Professional Documents
Culture Documents
New New Media Music Marketing Blueprint
New New Media Music Marketing Blueprint
or
INSERT
SENSATIONAL
HOW TO MAKE YOUR INDEPENDENT
TITLE D.I.Y. HIP HOP RECORD GO PLATINUM IN 3:49.
by Oliver Wright, Esq.
DigitalWrightCoalition.com
*caveat (sort of): I wrote this marketing plan two years ago. Though it’s just
as relevant today (assuming more emphasis on Facebook and Twitter).
INSERT GLOWING
REVIEW “a brilliant and incredibly moving album”
for early credibility
indicator
JIVE Magazine Rating--4 out of 5 stars
Insert eye
c a t c h i n g c ove r
art.
A&R OVERVIEW
Insert
Compelling
Insert Official Sounding Evidence of Emotional
Section Header Connection with fan
“Your CD makes me wanna make babies...” base.
My Space Comment
Ariano’s not only got it, he’s got enough of it to spare for three superstars. On the mic, he’s an octave lower, twice as
raw, and 30 I.Q. points higher than most other MCs, putting him deep inside Common’s vocal neck of the woods. On
the chorus or the hook or whatever else he damn-well pleases, he transforms his voice, butterfly like, into something
tender and melodious. There’s that Jack Johnson feel, on the surface, anyhow; Ariano’s soulfulness runs deeper than
the Marianas Trench. The result is Sublime like--perhaps the only apt comparison when comparing two incomparables.
Indeed, not since Brad Nowell left us has such a versatile, powerful, and original voice transcended and fused the
musical
endandwith
societal fissures splitting underground hip hop, ska, punk, reggae and soul. Ariano’s elegant command and
effortless marriage of diverse musical idioms is the stuff musical icons are made of. He’s nice on the boards too.
a bang
By producing danceable, mainstream tracks without compromising the intellectual and lyrical fearlessness endemic to
the underground scene where he cut his teeth as a rapper, and over which he’s held sway from his base in So Cal for
years now, Ariano proves, and will prove, that after all these years, the labels formerly known as Majors and their
color-by-numb stars were wrong after all: one need not choose between stardom and relevance.
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
THE ALBUM AND THE AUTEUR
(a little background never hurts)
Try to find that hook, that edge, that distinguishes your “product” from the others.
And write boldly about your subject: they are supposed to loom large.
THE ALBUM | For a risk-taking artist whose career has been a high wire act minus the net, it’s only fitting that Ariano’s opening salvo as a solo
artist would take the unconventional and vocationally radioactive form of a thematic hip-hop rock album about relationships, love, hate, and that
well-traveled and truly awful road of indifference that connects the two. Music2breakup2 thumbs its nose at those whose risk averseness and
bottom line myopia wouldn’t countenance such an album--or anything close. With his innovative break beats, chopped samples, and seamless
weaving of introspective, bare knuckled rap with tender melodies and powerful vocal arrangements, Ariano turns a very risky proposition into an
artistic triumph the critics are calling “a brilliant and incredibly moving album.” With peerless singles like Always on Mind promising that
music2breakup2’s commercial prowess keeps apace with its artistry, Ariano dispenses career advise in the form of a rhetorical question to all
artists, major and indie alike: if you never fall, why bother with a net?
• FOCUS TRACKS: Don't Let Me Down (Track 3) is the first single off the album, with Always on My Mind (Track 4 ) on the B Side. It
includes a third bonus track titled I Still Believe--itself a bona single--that offers a glimpse of things to come. Tracks 3 & 4 (the former with a
psychedelic ‘70s hip hop rock feel; the latter carrying a more traditional hip hop torch) were chosen as focus tracks because they lie at
opposite ends of the album’s musical spectrum and they display, within the thematic and aural limitations endemic to an album like this one,
Ariano’s unmatched range.
• VIDEOS are slated for both focus tracks. The first, for Don't Let Me Down, is set to shoot on August 30-31.
The treatment for Don't Let Me
Down is in progress. In the meantime, one can spy Ariano on Time Warner, where he’s featured on vocals in Jurassic 5’s video for the hit
single In the Good.
