Before Coronavirus hit the world, the old laws and rules were rather obvious and accepted worldwide without the thought of a possible overturn. We had label-backed artists and bedroom artists pretty much. The middle-class artist was the exception to the rule. Covid, however terrible, it did level out the playing field and now the middle class is on the rise. Thankfully and gratefully for everyone. We’ve laid out for you a list of 5 positive ways the pandemic helped the independent musician become globally accepted and embraced by everyone.
5. Lower quality visuals have become mainstream.
We know it doesn’t sound appealing but it is the joyous truth. The home-made videos were produced in massive scale by mainstream artists and independent artists alike during the lockdowns thus normalizing the DIY visuals. That’s incredibly great news for you as now your self-made videos won’t stand out like a sore thumb but rather be considered as up to date with industry standards.
4. The public perspective on major labels changed.
Artists used to be unsigned and lie about having a label supporting them just to come off as more credible. Thanks to Covid, a ridiculous amount of very successful musicians started YouTube channels where they disclosed gargantuan business knowledge and thus, they’ve pulled back the curtains on major record deals, owning your masters, managing your own career, building a following on your own, registering your LLC, getting business grants, etc. This created a tremendous ripple effect as it didn’t only open the eyes of independent artists, but these viral videos have also reached regular listeners and ultimately, the public reception of major record labels changed. Now it is cool managing yourself and doing it all on your own. So more credibility points for you!
3. Industry professionals have become more open to network online.
It used to be that you’d only encounter the top tier of music business pros in certain cities, at certain times, in certain places. Not anymore! Since the geographical position has been taken out of the equation, the big players now conduct their business online mostly. That also prompted them to interact with virtual hubs a lot more. They’ve given online interviews, written online guest posts, begun hosting their own podcasts, accepted strangers in their LinkedIn friendlists, etc. What that means for you is that you got more doors open now for you waiting to just bust them down.
2. Streaming has boomed thus the average consumer has become more selective.
When you read one book, you think the author is great. When you, however, read a hundred books from a hundred authors, that first author is now mediocre and you pick and choose who to read next. Or if we talk about chocolate, for example, you eat one candy bar, you think it’s the best thing ever. You try out a hundred of them, that first one doesn’t seem as delicious anymore. Yes, we’re foodies here. The point is, the more you expose your senses to something, the more you become desensitized. With so much time on his/her hands, the average listener has inadvertently become more educated on consuming music thus seeking better, more meaningful songs to add to their playlist. In practice, whoever thought that Drake was a great rapper, now sees him as average after having discovered the likes of Dax. You are now being paid more attention to than ever before in the history of recorded music.
1. Advertising costs went down.
If only a year ago social media platforms had minimum budget requirements for you to even run an ad campaign, now it’s open doors for everybody! Covid has put serious strain on ALL major companies. Instagram, Facebook, YouTube included. To keep their businesses afloat, the biggest social media platforms in the world have allowed for even the smallest of budgets to partake in their ads. That means if you only got 5 dollars to spend on promoting your video on IG, you can do so today. You are incredibly lucky to be able to run ads on the exact same platforms that the big guys do.
If you made it this far, please like and give a listen to our B.R.E. Spotify playlist where we’re helping and promoting artists we personally know and wrote about on this very website:
Blue Rhymez Entertainment 