Social Media Vs The Artists - How To Grow An Audience
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- Опубліковано 5 лют 2025
- Today we talk about the places we all frequent (Instagram, TikTok, UA-cam) hoping to expand our reach. Hoping to connect. I discuss something I wish I did when I first started my journey: ask what I really wanted out of my social media experience. As creating content can often override the process of being an artist, leaving us feeling frustrated and burned out. Therefore its important to know what you want out of it, so you can be sure to spend your energy wisely.
I share what helped me, and my personal philosophy towards social media. I hope this can serve as guidance for other creatives who may feel frustrated sharing their art on social media.
0:18 Why do you want to grow your socials?
1:42 Engagement is not indicator of quality of art
2:32 I focused on the wrong platform
3:38 Obsessing over data
4:10 Organic growth
6:44 Post what you like!
7:44 Tips for artists
10:23 Story about working at a Spotify farm
For the last 2 years I’ve been releasing a song every two weeks. I record the entire writing/recoeding process and edit down the hours of footage into a 10-15 minutes video in a series called Songwriting with Alec.
Sure, I haven’t grown as much as I expected at the start of the journey but I also can believe I’ve written over 50 complete songs.
Just remember to do what you love and play the long game. Thanks for your content. I always appreciate it.
cool man, I found you by reading this comment and I checked out your channel and subbed! Organic!! I've actually been thinking of starting a similar series where I write a group of songs using every piece of gear I own.
@ Appreciate you checking out the channel! I think we need as many people creating actual stuff as possible. Geartube has gotten out of hand and folks are forgetting what all these tools are actually for.
@@BounceChordI did the same.
@@AlecBoyd agreed. I love gear and my channel is gear centered but I’m trying to actually do some fun stuff with it all. Otherwise it’s just furniture in my house that collects dust.
@@DisintegrationZerfall thanks man. Greatly appreciated
"Numbers went right back down because I was no longer doing that style of content." This reminds me of something a successful long term internet creator I admire has said many times: "Be careful what you make your thing". Because after getting some popularity on something, now there's an expectation from viewers for you to keep doing that thing, which only grows the more you do it. And if you do anything else, all the people that are only there for that thing are not interested, bye bye numbers. You have to choose between the tradeoff of continuing to do the thing that's getting the views even if it's not sustainable or fulfilling, or limiting your popularity by doing what you want to do and hoping that resonates with people who want to stick around for whatever you do.
Why I Season My Cutting Board, NOT My Steak
@@enoodlefire analogy but u wildin😭
This is the right mindset. Almost fell into this trap myself, glad I didnt
Dude i love you, you're like that friend i was looking for who tells me "I understand you", thanks a lot for this video, you saved my mental sanity fr
Real
Last night I went to bed in a real cloud of anger and disappointment towards myself and my overwhelming lack of proactivity and progress and I woke up feeling much the same. I have such cluttered ambitions and the world of social media simultaneously feeds and wreaks havoc on them. This video you’ve gone to the effort of putting together has been very well timed, it’s like I already know everything you’re saying and believe it and understand it but sometimes you need to hear it from a stranger instead of from yourself. Gonna rewatch it a few times in the hopes that it sinks in long enough for me to run with it.
Not sure if this video was supposed to be motivating, but I'm still over Instagram. I post on there just because it shares it to my Facebook page. I guess I like Facebook more because I really don't even look at the stats of my posts other than answering any questions that possible buyers might have, but for some reason I'm always looking at my Instagram stats, so I guess that's where my frustration comes in. Even realizing that, I don't much like Instagram.
I dislike Instagram and TikTok so much…UA-cam isn't perfect by any means, but feels a bit less Clockwork Orange to me.
You seem to have done insanely well with UA-cam so far!
Congrats and much joy on your journey!
I dislike what Instagram has become, I was an internet kid and this made me flourish on Instagram as a musician, but this Instagram… idk wtf this is. Idk how to build an audience when the follower no longer exists.. that’s being in constant algorithmic purgatory relying on the platform to like your content and not suddenly turn on you like a BPD gf. This is just insane and makes no sense
Great video man, I have lots of thoughts on this topic as well but I agree with your take here.