THE AUTEUR (A VERY BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF ARIANO’S CAREER) | After winning the Pyrrhic victory known as a Major Label Record Deal
early in his career, Ariano walked. He’s been doing it his way ever since. And by doing what he does best--practicing the lost art of tearing up
the stage--he’s risen to his current perch atop So Cal’s underground hip-hop scene. His God-given talent, hustler’s ambition, fated union and with
the 23-year-old musical prodigy and turntablist extraordinaire known as LD, and Ariano’s frightening range have earned him loads of respect,
ongoing studio collaborations, and enviable stage time with a who’s who of hip hop luminaries, including: Wu Tang Clan, the Visionaries and
LMNO, Madlib, RBX and the Dogg Pound, The Mars Volta, J Throw, Deep Rooted, Jurassic 5, Dead Prez, KRS-One, DJ Khalil from Dre’s Aftermath
camp, Self Scientific, Beat Junkies, Georgia, Dudley Perkins, M.E.D., Shawn Price, Supernatural, and the list goes on and on. And it gets even bigger.
Much bigger. But that will have to wait.
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
ASSEMBLE TEAM THAT IS:
SMART. CREATIVE.
LOYAL. CHARISMATIC.
AND BIG BELIEVERS IN THE MUSIC/
PRODUCT.
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
POINT: OLIVER WRIGHT. Along with Technicali, Oliver is a communications lawyer and media manager; writer; producer; and a
New Media marketing strategist. He has a publishing deal with Grove Atlantic (Cold Mountain, Black Hawk Down, Less Than Zero),.
Oliver class major valedictorian of UCLA’s elite media and communications program. He has a Masters in International Law and a
Doctor of Law from Cornell Law School, where he was top 10% and Editor of the Cornell Law Review. As both a litigator and
corporate lawyer for Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, clients ranged from early stage internet (web 1.0) start-ups (e.g., Stamps.com, ...
PUBLICITY. The founder of SCOREPRESS, Trevor is a highly regarded industry veteran with a star studded client roster spanning
all entertainment mediums.
DISTRIBUTION: SUPER D PHANTOM is Technicali Sound’s exclusive distributor. SuperD has the world’s largest selection of
music, movies and games. As the only worldwide wholesaler, it sells to thousands of independent retailers, major chains, and online
retailers.
GRASS ROOTS: STREETWORKS PROMOTION has been promoting events and albums for a decade. They have worked with the Living Legends,
House Of Blues, Insomniac Inc., Rock the Bells, Paid Dues, Audiotistic, Grass Roots Productions, Banksy, and B-Boy Summit.
RADIO PROMOTIONS: SPECTRE is known internationally as a top provider of college and non-commercial hip hop and
alternative radio promotions. SPECTRE promoted renowned artists The Roots, Norah Jones, Al Green, Moby, Chemical Brothers &
Death Cab for Cutie, among many others.
STRATEGY: Combining elements of the old and the new, ours is an Integrated Marketing Campaign of internet and on-
air promotions, print ads, direct to consumer, and parallel in-house and outsourced New Media viral marketing
campaigns targeting social networking and bookmarking sites, among others. Our marketing strategy is timed to optimize
our resources, deploying them judiciously toward a sustainable increase in awareness and sales, culminating when [ ] return home for
the .... Tour.
TACTICS: Ariano’s art is his music is his most valuable asset. How that asset is best deployed and monetized in today’s egalitarian,
bottom-up digital world is a very different proposition than it was yesterday. The name of the game isn’t releasing an album a year; it’s
about rolling out media, entertainment, knowledge, anything ENGAGING--music, video (better still, compressed video optimized for
mobile viewing), flash games, ring tones, etc. etc. and often for free--over an extended period of time. Every media asset released
into the stream of commerce carries with it the potential to pop, putting Ariano’s genius on display for a
worldwide audience. Thus: our pre-street giveaways of 1000s of the Kev Brown produced “prequel” CDs; the pressing and street level
distribution of 3000 free copies of the sequel to the prequel, or, put otherwise, a prequel to the forthcoming single; our 25% promotional
set-aside from the pressing of the single itself; the inclusion on that single of a bonus track that is itself a bona fide hit; promotional
giveaways of i-Tunes gift cards customized to the album’s unique cover art; and numerous other promo campaigns in the works.
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
THE BATTLE FOR ATTENTION IS FOUGHT ON MANY FRONTS
•social media pages and extend out into far reaches of cyberspace. As noted above, our marketing strategy plan integrates
•IM song swapping, MP3 blogs, genre relevant music websites, and
•viral video.
