
Is music enough or do fans seek a memorable music experience?
If you still haven't heard about ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ข๐ ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ฌ๐ก, most likely you are 35+ or you don't have teen kids. Although she is only 17, her popularity exploded in a flash. So, what is the golden formula to be successful in the music industry?
The music industry, as one of the hardest industry to break into, has changed remarkably over the last 20 years. Although we tend to listen music more, record labels and artists are having less revenue. About two-thirds of it now comes from streaming. Seems like music is not enough anymore, plus the competition is strong. Artists always say to be authentic and true to yourself but is it enough?
Music publishers are finding new ways to let fans interact with releases and artists. Sony launched a music experience at its ๐ฆ๐ผ๐ป๐ ๐ฆ๐พ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ก๐ฌ๐ location last year and hosted a pop-up in SoHo that featured private concerts, music customizations and weekly online shows. Using technology in their live performances has become more common, especially Augmented and virtual reality, animating album covers or creating 360-degree experiences for fans.
"If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?"
Case #1: Billie Eilish (Interactive Music Experience)
To celebrate the launch of Billie Eilish first studio album ๐ช๐ต๐ฒ๐ป ๐ช๐ฒ ๐๐น๐น ๐๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐๐๐น๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฝ, ๐ช๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐ช๐ฒ ๐๐ผ? Eilish and Spotify launched an interactive music experience. Spotify designed the 29Rooms-like experience to take fans inside each of her 14 songs. It was inspired, she explained, by her synesthesia: a neurological condition that basically means every song she writes has associating colours, textures, scents, shapes, and feelings attached to it. Each room had a handy guide on the door that breaks all of those elements down, giving you an idea of what you're in for.
โI wanted a project that wasnโt just a bunch of songs put together and [once] you listen to them, itโs over. I wanted it to [include] the whole body and energy and every sort of sense. I wanted it to literally be an experience.โ - Eilish said in a video.
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐น๐น๐ถ๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐ต ๐๐ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ took place in Los Angeles for one weekend only. Fans went crazy and tickets quickly sold out. Although she has a big label name behind her name, seeing her doing something that only well-established artists are doing is definitely noteworthy. Eilishโs album was also promoted across digital and social channels with a YouTube front-page takeover, as well as localized display ads on UberEats. Eilish also played the food delivery serviceโs show at SXSW in mid-March.
Results:
Case #2: Dawn Richard (3D animation, Virtual Reality, gaming and 360-degree live experience)
Another notable artist is Dawn Richard. Dawn is famous among the music community with more than 14 years of music experience. The real shift in her music happened when she became an independent artist. For the last few years, Dawn was experiencing with 3D animation, Virtual Reality, gaming and 360-degree live experience.
Dawn Richard started with Virtual Reality technology in โNot Above Thatโ, a music video experience that turned the viewer into the pilot of a spaceship on an intergalactic journey and recreated Richard and her dancers as digital sprites on the shipโs interface. The video was the next step in a process that began a year earlier when Richard released theโ๐ง๐ถ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ปโ video, which used motion-capture choreography to turn the human form into diamond and black onyx creatures.
Her album, Redemption, is being released on a ๐จ๐ฆ๐ ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ธ๐น๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐ฐ๐น๐๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฉ๐ฅ โ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐โ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ด ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐น๐ฏ๐๐บ. She also performed in YouTubeโs first-ever 360-degree concert.
โWhen you close your eyes, โnot above thatโ feels visual, it feels like going to another placeโ - Dawn Richard
The music industry, as much as it seems glamorous and posh, at the end of the day it's just an industry as any other. Singers are singing because they have a talent, but if there is not good marketing behind the artist name the artist can go unnoticed. In the business world; unprofitable. Having a good product or service is not enough anymore if you can't provide extra value. It is a competitive industry and they need to offer something memorable and relatable to their fans if they want to stay at the top of the game.
User experience and storytelling has always been, and will always be an important part of every business. Future sales of products and services depend on how loyal your customers are and what value do you provide to them.