The other day, a female artist to whom I had never spoken before tweeted me a link: “@cendrinemedia NEW VIDEO “GOT EM” FROM FEMALE MC NELLO LUCHI [link] RT!”
Here is the rest of the conversation:
–”@NelloLuchi Sorry, I do not like aggressive promotion, especially when I don’t know a person. Interact with people if you want support…”
–”@cendrinemedia dude… You must be following me because I’m definitely not following you. Your name poped up I sent.”
–”@NelloLuchi First, I am not a dude. Second you are in a public forum. There are ways to talk to people. And no, I am not following you.”
–”@cendrinemedia I interact very well trust me. I’ve never heard of you b4 and ummm… I do interact I just made this page bozo.”
–”@NelloLuchi Be as disrespectful as you wish. Just know that you are giving indie a bad name by behaving that way. Have a great day!”
Before I continue, let me explain the reason behind my “callous” answer. When an artist promotes themselves, I look at them in two different ways:
–As a customer. What do they have to offer? Will their products answer my needs? If they have the HIT factor, I will support them and certainly buy their products. Customers are picky, they have expectations.
–As a journalist. Do I like their vibe? How do they portray themselves? Are they modest, approachable? Many media people are overworked and underpaid, which makes them moody and easily annoyed.
In the case of this particular independent artist, I first watched the video; then I focused on her Twitter stream. It was interesting to say the least! Check out extracts below…
This is a perfect case study of what NOT to do as an independent artist. Why? Read below:
–Absolutely no interaction with anyone for hours. Then, when the artist is done over promoting and starts interacting with her “homies,” her language is often very inappropriate.
–All caps in most of the stream — let’s not even mention the typos.
–No knowledge of her niche. Who spends hours sharing the same link over and over again with hundreds of people whose name “pops up” from God knows where? Someone who has no clue how to use Twitter and social networking sites.
–No knowledge of etiquette. Twitter is a public forum. So, watch your mouth:
1) Kids could be reading your stream.
2) Potential supporters, customers and parents of those children could be reading as well.
3) The media could be watching.
4) Tons of people may end up blocking you and you might lose your account — and your credibility.
–Disrespectful behavior. A simple look at my picture, short bio and name would have revealed that I am a woman, that I work as a journalist, and that I do not dress like a clown — unless it is Halloween or I am seriously bored.
Now, let me say this: It is not a personal vendetta against this particular independent artist. I truly wish her well. She just unknowingly provided me with great food for thought. I hope that she will eventually realize that she is giving independent artists a bad name, as I mentioned in one of my tweets.
It does not matter in which field you work. Professionalism is key and what ultimately will bring you success. So, if you want to be respected, treat others the way you would like to be treated. Otherwise, be prepared to deal with karma!
It is time for a change. Independent artists need to stop talking to their mirrors and start paying attention to those who literally “make or break” them: audiences.
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