There are a few factors that can adversely impact the longevity and sustainability of an artiste’s career like the strength of their brand, and many an artiste’s career has ended prematurely on account of trifling with building their brand. Recently, every artiste and their mother seem to think that they are a brand, and they are correct. How strong or remarkable their brand is from other artistes is another matter.

Like I mentioned in an old article, the rapid advancements in technology that we have recorded in the last two decades has made it easier to record music and distribute said music, and this has been a blessing and a curse for artistes. On the one hand it has opened access to the industry up to millions of creatives who would otherwise find it difficult to enter. But on the flip side the lower cost barrier has created a permanent glut in the music space such that it is increasingly difficult to command the attention of a critical mass of music fans at any given time. Hence, the need for real differentiation in an artiste’s offering or it becomes very difficult for them to make any meaningful progress in the industry or to sustain what little progress is made. Building a solid brand is now imperative for a long, rewarding music career.

Ask anyone the question, “what is your brand” and most will struggle to articulate clearly what their brand is, not because they don’t know their brand, but because it can be difficult to put into words. Sometimes it is easier to articulate or understand a brand more from the perspective of what it is not as opposed to what it is. Being a brand is as much about saying “No” to some things as it is about saying “Yes”. It has been my experience in this industry that for many if not most artistes, there is no deal that they can say “No” to. When our artistes talk about “securing the bag” they often mean “securing any bag”. But you cannot be all things to all men if you want to build a solid brand, you have to say no to certain things and yes to others. In the music business, there are two broad areas where you can define your brand.

First is the music side, artistes can set themselves apart through their unique sound, writing style, delivery, fashion, performances and every element that goes into making them the artistes they are. So, artistes ought to carefully think about each of the above-mentioned facets of their professional persona with a view to crafting a unique framework within which all their works, within a given period, would be situated. This kind of framework will give much needed direction to artistes as they produce their works, and nothing aids creativity like a clear sense of direction. This approach also helps build an engaged and committed fan base as they know, within reasonable limits, what to expect from their stars at any given time. An artiste’s brand will also help decipher and dictate which trends to jump on and which to say “No” to. For instance, the way every other artiste made it their life goal to feature Duncan mighty after the fact of his hit with Wizkid was just embarrassing and indicative of the follow-follow culture in the industry that inhibits any serious brand building efforts. I once opined on twitter that If in your next hit alone you have hope, you are of all men most miserable. A well-developed music brand means that you are less vulnerable to your next single as your fans have bought into something much bigger than just the music. This is why I believe that if Lagbaja announced a gig billed for Eko Hotel, he’d no doubt sell out the venue, despite not being very active on the music scene in years. Solid music brands don’t die.

Of course, the other area where an artiste can build their brand is the business side of things, particularly how they relate with other corporate brands. Business relationships with corporate brands offer an important opportunity for artistes to further chisel out and propagate their brand identities and values. But this opportunity is often not effectively utilized as most of our artistes are usually primed to do business with any brand as long as the money is right, whether or not there is modicum of fit between both brands. One of the reasons for this desperation is that artistes and their teams have been sold the zero-sum philosophy where they must jostle for any and every opportunity or they will have nothing. Yet, careers are still going extinct so fast. Listen, the commoditization of your art, through your business relationships will not augur well. It will not. I remember being critical of the Glo endorsement jamboree in some of my past writings from a few years ago and how it commoditizes the artistes, but everybody wanted that extra million or two. I assure you that none of those artistes had a say in how they were going to be portrayed nor did they give a damn. Yet, to paraphrase Henry David Thoreau said, “the path of least resistance makes crooked rivers and crooked men. The “free money” simply made artistes and their teams lazier, unable and unwilling to build anything. They sat back and waited for the corporates to make the first move and they took whatever they were offered, naively believing that every deal was a good deal, and nothing could be further from the truth.

Dear artiste, to secure your bag tomorrow, you must build your brand today – no brand, no bag. Believe in yourself, your unique talent, and your individual journey. Patiently and deliberately build a solid music brand and the world will reward you for a long time. I have had to watch, with sadness, as many gifted artistes, otherwise on track to have a great career, have been swayed by the trending sound, producer, or artiste of the moment to their doom. As Philip Kotler says, “If you are not a brand you are a commodity” and commodities are easily replaced. Build your music brand and be irreplaceable.

#BOM

Obinna Agwu is a compulsive lover of music, Talent Manager, Music Business Executive, Adviser to Labels and Talents and the author of The Mob’s Take and BOM Series.

@d_angrymob