Increase your visability Pt1

 During the month of February I am featuring  additional ways for you to get more visibility  as a D.I.Y. Indie Artist.

Seasonal- Current Events:

Valentines day is less than 2 weeks away.

Regardless of your customer or fan base demographic  it’s not hard to find fans who Love, Love. 

Marilyn Manson on Love: 

“When you're taught to love everyone,  then what value does that place on love?”

The most popular topic in best selling music is Love... endless, unrequited, or broken dreams these are all themes that we can all relate to.

Whether you “Set fire to the rain”  a perfect example of a well written metaphor for burning tears.   Rhianna's “we found love”  ,  or Good Feeling by Flo Rida.

What song has had the longest reign at #1?   

A love song of course!  “One sweet day” sung by  Maraih Carey and Boyz 2 Men held the top spot for 4 months!

Let’s assume you don’t have the fanbase that Adele, Flo Rida, Rhianna or Mariah have. 

How does this help you?   

Photo Credit: Tamra Engle-  Artist Vincenta Flores Ataucusi:  

Look to your heart. 

Most of us have had our heart broken, and have fallen in love at one time or another, with a human or special pet.  Describe in in broad themes what that was like for you, Have fun, and write the best song you can, then  make a  good  quality demo recording of it.   Allow yourself enough time to print them with out expedited shipping charges to save money.

Are you extra creative? You can make a very cute limited edition artwork Valentine CD covers. Love themed packaging.

*On the CD make sure you have a printed label, 
because quality matters!

 Don’t forget to include your name, or the bands name, the URL to your website, and  email for booking inquiries.     Make sure the holder of the CD can find you again!

You have so many options, to creatively get your music into the hands of other “lovers”- Savvy business owners are looking for easy ways to bring more customers into their stores.

Some possible idea’s:

 Think of the places you would pop into to get that person a little treat or take  “that special someone".  

Create a  Partnernership w/ your local card shop, specialty chocolate shop, local winery, or gift boutique.

Offer to help organize a special musical shopping event- where shoppers are  given a free copy of your valentine song to everyone that purchases something. Include special shopping times  to have a in store solo acoustic performance to bring more shoppers into their store. 

 Or do you have cool limited addition Tshirts that tie into the song theme?  you have created a additional revenue opportunity around the holiday theme  for upcoming shows, or to add to your online merchandise store.

Another idea:

Offer your fans to purchase a extra "special valentine"-

You can sell :30 acoustic solo dinner performance(s) in the homes of special valentines- make it “affordable”  so you can book several in a evening.

Decide how many :30 sets you want to play on and around Valentines day.

Think of it as a mini tour in a day or two, at the end of a couple of days you will have full pockets.

Not a fan of Love?  Then take on a current event.

There is SO much material right now just begging to be used.  

Topics for you to consider?

Love Sucks:  Taking a counterpoint view on the holiday

Super bowl- Madonna Parodies anyone?  Please I’m dying to see them!

Occupy Movement- Remember, we are still mad at the banks?

The Election / Presidents day:  You can make a career poking fun at the power mongers, and so much rhymes with Newt, Mitt, Barak…

Partner with other local business owners to create a fun event, make sure you have something to give your fans so they remember you, grow your business network, and help another business owner.   Utilizing the momentum of a holiday that has shopping involved, allows new fans to spend money buying your products.

Do you want to  increase your visability even more?  Share the links to your songs, and video’s in the comment section below. 