But we’d be remiss to eschew the traditional, top-down promotional model, which is why we are:
• THRIVES ON STAGE: Though the industry is in a state of flux, one thing that has not changed--indeed, will never change because it cannot
be replicated no matter how small Intel makes its chips--is the significance of live performance, which happens to be Ariano’s forte. Any serious
release, whether by an indie or major artist, is predicated upon live shows and touring. For this, Ariano hired Sleep. Sleep is himself a hip hop
artist on the Up Above label who has also earned himself a stellar booking reputation. Sleep has arranged a formidable One Night Stand Tour that
puts Ariano in cities where he’s a rock star, and in states he’s never stepped foot in. He’ll be watering old seeds, planting new ones, and doing it
the way he does best--the old fashioned way.
• CO-MARKETING W/ OTHER ARTISTS: Just ahead of Ariano’s One Night Stand home coming and grand finale with Talib Kweli at
the Queen Mary in Long Beach, our marketing strategy kicks into high gear when we (Technicali Sound) release RBX of the Dogg Pound’s
highly-anticipated album, “Broken Silence.” With tracks produced by Snoop Dogg, and six tracks featuring Ariano prominently (some of which
he opens), the album will springboard Ariano’s profile, particularly within a rap demographic outside his core fan base. Moreover, he and RBX--
close friends and frequent collaborators--will be cross-promoting their albums, with Ariano accompanying RBX on all radio and TV appearances.
• OTHER INDIE LABEL SUPPORT. Besides Technicali, Ariano’s enviable working relationships with the best in the business, including
numerous Stones Throw and Up Above recording artists, grants him unique, direct (and free) access--via mailing lists and other coveted
direct marketing resources--to a large and loyal base of underground hip hop fans who are proven and reliable consumers of Ariano’s brand of
music. Likewise for RBX, LMNO and other top acts being released by Technicali Sound.
• ACTION SPORTS DEMOGRAPHIC: Orange County is the global epicenter of both the huge action sports industry and the alternative/
underground hip-hop meets alt rock music scenes; the birthplace of bands and brands such as Quicksilver, No Doubt, Hurley & Sublime; and the core fan base
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
KEY RETAIL
its in the little details
Keep your distributors in check, they aren’t like you; retail is your friend. Go see him.
• SuperD pre-shipped 3000 units to key retail accounts across the • The album artwork is visually arresting and quite beautiful and
country, including: FYE, Borders (nationally), truly makes the CD stand out from the rest.
Transworld, and select Best Buy locations.
• To carry momentum from the 4th quarter ’07 into 2008, and to
• The initial 1000 unit press of the first single, Don’t Let Me Down, capitalize on the huge potential synergy between Valentine’s Day
and its B Side, Always on My Mind, both of which are generating sentiment and Ariano’s relationship-themed album, a remix
overwhelmingly positive responses, will focus consumers’ tentatively-titled music2makeup2, will be released in the 1st
attention on two commercial tracks, which will in turn raise quarter ’08. To that end, Ariano has slipped acapellas to a select
awareness and drive sales of the LP. group of the country’s top DJs and Producers. We will also be
looking to release or co-brand a chiming Valentine’s Day Card.
http://mainstagemedia.com/page/a.jpg
FREE MEDIAa/k/a Publicity-P.R.
START EARLY-at least 3 months from street date (though that window is closing)
The difference between just two or three legitimate endorsements and none is huge.
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
PENDING
• Alternative Press • Prefixmag.com
• Anthem • Re:up
• Beautiful Decay • Resonance
• Billboard • Rolling stone
• Blender • Spin
• BPM • Spin.com
• Chord • Stop smiling
• Complex • Stuck
• Entertainment Weekly • The Fader
• Flaunt • Theowlmag.com
• G4 TV • Tokion
• Giant • Tom Green Show
• GQ • Trace
• Hustler • Transworld skate
• Paper • Vibe
• Paste • Vice
• Pitchfork • Wired
• Popmatters.com • Yellow Rat Bastard
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
RADIO
Not Dead Yet
• COMMERCIAL (its worth a try) : • SERVICE RADIO SEVERAL TIMES, COORINATING WITH
APPEARANCES/TOUR STOPS
Though our radio strategy is to percolate up to commercial by
getting spins on NPR and college radio--a strategy that’s seen Overall, we will service radio at least 4 times, with the final two
early and far reaching success (see below)--our in-house team passes tailored to maximize publicity as Ariano moves from city
serviced KROQ’s staff with 300 personal copies of the Kev to city during his national tour, with the ultimate goal being a
Brown produced prequel. Reaction was positive, and we’ll be convergence of (i) radio appearances priming the pump with
servicing KROQ and non-commercial radio a second time with music2breakup2 before the show, (ii) advertising in concert with
copies of the first single, on top of the full length CD. local retail (we will also be inviting store owners/buyers to
Ariano's gigs), and (iii) street level promotions by our booker,
• NPR AND COLLEGE ARE KEY: Sleep, who is himself a hip hop artist on the Up Above label, and
has earned a strong booking reputation.
