There aren’t many stories quite like Macklemore’s; the Seattle born rapper has been making music for 12 years, but it was earlier in 2012, upon his debut release “Heist” (with Ryan Lewis), when he shot to mainstream fame. Just hours after “Heist” dropped it had secured the #1 spot on the iTunes Album Chart, before entering in at #2 on US Billboard 200. But even before these successes, the pair had sold out 18 of 27 shows on tour across the US and UK. No label, just pure fan support.
Macklemore’s DIY success story shows us the power of fan based communities; he essentially harvested a large, dynamic fanbase without label support, and you can learn from his story to build your own.
This two-week course focuses on three key elements of building a large fan based community: 1) knowing your audience; 2) creatively packaging your content; and 3) focusing on the media that matters. By the end of this class you will have a clear audience profile for your future fanbase and basic content that will speak to them.
The online discussion forum will act as a platform to discuss ideas and the case study with myself and Music Technology Evangelist Brenna Ehrlich of MTV O Music Awards, CNN Tech and Mashable. Additionally there will be two live casts where that will review the lecture and chat about some of the themes emerging from the forum.
Whether you are an Artist, Producer, Manager, Publicist or Promoter starting from scratch this course gives you the first step towards a viable and sustainable career in music.
I have helped MTV, EMI Music, Brands and artists of every calibre form Armin Van Buuren to the Soundcloud Producer to identify audiences and connect with over 500,000 fans, building communities from the ground up. I hope to share knowledge with my students so they too can do the same.
CLASS AWARD: The student that produces the best fan character and most creative content will be featured on the homepage of MTV Artists.
Digital Music Strategy, MTV
Amber Horsburgh is a NYC based Digital Strategist who specializes in Music Marketing. She has implemented campaigns for MTV, EMI Music and Creamfields Australia working with artists of every calibre from Armin Van Buuren to the Soundcloud Producer. Amber helps Musicians bring to life their brands ... view full bio
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