I know of a woman. She’s a singer. For years she posted content on her social media channels that was primarily based around her talent – cover tunes in her home studio, live performances at concerts/shows, and behind-the-scenes footage of her life as a performer. She’s good. She’s a good singer and a good performer. Over time she gained a small but respectable amount of followers, most of whom were supporters who came out to see her shows. But she never went viral.
So she looked around the web to see what was trending and decided to do something different. She started posting comedic sketches and situational content that poked fun at everyday activities. Within months she began to gain followers at a much faster rate than her performance content. One skit in particular took off and went viral. She continued to post similar content to keep up the momentum. Her socials now boast six-figure follower numbers and sponsorships and other opportunities have poured in. But she rarely posts anything related to singing anymore – which was, and still is her passion. In fact, I think it might be safe to say that many of her followers aren’t even aware that she sings. She’s a bona fide social media success – but not as she intended.
Perspective
Social media runs on an instantly gratifying fast track. Creating authentic, high-quality content that is true to you and isn’t attached to a trend is arguably the slow road and I get it. What’s the good in creating unique, high-quality content that no one gets to see? On the other hand, is being stuck in a loop of remixing the joke, dance, or “hot take” of the moment worth the artistic sacrifice? Becoming “Insta-famous” definitely has a blueprint. But is it one true artists should even want to follow? Only the individual can decide.
The question is not whether you are creative enough but whether you will free yourself to express it. – Ian Roberts
However the artistic expression gets fulfilled, my genuine hope for artists is that more of us realize that the number of likes or follows on our social media profiles is no direct indication of talent or ability. If the goal is to be famous, by all means, follow the blueprint. But if the goal is to leverage social media to express your talent and creativity on your terms, follow your heart. Your people will find you.
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