Non-commercial radio promotions thus far include: a first run of
350 full length CDs to California’s top NPR and College stations;
pre-publicity to stations servicing cities on Ariano’s upcoming • RADIO PROMOTERS/SPECTER WORK THE COLLEGE
September-October One Night Stand tour; and several live radio CHARTS
appearances on significant stations such as KPFK, KXLU,
XBIZ.com, and European favorite BASSJUNKEES.COM. Each Ariano’s Team is thrilled to be bringing on Jessica Weber from
is known for its hip hop format and they have many millions of Spectre. She manages Spectre’s hip hop division and is a highly
native and syndicated listeners. Without exception, regarded, very effective college and NPR radio promoter. She will
music2breakup2 has lit up the board’s, whether played off the CD be expanding on much of the radio servicing we’ve been handling
or sung live by Ariano over the air. in-house. She’ll be an invaluable asset, maximizing CMJ200
airplay and moving music2breakup2 up the charts.
• STATIONS SUCH AS KCRW AND PHILADELPHIA’SGIANT
NPR ARE THE NEW A&RS
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
DIRECT MARKETING
Again, those retail touch points are key...
• We printed and distributed 7000 posters and fliers for initial pre-street promotional run.
• Our national in-house street team, consisting of 2-4 person groups (loyal fans) in major urban centers
across the country, continually promotes music2breakup2.
• We hired Streetworks Promotions to follow the PAID DUES TOUR across the country this summer
to promote music2breakup2 at all 13 tour stops. Their services included (i) snips (posters on poles around the
venue); (ii) picketing at the beginning of the show; (iii) handing out promo t-shirts to people on the way in and
having them put it on right as they enter; (iv) placing stickers outside of the venue in each town; (v) music
backpacks for concert goers to hear our music; and (vi) hand-to-hand at the exit on the outs.
• For the second promo run ahead of the first single’s release, we have printed and will distribute 5000
posters and fliers, updated to reflect music2breakup2’s glowing reviews.
• We have pressed and will give away 3000 new promo CDs ahead of the single--sequels to the
prequel, if you will. The promo CD, like the single, will feature yet another blazing track from Ariano’s next
album, to be released in mid ’08.
• Streetworks has been kept on to spot promote (i.e., flood with posters, stickers and new promo CDs) in key
California coastal cities with high concentrations of Ariano’s action sports/urban music
demographic.
• Our in-house direct marketing e-mail campaign is discussed below in New Media.
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
a.jpg 360!1080 pixels
NEW MEDIA
DIGITAL DISTRIBUTION
VIRTUAL STREET TEAM
VIRTUAL STREET TEAM
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
Viral
• Compose catchy song for pre-release buzz
leading up to street date
• Direct accompanying video with viral
components: (funny, sexy, visually interesting,
all of the above)
• Incorporate social media itself into the track
and the video (e.g., thematically, visual
references/product placement)
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
DIGITAL DISTRIBUTION
• Still no substitute for physical retail distribution, but great way to
sell and expose music. Problem is making money. Transaction
costs too high--merch accounts and cc transaction costs kill
margins and drive consumers to peer-to-peer. Once
transaction costs come down, and artists can profitably sell at the .
40-.50 cent per track price point, virus and quality weary
consumers will break the the artists way and forgo
peer-to-peer. But presently, .99/track is too high compete with
free file sharing.
DEAL WITH THE REAL: As our street teams work major urban centers from Oxnard to N.Y., and as Streetworks
Promotions shadows the Paid Dues Tour and papers major coastal cities, our virtual street team is gearing up to
win over New Media fans, one heart and mind at a time. Weʼve charted a course through todayʼs on-line music
gauntlet by studying the new (if ephemeral) musical paradigm from basement to roof; by making informed
predictions as to how things might unfold over the next two years; and by asking tough follow-up questions—after
all, can every digital music platform be “the worldʼs largest?”
