Think Outside the Tribe

Even Donald Passman agrees, "the common denominator to all successful people is a blend of talent and drive, with (frankly) drive having the edge." Translation: just like any entrepreneur, you've got to drive the ship. You've got to lead the way.

The question then is... how? That's what everyone wants to know. For sure, owning a compelling product is only the beginning. What you do with it is then the challenge, creating a sense of more-than-music for your fans, leading them to/through it.

So, how do you attach meaning to your music? How do you assign value to it, above and beyond the music itself?

The easiest answer: exploit like-tribes. Your first instinct here might be other artists (co-bill, both sets of fans get introduced to your respective bands, etc.). Fine. That works [...]

A Triple-A radio programming veteran, Kate has served as Music Director of the Loft at XM, Midday Host at WYEP, Evening Host at both WNCS and WUIN, as well as Content Supervisor for Pump Audio. Currently, she's the CEO of Outlandos Music, a new-music discovery service for grown-ups. Kate has been nationally recognized for her ardent presentation of music and her ability to champion talented, compelling artists.