I’ve been discovering artists for so long. Since middle school, I’ve been obsessed with using various platforms to find new sounds. I love the music that independent music artists are able to come up with. There’s so much creativity out there and people really come up with some awesome sounds. Before, I used to just share all the links I would find on my tumblr page. This grew into me starting a website and writing for other music platforms. The only thing about this is sometimes you don’t feel like writing about the music. That’s a problem I believe many bloggers run into. You can find some really great music but not every track inspires you to write. So we fill this void with basic write-ups that don’t really tell us much. You can go on countless blogs today and you’ll see the same thing. Bloggers telling us where the artist is from, the type of music, maybe 1–2 descriptive sentences, and then they tell you to listen. It’s a recipe that has created not only an over-saturation of blogging but makes artists feel unappreciated in a way.
From the artist viewpoint, I can see how this would get irritating. I would get tired of going on to multiple websites just to see the same thing written in different words. Sure it may be good for publicity and credibility but is it really doing anything? When I was blogging I started to realize that I may have been helping the artist but I wasn’t doing too much. I can write a good 3–4 sentence on a new track from an artist but it wasn’t moving. Giving the basics doesn’t incite someone visiting the page to listen. I began to notice that the best work came from music and artists that inspired me. When I felt something from the music that inspired me to write that’s when I really got into it. It’s a magical thing when not only the artist loves what they put together but the writer also loves it. That’s a relationship and chemistry that can be felt. It’s not longer, “Thanks for the post” but, “Thanks for the great words. I really appreciate the feedback.” Now you’re actually giving the artist something. An artist doesn’t want to feel like you’re giving them a post because you feel like you have to. That’s half-hearted support. Bloggers get caught up in trying to hold people down and forget that there is an actual craft behind what they do.
I’ve never thought the purpose of a blog is to share everything. When I was just sharing links through my social media it was just for music that moved me or really caught my attention. As you begin to blog, artists from all over begin to look at you as a source for promotion. Blogging and promotion are not the same thing. My blog posts aren’t a source for you to just get more promotion. They are to give you another valued opinion. Bloggers pick up an audience just like artists do. Just like artists have fans that look to them for new music; bloggers have readers that value what they have to say and look to see what they share. This helps to establish a partnership. Artists release music for their fans while bloggers post reviews for their readers. When this happens, artists are able to not only grow more fans but show their fanbase that they are gaining more support. This can’t happen when all the blog posts continue to be the same. Artists can’t proudly show off blog posts when they know that it’s the same one from another site. This is killing the essence of a blogger. There’s no more passion. Bloggers get so focused on filling their website with everything that there’s no more attention paid to what they actually say.
I believe all bloggers should have a purpose and a voice. That’s what makes you stand out. It’s not about taking all the submissions you can or looking out for every artist that reaches out to you on social media. It’s cool to turn down some music and to keep your blog curated to how you see fit. People are attracted to your voice through your writings more than anything. We have numerous websites that are there for us to see everything. Certain websites have built the reputation to being known for having the latest and greatest. The lane that needs to be filled is sites with a distinct voice. These are the sites that have the most loyal readers because they know they will receive something different. These are the sites that artists actually look to be on because they know they will receive feedback that they can actually be proud of. It’s important that you always remember why you started blogging and sharing music. It gets easy to lose sight of that once you’re clouded with emails and Soundcloud links. But your purpose and vision is all that matters.
You may want to be able to help every artist and share their music but it’s more to it than just that. I’m one of those people that would love to be able to share everybody’s music that I see is working hard but I can’t. I’ve learned that I can’t share your music if I don’t have any connection to it. You might have a good song but the connection still has to be there. I have to have something to say about the music before I can write about it. You can’t really help an artist unless you’re motivated to do so. The industry is filled with bloggers that just write to write. There’s no more purpose behind the reviews. There’s endless “internships” that turn people into copy and paste machines. There’s too many editors that don’t provide writers with feedback. We’ve grown too accustomed to the basics. Your three sentences are not helping the artist grow and their not helping you become better. You can’t provide good writing and feedback if you don’t know what you’re writing for.
As an artist, you have to be able to see past getting numerous blog posts. At first glance, it all really looks good. Sure you released a new song and it got 20+ blog posts that’s awesome. But when you start to read and see that every writer is just doing what they think they’re suppose to do it has to be a let down. You want to know that someone is really into your music. It all should be organic. If you email a blogger and they post your music, you should be able to tell that they listened and got something from it. Don’t get caught up in the number of posts but focus on bloggers who put a purpose behind their reviews.
I really encourage all bloggers to find their purpose. Find your voice and stick to it. Build your craft and give people something to read. Don’t get caught up in writing about stuff you could really care less about. Writing for publications and other people’s sites is great but still use the platform to share yourself. We have to get back to helping the artist grow and building relationships. It’s hard for bloggers out here right now. Before bloggers had a voice and a role in the industry, now it’s just all the same. A bunch of people behind computers all saying the same thing. For the ones still in it for the right reasons, continue to push through. Being genuine and sticking to the craft will pay off. Artists and bloggers should have a mutual growth relationship through it all.