DO YOUR HOMEWORK: To that end we drilled down and sampled innumerable sites and virtual communities:
on-line retailers and their fan/artist message boards (e.g., CD Baby, Amazon.com, plus hundreds more); satellite
radio (XM Radio and Sirius); streaming internet radio (e.g., Live365.com; AOL Radio Network); mp3 blogs,
social bookmarking sites (e.g., de.li.cio.us), something new called MOG; and many other music and social
networking sites, each with membership in the hundreds of thousands (triple that when one counts RSS feeds.)
This is not to mention the mobile consumers whose primary audio and video interface is wireless—a group
whose numbers are set to explode once the U.S. and the rest of the world follow Japanʼs lead via wide scale
adoption of third generation (3-G) cell phone technology like that found in the new I-Phone; the peer-to-peer
network junkies; and the diehard broadcast loyalists patiently awaiting terrestrial radioʼs second coming
courtesy of High Definition AM/FM radio, such as that found in ClearChannelʼs top 200 stations in High Def.
markets).
CONVERGED MARKETING WINS: Formulating and executing a strategic marketing, promotion and sales
campaign that takes into account all of these variables is what distinguishes those few musicians such as Ariano
who are poised to exploit Web 2.0ʼs tremendous opportunities from the vast majority who get swallowed up by
them. by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
In-House E-Mail Outreach Program and
Accompanying Newsletter
Diligence pays dividends: work your mailing list and database capture hard.
A Few More Biggies we will be hitting, per my individual scripts and instructions to you when the
time arises: Odeo: Create and share audio; Streampad: Internet audio player; Amie Street: Price
per popularity music community; Imeem: Music playlist sharing; Reddit: Popular links shared and
commented; Vox: Social networking through blogging; de.li.cio.us; social bookmarking site;
Facebook; iLike; Twitter; SecondLife; Tumbler; Yahoo!Groups; Flickr.
iTunes, Amazon’s Digital Music Network, e-music.com, rhapsody, mp3.com. There are tons. Do
a search for other popular sites and if ours is not listed then go ahead and submit it (You need
to have all the necessary data encoded on the master you submit to ensure royalty payments.
A quick on-line search will tell you what is needed. Usually the site will do this for you though.)
Hiphopsite.com is among the leaders. They come and go. Key is to always check the site
out, not just trust top 10 lists.
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
Internet Radio: Live 365.com
As the largest Internet radio network, www.live365.com,, with thousands of active narrowcasters and
over 2 million unique listeners a month, provides indie artists with unprecedented opportunities for large-
scale radio exposure. The music library at http://www.live365.com/cgi-bin/library.cgi is a virtual record
pool—a secure service that lets all Live365 DJs preview and add our tracks directly to their stations' playlists.
Or, we can also allow narrowcasters and listeners to download our entire track(s). Many of these stations
have direct links to major music retailers (e.g., Amazon) so listeners can conveniently buy music they are
listening to by simply clicking an icon. Live365 is licensed and pays royalties to ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC.
Each week, Live365 reports its DJ's playlists to Radio and Records, College Music Journal (CMJ), Billboard
Online, New Age Reporter, and other web properties. It can track which Internet stations are playing our
music and how many monthly listening-hours we are getting. Assisted by Radiowave.com, Live365 also
compiles and reports a run-of-site weekly airplay chart. Submit album or track to Live 365’s editorial
department for consideration to be listed free of charge at www.live365.com/labelservices.
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
Message Boards, Forum: In addition to exposing us to a worldwide audience, Live365’s
message boards and community forums offer additional avenues for promotion and feedback.
SomaFM & Groove Salad—one example among thousands of Live365’s narrowcasting stations.
SomaFM has 9 unique channels on the air, with 3 more in the works. It gets over 3
million listener hours a month, which makes it one of the larger internet-only
broadcasters. Groove Salad is one of Soma’s unique channels whose format may fit our
album. Through SomaFM's partnership with NPR, it is making its programming available
over the air (i.e., as an FM broadcast) by providing a special version of Groove Salad
for NPR member stations to use on their HD multicast channels. (HD Multicast is a new
technology that allows FM HD Radio stations to broadcast multiple channels of
programming at the same time.)
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
THE ONE NIGHT STAND
TOUR
Live performance trumps everything. Go out and act like a
rock star, rock star.
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com
TENTATIVE TOUR SCHEDULE
• September 1: Alb., NM • September 29: Austin, TX
• September 7: Milwaukee, WI
• October 3: Flagstaff, AZ
• September 8: Chicago, IL
by Oliver Wright
www.DigitalWrightCoalition.com