Bypass: Music Industry News for Independent Artists

Wednesday edition - 3 min read

Say No to Vanity Metrics

What’s Up

Too many indies are addicted to vanity metrics. You obsess over 'numbers go up' because it feels like progress. It’s nothing but a trap. Saves are the name of the game, especially when it comes to streams.

So What

Do the math. A Meta click costs $0.50. A Spotify stream pays fractions of a cent. Yeah… paying for ads for streams isn’t worth it. Focus on algorithmic lift. Getting on Release Radar and Discover Weekly is what matters on Spotify. The only metric that triggers that is the Save.

Now What

Don't buy bot streams. Well, you can if you’re looking for an instant ban. But we’re guessing that you don’t want that. Remember that Saves pays, clicks don’t. Run ad campaigns for 30 days, but track the algolift for 90.

[Full story at Hypebot]

How Big Thief Memed Their Way to Growth

Who Did It

Memes for streams? Never heard of that. Big Thief grew their audience by letting fans meme them out of existence. 4AD came up with the strategy for Double Infinity. Turns out, handing out coloring books at a DIY listening party and making a meme page is a great way to make your demographic skew younger. TikTok made the Philippines their 3rd largest market.

How They Did It

Big Thief read the room. They pitched Spotify about Double Infinity early and landed playlist spots. Then they tracked where in the world their streams were popping off, and leaned in. Treating fans like ATMs was the last thing on their minds. The internet did its thing (memes and all), and Big Thief got the momentum a simple ad campaign can't get.

How You Can Too

Steal this. Create places where fans lead, whether it’s Discord, meme pages, whatever. Pitch Spotify early to get on playlists. Check analytics every week to see which city (or country) is giving you the most attention, then double down.

[Full story at Music Ally]

TikTok Is Changing… Can You Feel It?

What's Up

Damn. I mean, the year just started. TikTok just laid off 20 people from their creator support team while expanding their ad sales department. The Global Head of Creators is gone. And that means only one thing: TikTok doesn’t care about creators anymore.

So What

TikTok is all about the money now. It’s feeling a bit too American, isn't it? The people whose job was to help artists are out; the people collecting checks are staying. This is the danger of building your career on rented land. We spent a fair share of editions trying to warn you about this. When their priorities shift, you’re the one left scrambling.

Now What

Keep posting if it’s working, but TikTok is gonna look real different soon. Right now, it’s a funnel. So move your followers to an email list, text group, or Discord. Chase loyalty and real connection. Your career shouldn’t rely on how a big tech company is feeling on a particular day.

[Read more on Digital Music News]