Tamra Engle is a independent business strategist and artist manager based in the S.F. bay area.  She is available for private consultations, and project management services to help you develop your creative business.  You can read more about her at www.TamraEngle.com  email her at guitartam@gmail.com

Photo Credits:

Baking Love- Photo Credit: Tamra Engle-  Artist Vincenta Flores Ataucusi:  http://www.folkartmarket.org/index.php/profiles/entry/vincenta_flores-ataucusi/\

 Marilyn Manson photo credit:

 http://www.pictures19.com/wp-content/pictures/2011/06/Marilyn-Manson-wallpaper.jpg

Links that were mentioned in this blog:

Adele: “set fire to the rain” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCLS_ztGOBk

Rhianna http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg00YEETFzg&ob=av2e

Flo Rida Good Feeling http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OnnDqH6Wj8

“One sweet day” (Maraih Carey & B2M) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXxRyNvTPr8

Jimmy Fallon Kirsten Dunst Madonna parody http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJ0gCoYHb_I

We are all born superstars

 I watched a 60 minutes interview before the 53rd Grammy telecast  featuring Stephani Germonatta.  

Stephani, is a  University of New York drop out, who began studying piano at 4, and went to a catholic girls school, where she was bullied and felt she never fit in.

You look at her in this 2006 picture you don’t notice anything particularly interesting or memorable about her right?  Fortunatly, Stephani knew this too...

Most of you probably do not even know about Stephani Germonatta, but more about her tireless alter ego who has been touring for the better part of 3 years Lady Gaga, the Alexander McQueen boot wearing fashonista who totters around from award show to award show.

 When Gaga performs, I am consistently reminded of other artists. A carefully blended compilation of 5 or 6 mega stars that came before her, artists who all intimately knew their own brand, and applied it  quite successfully to their business.

 Gaga, is a self-proclaimed student of art, fashion, and claims “I am the master of the art of fame”.   Studying the artistry of others, while being a creation all her own.

When you watch Gaga at the piano, you see, Elton & Freddie Mercury. On stage, Cher, Madonna Alice Cooper and a little Wendy O Williams.  All of whom were ALSO experts of their own brands.

She preaches her mantra of self-empowerment, and self-acceptance, and it draws the masses to her in droves like bee’s to honey. To her emotive tear stained fans she testifies from the stage: “Tonight- reject anything or anyone who has ever made you feel like you don’t belong, Free yourself of these things tonight!!” She speaks these words from her heart, as one of them.  They view her as their queen,  and she lovingly refers to them as “her little monsters” are devoted to her.

   Gaga presents herself as a piece of living performance art, not simply a pop star, or even queen.  

She is a self proclaimed academic when it comes to music and fashion,  every piece of clothing, make up, and props, she has completely researched and studied the reference of it. Who inspired it, to help reinforce the story or concept she is selling.  At the VMA awards wearing nothing but raw meat and accompanied by several discharged gay service men, she explained this was her commentary on don’t ask don’t tell. 

Her outrageous outfits are a brilliant distraction to keep people from asking questions about her personal life.  “as part of mastering the art of fame" "is getting people to focus on what YOU want them to pay attention to”. Gaga warns “What most artists do wrong, is lie to their fans, “I am not a liar, I build good will with my fans, I am just like them”.

The sociology of how people got, kept, and lost fame, allows her to maintain a certain privacy without feeling them feeling like she is withholding anything from her fans.  Whether it’s performing Paparazzi covered in stage blood, hanging “dead” above the stage, answers the question you might wonder- What will she look like when she is dead? Gaga explains,“Everyone wants to see the decay of the superstar, we live in a age where people want to see someone who has it all, lose it all”.

 It’s dramatic and the masses eat it up so fast that Forbes magazine predicts she is on track to make 100 million this year.

Gaga is a graduate student who uses messages that resonate deeply with her to weave into a persona for the masses and it remains to be seen whether she will have the staying power of the giants that came before her, for hear and now it's great theatre, and a master class on what is essential to the making of a mega star.

How do you utilize themes important to you to differentiate your brand, and grow your fan base?

 I would love to hear your stories.

References:

60 minutes Anderson Cooper:  http://dai.ly/hFzzJe

Photo credits:

http://bumpshack.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/lady-gaga-aka-stephanie-germanotta-guidette-photos.jpg

http://gossip.whyfame.com/files/2010/02/lady_gaga.jpg

http://www.mytimesdispatch.com/images/uploads/lady_gaga_90713673.jpg