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When your collaboration can make or break another’s product, you have achieved the top of the musical food chain. The road to this position is not quantified in dollars but rather from the influence of your work, as fame remains a question of reach and authority above all.
Dropping a bomb in the music industry is all about maximizing, capitalizing and optimizing that nexus of interaction between your story and the user. By scaling your brand through proper branding, authentic collaborations, strategic releasing and diversified visibility, your art can do more than enchant the user — it can trigger viewership toward wider engagement actions.
Branding: Level One of One
Branding is a mosaic of an artist’s characteristics. The totality represents the identity, intention and integrity of the art itself. If as an artist, your brand’s archetype cannot answer the five Ws (who, what, when, where, why) and cousin H (how), you definitely have a few tiles missing in that mosaic.
For example, Moneybagg Yo, the American rapper and fashion influencer, has developed a brand identity that encapsulates wealth, streetwear and the infamous “money talks” lifestyle. (Full disclosure: Moneybagg Yo is a former client of MPT Agency.) As he explains in his interview with Angela Martinez, looking fancy — even using fake jewelry — was something he had to do to compete and maximize the visibility of his archetype. His brand’s raison d’etre is to exude wealth and power. Whether he was able to personally afford this lavish character or not was secondary to the importance of representing it in public.
Content Release Strategy: Abundance Helps Flood
Having a large portfolio of content can be a powerful asset in generating mass engagement and making a brand of the campaign itself. Ambition when executed with impunity can be an unstoppable force in the market. Content is a space you create to give room to talk about your work, whatever it is you’re releasing. Figure that it will be projected through your deployment and when the public consumes it, they are engaging you through that space. Make the music a part of something bigger than just content — and make content something bigger than just the post.
For instance, in 2017, R-Mean, the LA rapper, used a campaign strategy to take his music releases to the next level. (Full disclosure: R-Mean is a former client of MPT Agency.) Both bold and consistent in delivery, he released 52 songs in 52 weeks to virally compound his reach. The campaign became a testament to the form of scaled content, which became more chances to like, share and comment.
Diversify Through Your Own Shadow
When you get to the edge of your creative personality, it’s time to reach out and build with others. Your brand can be complementary to others’ attitudes, can have similar target markets, etc. In either case, you need to accept that you are and will never be all-encompassing; collaboration and diversification of your talent are a natural part of the industry and your rise to fame.
50 Cent went from rapper to entrepreneur within the first few years of his big break. Despite his bankruptcy in 2015, 50 Cent had a stake in parallel markets to his music, including fashion, spirits and beverages, and even metals and accessories. Today, he’s deeply involved in film, HBO television and all things now behind the scenes.
The Rolling Stone Culture Council is an invitation-only community for Influencers, Innovators and Creatives. Do I qualify?
Collaboration Is Key
Synchronizing your releases with partners in the ecosystem around you can give you an advantage. The most important part of strategic collaborations is that they are executed with precision. Such collaborative efforts could naturally bring a lot of new retinas to your brand.
For instance, the Canadian electro-pop act Jeff Fettes (a.k.a. Riotron) has worked with top names in the business to propel his brand. Teaming up with the legend Big Freedia on a new song opened up segues into newer circles with its message about self-love and self-acceptance: both very powerful themes in music branding. On account of the algorithmic nature of search engines upon Big Freedia’s recent collab on Beyonce’s album, Renaissance, for the single, “Break My Soul,” Riotron is now a part of a wider range of search terms, increasing his visibility amongst diagonal content pools.
Conclusion
The art of collaboration can be done in four strategic ways as an artist. At a primary level, you need to fine-tune your branding. If you can’t afford the car you are talking about, at least take some pictures in one. When releasing content, look at the totality of the campaign rather than the individual post. The means could invariably impact the ends.
Diversifying your artistic output is not a rebrand, it is an augmentation of your character and reputation. As an artist, your voice can be heard on different stages. Don’t be afraid to take a relevant leap; your talent will speak for itself and help you build a solid network.
Collaborations done vertically or diagonally in your industry can only expand your reach. When your sound meshes well with another person’s style, this is a window of opportunity to build a powerful organic bond. Don’t be afraid or greedy to share the spotlight. If your music can make more people happy, what are you waiting for?
