How Live Streaming Is Shaping The Music Industry
Live streaming has proliferated in the wake of COVID-19, with artists taking to the medium in unprecedented ways. But while it’s a novel way for artists to connect to fans in a time of social isolation, there are already questions about its long-term viability.
In the first instalment of Side B Sessions — a series of free online talks by Melbourne agency Bolster — we delved into this topic with a panel representing a broad cross-section of the music industry.
Moderated by music-tech journalist Cherie Hu (Water and Music), our panel featured Jaddan Comerford (CEO of Unified Music Group), Holly Rankin (aka songwriter/artist Jack River), Alexandra Young (GM of Dew Process), and Nick O’Byrne (manager at Look Out Kid), Lewis Mitchell (partnerships manager of Twitch Australia).
Here’s what we went down.
Can live streaming ever be a substitute for touring?
Jack River (artist): “I’m really conscious of the way that I give my art away. We already spend so much energy on this beast, and so to switch to looking at your phone and to be connecting with your band members over Skype, it absolutely doesn’t feel the same.
Cherie Hu (Water and Music): “The concept of ‘stage presence’ in a live stream is so different from an in-person show.”-
Lewis Mitchell (Twitch): “One of the things I always say when people are starting to think about live streaming is: don’t think of it as new television, think of it as a new video form of radio. It can be more loose, it can be more longform. And what you’re doing is inviting your audience to construct the content alongside you.”
What role has live streaming played from an artist marketing perspective?
Alexandra Young (Dew Process): “From a label perspective, it will be about considering live streaming as another tool in the marketing mix moving forward. Seeing it as added value, as opposed to replacing another form of marketing or promotion.”
Nick O’ Byrne (Look Out Kid): “Part of the entirety of the reason you play a show has always been — and remains — marketing and promotion. This idea that live streaming is part of a marketing mix, it actually sits pretty nicely alongside traditional live shows in front of actual people.”
Cherie Hu: “That sense of tapping into a local scene doesn’t exist in live streaming. You can instantly reach a global audience, which has its own benefits.”
Jaddan Comerford (Unified): “It’s a bit of a quandary for us, as we’re trying to compare a live stream to a live concert, in the same way for a long time we’ve been trying to compare a stream to an album sale. It’s a different thing but it’s still giving people a similar opportunity to experience and connect with an artist. And that global opportunity is massive.”
Jack River: “I think it’s an incredible promotional tool, but I’m excited to see how artists make it their own. I think we’ll see a wave of greater creativity come over the next few months. There’s a lot of innovation to be had.”
What are the revenue opportunities for artists?
Jaddan: “As the return of live music continues to be uncertain, if we don’t figure out a way for our artists to make money, we’re going to start to deal with some pretty serious issues … If we can find compelling ways to ask for people to give their money to artists, people will do it. As an industry, we need to get better at making those requests to the audience.”
Nick: “There’s potential in live streaming to hugely increase income from a live show .. It’s making us realise that we should have made these [one-off or milestone live performances] available for people who couldn’t make it for geographical reasons, ability, health or financial reasons a long time ago. We’re forced into this position now, but that will be a huge positive to come out of this.”
What about community engagement?
Lewis: “You know you’ve started to make it when someone asks a question in your live stream chat that isn’t for you as the streamer. That’s when you know you’ve started to build and cultivate this community that just likes hanging around with you.”
Nick: “That visceral feeling [of a live performance] can’t be recreated through watching a stream. But the other great thing is being part of a crowd and having a shared experience. This is a new way of doing it, and it’s really special. It’s that element that will make live streaming live beyond any form of lockdown, and into the future.”
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Side B Sessions is a series of free online talks brought to you by Bolster. It brings together industry thought leaders and specialists to discuss the intersection between digital, music, tech, entertainment, and brand. Register for the next event here.
