Marketing requires a reduction of artistic and human complexity to something graspable, even if what is graspable is the un-graspability of the artist: that’s branding. Complexity and nuance are a hard sell in a medium like pop music.
A hallmark of this reduction is the conceit that the artist doesn’t care to be successful. Doesn’t care about anything but purity of expression, about the song and its honesty and authenticity. Even hip hop—with genre conventions that appear to defy this duality—in fact confirm it: the desire to be successful, rich, and powerful is packaged as its own form of authenticity.
The artist, fan and the ecosystem that binds them all agree to participate in this conceit. It is a collective fantasy provides magic, transcendence, escape. And money.
But the artist does want to be successful. Even the least commercially-focused artist wants two things: time to make art, and to be seen via their art. Making money with art is one way—likely not the best one—to buy time to make more of it. More people being exposed to the art increases the chances that the artist will be seen through it.
There is no conceit here: I want to spend as much time as I have walking around this planet making music. And I want people to hear it. This website and the content and communications around it are designed to further those goals.
We are going to explore and illuminate the context and ideas related to every released song. To treat each song as an individual work that deserves to be thoughtfully experienced. Some songs will get more attention than others, as befits the song itself. I might share horrible song drafts, talk about crafting the song, use the song as an entry point to tell stories and ask questions, but ultimately always strive to touch something much larger than me or the song.
Or, just tell jokes. That would be good too.
And, in doing this try to get more of what I have always wanted from making music: to feel more connected to the people with whom I share this planet.
In other words, to love and be loved.
