Most musicians transfer on too quickly.
They put all their artistic deal with the subsequent launch. Or they solely promote their newest work, neglecting all of the songs that got here earlier than.
However taking your consideration off your older tracks is a mistake. As a result of there are three massive causes why it’s best to proceed to market ALL the music in your again catalog.
Why your previous music deserves new consideration:
- The primary and easiest purpose? Good music is good music. Whereas YOU is perhaps centered in your latest stuff, your older releases will nonetheless be model new to many of the world.
- Subsequent, your again catalog is a income. Your present followers already like your older music. So discover causes to maintain ’em coming again to stream tracks and purchase associated merch.
For these causes and extra, you may’t neglect your again catalog.
On this article, I’ll offer you an inventory of how to encourage present followers to replay music they already love, and to entice new followers who’ll dive into your whole catalog.
Tips on how to convey contemporary curiosity to older music
1. Have fun album anniversaries
Anytime one among your albums turns 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25…
… it’s an apparent probability to have a good time that music over again. You don’t at all times want remastering or bonus editions to commemorate an album’s birthday.
You may retell the story of the album. Ship an e mail. Make social posts.
It doesn’t need to be a year-long celebration, however at the least give the anniversary a month of content material and reminiscences. And — that is essential — bear in mind to inform your followers precisely the place to go to hear once more!
2. Drop unreleased tracks
Not all the pieces you share needs to be a elegant diamond. In actual fact, not all the pieces you share even must be completed.
In case you deserted a observe throughout a selected session, share it and inform us why it by no means made it onto an album. You may launch demos. Alternate takes. Something that helps construct a much bigger story round a earlier interval of labor.
And if it doesn’t really feel worthy of strangers’ consideration, you don’t need to distribute the music to platforms like Spotify. Simply share it immediately together with your followers and e mail subscribers.
3. Do a collaborator shoutout!
Typically self-promotion looks like tooting your individual horn. In case you wrestle with that, overlook about your self for a minute and brag about your collaborators.
Did a participant, bandmate, featured visitor, producer, or co-writer contribute one thing wonderful? One thing you can’ve by no means accomplished by yourself? Sing their praises. It’s a good way to indicate gratitude whereas additionally bringing consideration to your individual music.
If in case you have a daily collaborator, you’ll have much more choices as a result of you may spotlight a number of moments you admire from them all through your catalog.
4. Playlists, playlists, playlists
Playlists offer you virtually limitless methods to contextualize your music.
You may group your tracks by:
- collaborator
- temper or style
- subject or theme
- interval of your profession
- a selected city you lived in whereas creating the music
- influences
- instrumentation
- different musical parts like key, tempo, and so on.
- success metrics (“Biggest Hits” or “Greatest Misses”)
5. An artist’s-choice content material sequence
Create a couple of completely different, brief, themed, content material sequence that you could run on social and e mail, corresponding to:
- The songs I’m proudest of
- My 3 finest lyrical strains
- 5 stuff you didn’t find out about me
- My prime 10 movies
- 3 individuals who formed my music
- My favourite guitar solo
I believe you get the purpose. You provide you with an idea that requires a number of emails or posts, and use the theme to generate deeper and sustained curiosity in your older music.
In case you set these up as automated e mail sequences, you may even schedule them to be delivered all year long to anybody who has lately subscribed to your record. And naturally, ship these to EVERYONE in your record when the sequence is first created.
6. “Free (plus delivery & handing!)”
Have you ever ever heard or a Free + Transport & Dealing with music provide?
It’s an attention-grabbing advertising campaign-type the place you provide to ship somebody one thing without cost, so long as they pay for delivery.
As soon as they’ve entered their cost information, you then current a second (and even third) provide for added merch gadgets — normally with a limited-time low cost.
Not everybody will elect to buy further gadgets, in fact, but when sufficient individuals do, you may revenue AND construct your e mail record concurrently, all whereas making a gift of your music.
7. Reside listening events!
Host an occasion the place you inform individuals attention-grabbing details concerning the songs earlier than or whereas the music performs.
This may be accomplished digitally on Discord, X, or Twitch. Or it might happen IRL at somebody’s house, venue, or artwork area.
8. One-off efficiency movies
Nobody mentioned you want a particular purpose to carry out your individual tunes!
Shoot a dwell efficiency video for Reels and TikTok. Who cares if the tune is 2 or twenty years previous? Then discover the very best 15-second clip. Put up it.
If one among these dwell movies will get traction, you may comply with up with extra supporting content material.
9. Carry out a selected album
We’ve all seen artists stage a themed tour round a selected album.
Roger Waters has accomplished this for Darkish Aspect of the Moon. U2 did it for The Joshua Tree. You may do it too…
… for ANY of your earlier albums.
In actual fact, I as soon as did a 7-day residency at a venue the place I performed a special album of mine every evening, so you may work your whole catalog into sure occasions.
And you’ve got choices past venue reveals and festivals. You are able to do one thing related everytime you need by way of livestreaming!
10. Promote!
Among the best issues about digital advertising is that it offers you comparatively low cost entry to large international audiences. You can too take a look at numerous completely different content material to seek out what works finest.
And since your oldest music will probably be model new to most individuals on-line, you may use your highest performing social content material to achieve strangers at a decrease price.
So long as that advert content material stays an economical solution to drive engagement, promote merch, and construct your viewers, depart the advertisements working.
Once more, who cares if it’s an older tune that performs finest in your advertisements? It’s working!
Conclusion
I don’t anticipate artists to prioritize older music ABOVE their newest launch.
Nor ought to they.
That wouldn’t appear real looking. Each by way of efficient promotion and your individual pleasure as a creator.
However I hope you at the least see the significance of selling your again catalog. At the least sufficient to schedule in a couple of of those promo campaigns all year long.
This kind of effort goes to be more and more essential if you would like your music to stay algorithmically related and discoverable on streaming platforms.
And given {that a} deeper catalog is an unbelievable assortment of music, moods, and connection factors, you may leverage ALL of your work all through the years to develop your engagement, increase your income, and construct your viewers.
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