While speaking with a potential customer who was looking to purchase some beats; he kept lamenting about how hard it is to be a local rapper. Though I recognize some of the outdated hardships, I can’t say that I agreed with him. Afterall, we have the world wide web. So, as we go on to speak about trap beats, he sorely laments about being a local artist again. So I finally exclaimed to the self proclaimed “local rapper” that “local rappers don’t exist on the internet”.
Local Rappers Don’t Exist On the Internet?
Yes! The internet is how local rappers no longer exist. Unfortunately, a lot of upcoming artists fail to realize how beneficial the internet can be for their underground Hip-Hop career.
They see the internet as an affront to their “street code”. They feel like by being proactively present online, it essentially makes them look fake.
Sadly, they think by releasing their albums/mixtapes on the streaming platforms, and sharing the link on their personal social media profiles is enough. Having that type of attitude can only mean they feel that the “local rappers” who are being proactive online are corny.
What they cannot deny is the reach their counterparts are having. Surely they see their fellow local rappers getting more streams.
What Are Other Ways Local Rappers Use the Internet to Build Their Fan base?
Social Media
Well, the well informed local rappers use social media. Not many recording artists grasp the benefits of having a social media presence.
Facebook allows rappers and other musicians to build business musician/band business pages. The Facebook business pages have also been known as “fan pages” in the past.
They in fact act like mini-websites. With them, you have an about, bio, video, hours, location, and contact location for visitors.
To sweeten the deal, you’re also able to track your analytics, run ads, and even build a shop to sell physical copies of their music and other merchandise. All of those features are free except for running ads.
TikTok is Why Local Rappers Don’t Exist on the Internet
Tiktok is also a great social media platform for today’s so-called “local rappers”.
Tiktok offers many of the amenities that Facebook offers, except Tiktok’s algorithm is much more friendly than Facebook’s.
In fact, you never hear of any artists having their songs broken on Facebook. It happens on TikTok all the time.
Blogging is Why Local Rappers Don’t Exist on the Internet
Blogging is the real reason local rappers don’t exist on the internet. A blog is in many ways like a journal or a diary that you can use to publish content to your audience (fans).
A local rapper could even use a blog to release his/her music to the world. If the artist were to make regular blog posts, he/she could build up a good following and even monetize the content like people do on YouTube.
Chances are if you have a social media profile, you’ve made at least 1 blog post in your time. A social media post is nothing more than a mini blog post.
YouTube is Why Local Rappers Don’t Exist on the Internet
YouTube is the #1 site for video blogs, better known as vlogging. I strongly suggest utilizing YouTube.
There are many benefits for the local rapper that regularly posts their musical content on YouTube. One of the most sought after benefits is the YouTube Partnership Program.
The YouTube Partnership Program is how local rappers get paid for their songs being streamed on YouTube when they distribute through platforms such as Tunecore or Distrokid.
Buying Advertising Space
Buying ad space can go a very long way for the unknown rapper.
With ads, you can target your audience by their age, location, favorite music sites, favorite musicians, and latest music purchases.
If you’re an artist who makes music similar to say… Lil Baby, you can even target his fan base to get them to listen to your music.
Conclusion
Simply put, with all the inexpensive technology available today, there’s no longer an excuse for an artist to be local. If an artist is only known locally, that is simply due to not taking the necessary actions that could facilitate building a worldwide fan base. The local rapper doesn’t exist on the internet.
