As a special bonus to those of you who have purchased the Online Grind Hip Hop Directory, YouTube Grind,, a marketing guide for hip hop artists, is available to you for free. If you’ve purchased Online Grind then a email with a download link should already be in your inbox.
Also included are 20 more blogs and online radio stations, to the directory, that support, post and play independent hip hop artists. Stay on the lookout for more updates and stay on the grind!
It was only a matter of time before the tech savvy geniuses behind YouTube caught up with those gaming their system. But who knew that the punishment would be so sporadic and severe? The massacre started a little over a week ago, and even major labels, Sony and Universal, were stripped of 2 billion fake views.
Some are just having some of their views removed. Some had their videos taken down with a warning or explanation. Others have had their videos removed with no notice at all. I personally know a few who have been hit. Some of them had the only existing copy of Read the rest of this entry »
For the past few months, my team and I have been researching to build a database of resources that support independent hip hop artists. Searching for blogs, Internet radio stations and DJs that truly support your music can be exhausting. So I wanted to create a vetted list of those resources into an e-book directory. That directory will be called, Online Grind.
I looked around and noticed that there was no directory that catered specifically to our genre, and none of them contained a listing of Read the rest of this entry »
This is the kind of sticky promotional tactic that works well to keep your name, label, or website in the minds of your fans. People can always find use for a lighter and even when the fluid runs out, it’s unlikely that it will get tossed, because a bottle opener is always handy. As I’m writing this, I’m looking at a Die Hard battery bottle opener that I’ve had on my key ring for at least 5 years. I Googled to find a company that does this and this site was the first one that came up, Logo Lighters. I’m sure there may be others that provide this service. You can search and compare prices on your own. I definitely plan to invest in a few a these with the blog’s website to pass out.
Being that the music industry stretches far and wide and keeps mostly non-traditional work hours, most lines of communication are kept open through emails and cell phones. People rarely have set office space or even a designated place where they always are so cars become offices and phones are seen as the first lines of contact. So, it is important that you choose a phone that has good reception, works in other parts of the country, and is assessable to be answered at all times of the day. Read the rest of this entry »
Hopefully you’ve been beating the social networks hard and long enough to realize that your number of friends and followers doesn’t equate to success. Sure it’s a factor, but accumulating people on these networks don’t mean that they give a shit about your music. I have Facebook friends that have pushed their network numbers to the limit, then they release a single only to discover that those people couldn’t care less. Read the rest of this entry »
If you follow @Chamillionaire on Twitter then you know that his online grind is relentless. He’s been making it work for him for a while now. Some other major rappers are just catching on. HIs last tweet promised a return after a two week vacation from the social network. But you can understand why Twitter is such an important part of his communication with his fan base in this video.
In this podcast I touch on the importance of building a team to help you achieve your goals. And as always, I give you a good dose of some dope indie hip hop music.
With the newest social media trend being Twitter, a lot of established as well as independent artist have taken to the networking site as a way to increase awareness of their brands and movements. Although the site boast music friendly opportunities i.e. New Music Monday’s, a lot of users are starting to complain about the onslaught of music they are either tweeted or fill their timeline. Rightfully so, if your a DJ, radio personality, or have anything to do with the entertainment industry you have to expect these tweets to fill your timeline from time to time So, I have decided to come up with a couple quick do’s and dont’s for independent artists that can help further as well as build their relationships on twitter without being blocked ignored, or unfollowed.
1. Do be considerate in your approach.
Just like how you have to be careful in how you approach someone on the street, you also have to be considerate in the way you come across on twitter. I think a lot of people feel as though they can act any way the want because they are not in front of that person or because its through the internet. What most Read the rest of this entry »
Headliner.fm is a cool tool for independent artists. It gives you the opportunity to exchange promotions with other artists over the Internet. It’s free. Check it out.
In a market saturated with so many hip hop artists, you’re going to have to go beyond just lyrical skill to make an impact. You know, the kind of impact where you influence the way a group of people dress, speak, and think. Far too many emcees ignore this aspect of their careers because they feel that they should remain free from “gimmicks”. Read the rest of this entry »
In my city and in others I’ve traveled to, some promoters put on what they call, talent showcases. Most of these lame shows are put together by letting any rapper perform who pays an entree fee. On top of that, the artist is given a number of tickets that he must sell to his friends and supporters. These are the only group of people usually cheering for him during his performance because no one is there to see anyone else but the artist they came to support.
Anybody can get in and perform if they have the money to pay. These showcases are stacked with well over a dozen artists Read the rest of this entry »
Fanpush is a cool marketing tool that uses Twiiter to help independent artists get their music out. Fanpush is in beta right now and more features are promised to come in the near future. Check out the video and try it out for yourself.
1. Don’t think that heavy marketing and aggressive promotion will be the solution to all your problems. Your music must be great. No amount of marketing will make people care about bad music.
2. Don’t be afraid to be different. Biting someone’s sound and style may get you noticed short term, but the artists who have a lasting affect are those who dare to stand out and create something new. Read the rest of this entry »
Your image is just at important as your music. Especially in hip hop. Most people will try to determine what kind of music you make just from a glance of your pic. This is why you should give serious thought about the promotional pictures you send out with your music.
You can’t imagine some of the horrible pics artists send me to post on this blog. The above pic is a recreation, but a very mild example. I get bad mobile phone pics in the bathroom, with their children, with their girlfriends, got one in the kitchen, driving in the car….you get my point. Blog and website owners put a lot into making sure their sites are visually appealing. Well, at least most of them do. And they don’t wont crappy pics detracting from that. Read the rest of this entry »
