Someone said we needed a website.
This one's for you, [redacted].
Hello, everyone. Sorry for the distance. We’ve been to no less than 6 states in the last four weeks, and we have several more to visit in the weeks ahead. Life is good. Hectic, but good.
We've had a fantastic spring promoting Country Minute across the nation, thanks to carefully planned collaborations with artists like George Strait, Morgan Wallen, and Kenny Chesney, as well as smaller activations with Trey Lewis, Wheeler Walker Jr., and others. Our approach to covering shows includes event highlights, personal experiences, artist reviews, and 'man on the street' style fan interactions. It’s everything you might hope to know about a show or event before going—and then some—delivered to you through your preferred social media algorithm.
As festival season approaches, we've contacted several events about partnerships and on-site activations that would allow us to bring our unique mix of fan engagement and experiential content to their grounds. On more than one occasion, someone denied our application, stating:
"We do not recognize social media, influencers, or digital content creators unless they maintain a website/blog."
Country Minute, on average, reaches around 10 million people monthly across TikTok and Instagram. People consume more than five years' worth of our content weekly. How is that not enough?
I spoke to someone this week who told me the only hope for their site is an investor or a sale. Two others working at another property mentioned their reach cratered after recent changes from Google.
When people mention blogs to me, I always ask: When was the last time a music blog changed your life? When was the last time you found a new song because of a blog? When was the last time someone you knew mentioned the powerful writing of a music blog and how it moved them to buy a record or see a show?
I’m not saying this doesn’t happen; I’m saying it doesn’t happen to anyone I know or interact with on a regular basis.
Follow the fans. Look at how and where they spend their time. Everything happening in music right now is happening first in video—short form vertical video, to be specific. Young audiences are using TikTok like Google. They find the setlist, the exclusive merch, and even the 'vibes' of the event primarily through video content.
More importantly, it’s this type of content that ultimately tells your story. Having a great quotable from a post on Consequence of Sound is an accomplishment, but I’d argue you can get just as much—if not more—exposure from a TikTok by a passionate fan imploring others to give you a chance. When people recognize the value of those able to capture these moments and utilize their powers to expand their sales funnel, everyone will move ahead.
ANYWAYS. We built a website. Enjoy.