In many ways I don’t see UA-cam as a social media platform, it’s a learning platform above all else, and the success I’ve found here has been through beings “transactional” basically giving something away to the audience.
The challenge now is getting the audience to pay attention to my more creative side, which is a struggle.
“I’m not telling you what to do. I’m trying to inspire you to realize that you know what to do.”
You’ve seen the struggle my friend.
Huge video for me rn. 👊❤
Wonderful perspective- thank you! It's helpful to remember what the social media companies are really here for- selling advertising for them to make more money! We ought not get too bogged down in their game, when ours is creativity and community.
That Spotify streaming farm story is insane
Wow! I feel seen! Currently I'm going through this mental battle about my work not being good (enough).
Thank You sincerely thank you I am getting better with being obsessed with metrics and worrying about the attention I am grabbing I trust that the process of my authenticity will attract the right people they exist, and they will make themselves known when it reaches them.
I loved this. Everything you said really reaffirmed my recent revelation concerning my own personal battle and resistance to social media. I’ve finally started having fun and letting go of overthinking and now my intentions and purpose for interacting with the machine is far more clear to me and intentional. After all these years of hating it because everyone had a say on how I should or shouldn’t do it which always made me feel both incapable and uninteresting. It’s already resistance because as an artist you’d much rather be creating than content creating. I finally killed the noise and started doing what made me feel good. The more I did what I loved the more I grew to enjoy it. Authenticity is the remedy. Thank you so much for sharing your story.
thank you, I feel like giving up sometimes cause of dumb social media. jst have fun doing you seems to be the best route
dude this is so meta. an artist talking about getting trapped in content, in a piece of content. when you said, "the main reason you're in this trap: it's because of advertising money." and at that moment, an add played. you cant make this stuff up.
As a UA-cam creator, when you upload a video over 8 mins you have the option of inserting an Ad mid-roll. You can also choose where this Ad falls, so it's likely that it was done on purpose.
@@FabrizioRodulfo who watches youtube without addblockers? disgusting.
@@pfkmsandiego I agree! I was just explaining to the other guy why that happened. Chill, lol
@@FabrizioRodulfo hahaha i was just saying that ads r disgusting and the thot of anyone watching them while watching youtube disgusts me. cary on... :)
Such a refreshing piece, feels like a drop of sanity. I found that writing out my 'non-negotiables' with what I want to post was really helpful - it stopped me from engaging in content cycles that didn't represent me or the philosophy of my music. I'd rather exist with cognitive resonance than become viral for something that isn't a good representation of myself. Thank you!
your videos always seem come to me at the right time :) recently i dropped an EP, and the performance of the lead single/focus track (cause Spotify and the DSPs will only promote one of your EP/Album's songs at a time, unless your Charli XCX or Beyonce or something), defied my expectations. it did better than my more mainstream songs on Spotify, even though on social media the content featuring the more mainstream songs got more engagement.
but i'm reminding myself to not be too happy about these numbers either. although i am grateful the music seems to be going to people who like it, because i cannot let the numbers define my feelings towards my music. i want to be happy and proud of everything i create regardless of what the numbers say.
so thank you for this, and thank you for being real.
couldn't of said it better.
Came here for the words, stayed for those beautiful tasty sounds you are crafting.
Amen, brother. Thanks for these words. I'm truly thankful. This is so important to understand in these crazy times.
You’re the best. This is the right type of content. I’m starting my channel now and want to keep my integrity and just make what I want. Great music and sharing information.
Social media screw up my mental health, I felt like I was not doing enough work when in fact I was doing a lot of content, and it make me feel really sick, once I prioritize myself and my love of music everything changed, now I enjoy what I do and I only focus on what I want to create, I've seen more genuine interaction with the people that starts following me, that didn't happened when I was an "Algorithm artist", nowadays I feel so much better and I truly enjoy what I do.
Great video as always, you're an inspiration brother 🫶
This is gold. It's a really reassuring and inspiring perspective. So many videos just focused on maximizing views/likes and sacrificing artistic intent
thank you thank you THANK YOU for this vid. literally exactly what i've been struggling with the past week taking the first timid steps into the world of being an artist on social media. shit's rough, but i had a feeling there were others out there who had some insight (duh!)
also that end credit sequence is so so good, honestly made me hit subscribe
Share your gift my friend! Long as you love it, it will never get tiring.
