are about the musicians themselves. Musicians talk about themselves when they brand.
This is because brands are reputations. They are simply stories that people maintain.
Because audiences demand that musicians showcase their talent, artistry, storytelling, or character, the brands that musicians cultivate must communicate that they possess these qualities.
Luckily, this means that any musician can engage in the brand practices necessary to differentiate themselves and stand out. Because everyone has a unique story, they have everything necessary to stand out from others in the crowd.
Use this story to be known to audiences.
Getting Help
At the same time, developing a brand is a lot of work. This is why services such as creative agencies, media agencies, and public relations exist.
They help distribute the labor of branding. They help get the ball rolling, allowing for musicians to overcome winner-take-all markets.
For help cultivating a brand and help getting known by audiences, please take a look at the various services Starlight provides. We have all the tools necessary to help musicians at any stage of their career.
