Websites and Social Media

What is the purpose of an artist website/social media account?

The reason why musicians have social media, as well as their own websites is because it will make it easier for them to engage with their fans, they can share updates about music, as well as announce new music. Artists also use social media so that they can promote themselves, and introduce themselves to a wider audience. Because of websites and social media, musicians are able to have a global fanbase, as the internet is easily accessible across the world (globalization). On social media, artists offer sneak peeks of new music, they upload photos and videos, and engage with their fans through livestreams and the artists set challenges for the fans (for example, solve a puzzle that is related to music).

The first musician Instagram account I will be analyzing is Taylor Swift, who is a pop artist. Swift is the 15th most followed celebrity on the platform, with 274 million followers. On her account, she regularly post pictures and videos of herself on her ongoing Eras Tour, which has sold out almost immediately. She also posts upcoming updates about her new music. Specifically, her re-recordings of her previous albums, which she has lost the rights to own. Taylor conforms to the traditional standards of what a musician should post on their social media; she is engaging with her audience by posting regular updates about music on her posts and Instagram stories, posts photos and videos of herself on tour, as well as giving her fans clues and riddles for them to solve about her new music. The colours that are featured frequently in Swift's posts are blue, pink, white and purple. The usage of these colours gives of a calmful and peaceful atmosphere, in which Swift is known to be a very friendful person. Taylor presents herself in a positive light, and tends to avoid posting about controversies surrounding her, this is because she does not want to be seen in a bad light and have her core audience turn against her. The reason why she is one of the most followed celebrities on Instagram is that she has a huge fanbase, who are dubbed the 'Swifties'. 'Swifties' are known for their dedication and enthusiasm towards Taylor. Since Taylor is a very widely known pop star, it is no surprise that she has fans outside of the US, where she is from. Since social media is easily accesible worldwide, her global audience is able to interact and engage with her (globalization).

The second musician Instagram account I will be analyzing is that if the Arctic Monkeys, who are an indie rock band. They have 7.2 million followers, which can be quite a lot for indie artists, as they are not as popular as mainstream artists. On their account, the band regularly posts new tour dates for their world tour, as well as updates about new music that is coming. Despite this, they do not regularly engage with their fanbase, as they do not have individual Instagram accounts, and they don't post livestreams that involve them talking to their fans. Indie rock musicians tend to be more private than mainstream artists, so we can say that the Arctic Monkeys are conforming to what indie rock musicians should be like. Even though as are from the UK, the band are famous worldwide, even going on world tours to play in front of foreign audiences. Their international fanbase are able to follow the band on this platform, as Instagram is available worldwide. The colours are are heavily featured on this account are black, white, gold, red and yellow, to name a few. These colours create an eye-catching effect, as these colours are very vibrant. Using bright and vibrant colours directly correlates with their music, which is known to be very catchy and have vivid imagery in their lyrics.

The third and final musician Instagram account I will be analyzing is that of Princess Nokia, who is a Rap/Hip Hop artist. She has 1 million followers, which makes sense considering that she is not a mainstream artist. On her account, she posts photos and videos of herself at various places, from magazine covers to music festivals (including selfies), as well as announcement of new music and music videos. From this, we can say that she conforms to the standards of what a rap artist should post on their social media, as these types of musicians only post pictures and videos of themselves, as well as sneak peaks and announcements of new music. The colours that are seen on her account are blue, yellow, red, green, white and grey, to name a few. The usage of both warm and cool toned colours contrast each other, and the mixture of tones creates a bright and vibrant atmosphere. This directly correlates to what her music videos look like, in which they are usually bright and flashy (for example, No Effort). Princess Nokia wants her audience see her most boldest self, and this is shown not just her music, but her colour palettes seen in her Instagram posts.