I can not thank you enough for all the inspiration.
Digged out all of my different tape players.
I will master my tracks through different cassettes..
Papas got a brand new vintage swag
I’m literally discussing this topic irl right now.
That's really helpful. Thanks!
❤
Genuinely an excellent video man. I’ve been working on a similar video, and I will absolutely shout you out because you just nailed this. I’ve had exactly this same experience you describe. Subbed!
So well put. Everything you said reflects so much on my experience starting IG this year, and now I've started to build this channel up because it really seems like a more honest way of getting your message out there. The reason I was ever interested in these platforms in the first place is because of all the creators who'd share their music on them, even if it was through an excuse, like demoing something. Covering the same songs over and over again or using tricks to play to the trends is soul-crushing to me.
Perfect video! Love it! My bandmates in the Kilrains and I were discussing this recently and I agree with you, forget the algorithm and go with what you want. 🙌
Thankyou for the message vvundertone! I litterally spent 12 years overthinking my music. Time to start throwing it to the wild
Great man!
thanks for the motivation man ! never givin' up
Man, I needed to hear this.
This is pure gold. Thank you man!
Man I really enjoy your videos. All the time I catch myself doubting and it's people like you with your authenticity and vibe that inspire me to keep going. Thanks for all the great videos man! ❤
Respect! Love your vibes... So true, I'm at the point where I just want to do what I love and have fun.
Man, love every bit of this! Thank you!
Great to see you quitting your job to follow your own creativity and talent, its going to work out well
This video comes right on time. So many musicians I know are frustrated about today’s algorithm driven Social Media. Plus the overwhelming amount of Marketing content. That‘s not the saturation I like 😉 so I deleted the Instagram App last week and start focussing on making music offline. Thank you for your inspiration!
I'm a visual artist, but this reflects so many of my own thoughts and fears. This was such a refreshing and much needed take!!
I COMPLETLY AGREE. I completely agree, that is my philosophy with my projects.
just get it out, to create more space. i needed this
Love you, thanks for the advice
thanks man, true words you have spoken. I make music myself too (very niche, regional, not for the whole world) and sometimes I feel like I have to do more Pop Stuff - Videos like yours bring me back to the right course.
All the best from Austria.
Severin
omg this video is exactly where I am currently (well sorta). I've made about a hundred posts on Instagram for almost 1.5-2 years and obviously haven't got the results I thought. Now I'm shifting to UA-cam because I realised how dumb I was to even think Instagram was my place. I'm gonna start uploading from the start of January and I don't plan on getting followers or even fans or anything of that sort. I just want to keep my ideas stored somewhere and I just realised I like creating videos. Thanks so much for the video man.
very inspiring. thanks for this!
I only follow those who respond and acknowledge those from. Ive shared alot of content with you in private n always got great feedback from you. That sort of respect will definitely will gain my support.
Just wanted to say that I’ve missed your videos, but hope you’re enjoying whatever project you’re onto now. Peace
Thank you. I’m preparing some new releases!
This such an excellent video. Thank you for sharing your insights.
I really need to hear this man. Felt like I was the only one that notices all this stuff
I love this channel. As a content creator and musician I'm that journey and I completely agree with you: Keep the focus on sharing your vision and enjoy what you do.
Many thanks for sharing your learnings. Kind regards from Barcelona.
This was so real, needed to hear this, thank you
this is phenomenal. i love this style of thinking and attempt to share the same thoughts but you’re much more of a vibe with it haha. i’ve loved seeing your journey my brother
One of the best videos for the modern musician in a long while. Well done!
thank you dude you have a beautiful heart
this was great bro keep going! glad to see the growth on youtube, this platform has so many gems 🙏🏽💪🏽🔥
Appreciate this video man, I've been feeling down and out dealing with social media myself; especially the older I get. I literally only have IG and Threads on my phone once a week to post stuff/check messages, then I delete it right off my phone until the next week...social media is that daunting and distracting to me. This helps me focus more on my music and DJing and actually inspires me more. I've been getting back into listening to my CD collection and music on my mp3 player than through streaming as well, which have helped a ton. Keep up the good work man!
