Videos are by far the most engaging form of social content. This isn’t exactly a new discovery, but there’s a lot of missed potential by bands that claim to have a YouTube presence. The common misconception is that your music videos go up on YouTube and you’re done. Although MTV style music videos can create a big draw, they don’t keep viewers on your channel for very long (hopefully these are actually on your channel).
Luckily for musicians on YouTube, there are some relatively quick fixes. The main thing most bands miss is the opportunity to actively engage with their fans. Viewers want to see those extra details; the behind-the-scenes, authentic interactions with the band that they can only get on YouTube. Bands should make a point to announce news and updates with their fans directly through a quick video. This helps in two ways: 1. Fans get the info right from the source, and 2. Video updates build buzz and traffic around your channel for when one of those big official music videos comes up.
Bands should program their channel in a way that fans can expect regular updates. Videos don’t need to be any longer than 30 seconds and can be taken anywhere with your phone. Get creative and consistent. No matter what type of content you decide to use, keep your videos original, exciting and genuine. Fans will feel closer to the music and you’ll have some authentic feedback from the people that matter most. Here are some quick ideas to get you started:
Last month in Germany, the Federal Court made a ruling which moved to limit the liability of parents for their minor children’s illegal music sharing. The court’s decision stipulates that parents are not liable for the illegal music file sharing of their minor child if they have educated their children enough about the prohibition of participating in file sharing on the Internet.
The ruling represents a setback for the music industry, which demanded several thousand Euros for damages and legal fees. The case was triggered by a 13-year-old who illegally downloaded music and spread it on the net.
As Florian Drücke, the Head of the Federal Association of the Music Industry, warned, the judgment does not mean that parents no longer need to worry about the surfing habits of their children. “The recent statement of the Supreme Court should not be ‘misunderstood’ as a free ride for parents and their children to careless file sharing,” explained Drücke. “What concrete steps parents must take, especially for repeated violations, remains to be seen in the view of for the judgment.”
The issue is not about monitoring the children — we know that over-supervision is not a recipe for success when it comes to 13-year-olds. Rather, it’s about building their awareness for the value of music, films and books. The question is, how do you do that?
Aaaand, we’re back! To make up for eating lots of great food last week (or hearing about it), we’ve put together a collection of awesome music and visuals to go with it.
That’s right — you’ll notice we’ve got a slew of music videos for you, and they’re all exceptional and unique in their own way. First, we start with Local Natives‘ “Breakers.” You already caught a preview of the track in a previous Freeloader Friday, and now you get the full visual experience. Travis Barker and Yelawolf, Matthew E. White and Sophie Auster are also on board the music video train with some fresh content from their newly released albums. All that makes this single stream from Apollo Brown and Guilty Simpson a special treat to be savored, a break from the explosion between your eyes and your brain that you can enjoy with your lids closed or in the dark… that is, if you haven’t already turned out the lights after Menahan Street Band‘s “Lights Out” or Hey Sholay‘s “Dreamboat…”
To the listening board!
Local Natives: “Breakers” music video premiere via Pitchfork
Hummingbird out January 29 on Frenchkiss Records
Menahan Street Band: “Lights Out” music video premiere via Noisey
The Crossing out now on Daptone Records
Travis Barker & Yelawolf: “6 Feet Underground” (feat. Tim Armstrong) music video via YouTube
Psycho White out now on Lasalle Records
Hey Sholay: “Dreamboat” music video via YouTube
((O)) out now on Fierce Panda Records
Apollo Brown & Guilty Simpson: “Nasty” (feat. Planet Asia) via Mello Music Group
Dice Game out now on Mello Music Group
Matthew E. White: “Will You Love Me” music video premiere via Pitchfork
Big Inner out now on Hometapes/Spacebomb Records
Sophie Auster: “Run Run Run” music video via PaperMag
Red Weather out now on Lost Colony Music
As the token Australian expat, living in ye olde London and working at The Orchard’s EU HQ, I wanted to take a moment to reminisce about home.
As the winter woolies come on and the days get darker, I find myself counting down the minutes until I jump on a jet plane and experience a long overdue ‘proper’ summer! Glorious sunshine, endless days of hot weather, beach after perfect beach, amazing boutique beers and, of course, the great Aussie BBQ!
Australia is an amazing place and if you ever get the chance to visit, I highly recommend it — not just for its unique natural environment and amazing weather, but its fabulous people, happening nightlife and outstanding local music scene. Whether you want to sip a cocktail in a fine bar overlooking Sydney Harbour whilst getting your dance on or find the latest pop-up bar in some hip Melbourne laneway, there’s something for everyone.
Australian music has been seeping out into the wider world for a while now, and we here at The Orchard have a few crackin’ things in our catalogue as well! Here’s a playlist with a few of my current favourites, including Electric Empire, who just released their new EP Changin’, the enchanting Emma Louise, who recently performed at our NY office’s Stairwell Series and the Jazz/Blues/Pachuco songwriter and vocalist extraordinaire Mojo Juju, who recently went solo from the Aussie-festival-fave big band, The Snake Oil Merchants.
So, go on, crack open a beer, throw another shrimp on the barbie and just imagine you’re there.
Gone are the days when a sync placement purely involved just TV, film and advertising. An increasingly substantial part of the pie is now represented by gaming.
So it’s great news when we say The Orchard distributes 3 of the tracks on this year’s FIFA 13 soundtrack, including efforts by Duologue, Bloc Party and Stepdad. It will be one of the top selling games of 2012 and while I’m sure the fees generated helpful income, the real win comes from the exposure — it’s absolute gold.
Interestingly, the music supervisors appear to go for predominantly new bands, providing much needed exposure and giving them access to a mainstream audience. Over 1 million people in the UK alone have bought the FIFA 13 game — and it’s only been out a week. Many more of the world’s football (soccer for the Americans!) fans will purchase and play the game, but for lengthy periods of time, the game does not involve ‘playing’ football. It entails scrolling through menus, picking the teams, making transfers and choosing tactics — and all the while, music is playing from a select bunch of 50 tracks from around the globe.
The importance of this cannot be understated. Millions of people will hear these tracks repeatedly. It’s like being on the A-list of a top radio station for a year (until the next edition of the game hits the shelves) with the songs slowly being subconsciously digested. A FIFA-playing friend of mine became a huge fan of Yeasayer, even though he’s normally more inclined to listen to Dire Straits than hipster rock.
If your target audience is male and aged 16-30 — you’ve scored if you have a song placed in FIFA.