So true and encouraging to hear and be reminded 😊🎶 Tnx so much keep going
Perfectly stated 🤘🏼
I am glad that UA-cam recommended me your video. I just woke up and felt really exhausted like i don't know how many times in the past months.
I really believe that this mental and physical condition is because I am over charging myself off to much expectation. Myself, parents and the fact that I went all in moving to another country. But it has been really nice listening to you and re assuring.
I really would like Social media to be a place where I can connect with other musicians and making music with them. Getting new opportunities as guitarist. Nothing else.
My wife works in a very social media driven content creation industry (AR/VR) and she hates being forced to make little videos for every little project she works on, but unfortunately clients want. Anyway keep doing it how you are doing it. I love you videos.
Thank you for that! I need to watch this video every single day to keep remembering that
Beautiful as always✨. We can’t forget the reason why we do what we do, it’s just because it makes us happy and warm. Thanks again for all this that you are doing :)
Wow, thank you for reflecting this beautiful wisdom on the creation of art in the modern world. It's a wonderful reminder for us artists to stay focused on the reason we create in the first place: because we love it! Sharing our art is important too, but it's not all about numbers, it's about making real connections with others. Keep creating!
More fire, love your perspective and thank you for sharing
fantastic insight, thanks 4 sharing!
This is my first time watching your channel and I'm already subscribed. Your video just hit me at the right time. Thank you for making it and I look forward to seeing the rest of your content.
This is so real. Showed up just when i needed it ty
A good reminder, in your style no less, thanks!
thank you man! this is such a great take on this topic. we should definetly not give so many f***** about it and just have funnnn
thank you drippy mustache man, thank you
thanks for this ! totally with you on this one, i feel like plateforms weren't meant for shear curiosity even tho that's what organically draws nerds together. i had a similar experience with the stuff you believe in the least working the best. We probably don't believe in it because it's uncomfortable to us and feels risky, but that risk is in itself what ppl will connect with.
anyways keep sharing what you love, you're putting us on !!
Really wise words my friend. Appreciate you making video to help inspire artists like myself.
love your stuff
Super important video my friend. Thank you for that
love this dude, i get so discouraged my socials
Very inspiring, thanks for all that you do for music and creatives as a whole, you are a gem in the community!
first time seeing your channel, your story really resonates. thank you for sharing!
This isn't the first time that I've thanked you for a video and I suspect that it won't be the last. Thank you.
That's inspiring! Beautiful video! 💥
I totally agree wit the post only what u like advice ! Ur awesome man
Yeah, I've felt this way for a while with promotion of my music on social media. I produced 5 beats a day for 125 days and promoted them through Tiktok and UA-cam with the hopes of trying to gain a following. I enjoyed the process but only gained like 30 followers from it. It disappointed me, despite my best efforts of 'following what the algorithm likes'. At the end of the day its all bullshit on 'what you should be posting' and 'what hashtags to use, etc, etc.' It was best for me to just put my work out without expectations. It's the best way to think about it without trying to be overwhelmed.
I was the thousandth Like YAY
But what I really wanted to write: The video really made me think again. You inspire me every time, you know that. I know sometimes it's not easy for all of us to stick to what we preach and make it our mantra in a way. But we should really try. Everything you say is so true. You are a great guy and I love your videos. You bring me joy, knowledge and inspiration. What more could I want :) Thank you for sharing your passion with me/us Dustyn :) Hugs, Stef
The best and getting better!!
And I just wanna say thank you!
nice video. cheers! 🎉
This video really spoke to me. Thank you for making it!! 🙏🏽
Great video, thanks for the boost of encouragement. Just getting rolling here on UA-cam, but I feel like it's where I should be
Great video. Great message. Thank you!
Such a great and refreshing perspective. Thank you!
awesome video thanks!
This was the exact video I needed rn
Needed this video
Fantastic content. More along these lines please - common sense and refreshing.
I really needed this today. Thank you.
Loved this video man. Nice studio!
An absolutely amazing video man! ❤
That was totally worth to watch it, thank you!
Man this was a vibe. Super cool vid and also, the first song sounds eerily like Fleetwood Macs "Dragonfly". Nice work!
loved this btw whats the name of the outro song?
I really needed to be told this thanks my love
Needed all of this. Thank you
excellent video
Really inspiring video, keep up!