http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCTJNCxvSbY

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(Milwaukee / New York) Signif returns to IHH with this video to her joint, “Like My Style”  ( prod. by Gee Wiz) it’s on IHH so I fux wit it. Check it out.

http://signif.bandcamp.com/album/embracing-rejection

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_hXzZh0nkg

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(Montreal, Canada) Malicious aka Mr Malish returns with this video to this single, “Drop” produced by The Accomplices. It’s on IHH so I fux wit it. Check it out.

@Mr_Malish

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(Chicago, Illinois) Independent hop artist Remi H delivers his mixtape single he calls “Flame Up”. Check it out.

@RemiHbaby

It appears to be widely recognized to take every approach to establish a solid fan base but unfortunately some artists don’t take advantage of it. While it’s no surprise that having a strong internet presence is very important for an independent artist, it doesn’t promise that you’ll be a hit. You have to go the extra mile to get the word out. For Kid Ink, his internet game is so impressive, with over 300 thousand Facebook followers and more than 5 million YouTube views (and counting); it gives the presumption that he is romancing major labels. However, his offline strategy is equally remarkable. Touring with other artists around the country and performing overseas also increases his exposure. Of course Kid Ink was able to leverage his start in the industry by being a producer and writer for other artists. But it was his consistency with branding himself by offering free digital downloads and complimenting that with social networking and touring that advanced his career as a rapper. Signed to his own label ‘Tha Alumni Music Group’ started by him and DJ Ill Will, this independent rapper isn’t interested in courting major labels. He’s too busy marching to his own beat. Coming up in the game, Kid Ink never thought he’d be a rapper, but he had an underlying talent and knowledge of the business that helped him stand out.

• Kid Ink was born Brian Todd Collins on April 1, 1986 in Los Angeles, California.
• As a kid, he was into art which sparked his interest for tattoos and where he came up with his name ‘Kid Ink’.
• Kid Ink started producing music at the age of 15 and in 2008 he started producing and writing music for labels.
• As a producer, he has worked with are Sean Kingston, Diddy, and Yung Berg, to name a few.
• Being a producer gave him inspiration for writing his own lyrics to his own beats.
• Between people telling him that he had the look of a rapper and writing to his own beats, Kid Ink decided to get behind the mic.
• His musical inspirations are Jay-Z, Pharrell, Mase, DMX, and Timbaland.
• To help him with his first mixtape, Kid Ink reached out to DJ Ill Will, who he met through a friend at a video shoot.
• In 2010, he released the mixtape called Crash Landings featuring Dj Ill Will.
• In only 10 days after its release, Crash Landings garnered over 50 thousand downloads and was one of the ‘Top Mixtapes of the Week’ on Datpiff.com.
• Kid Ink, DJ Ill Will, and DJ Rockstar started the independent record label called The Alumni Music Group.
• Kid Ink is signed to Tha Alumni Music Group
• His single ‘Time of Your Life’ gained a huge buzz and landed radio air play.
• He released his sophomore album in June of 2011 called Daydreamer.
• Later in 2011, he released the mixtape called Wheels Up.
• Since becoming an MC, Kid Ink has had features from Roscoe Dash, Bei Maejor, and Meek Mill, just to name a few.
• Kid Ink was featured in XXL magazine as part of the 2012 XXL Freshman Class.
• He is currently working on his second album called Up & Away which is expected to be released in June 2012.

The key to success according to Kid Ink: “The key to success is hard work, it’s like grind. I feel like people can’t ignore consistency and just grinding out. And I think another key is quality. You have to really appreciate your work and give it 100% and people not just giving it half ass.”

Post by: Rosie J - music marketer
@StudioDiva

How do I make my video go viral? This is a question I get asked often. It’s as if there’s a magic formula, out there somewhere, that can be applied to any video to make this possible. There isn’t one.

Want your video to be seen by millions of viewers? Create something that makes it hard for viewers not to share it. If you’re not a mainstream icon with a fan base eagerly waiting for your next visual, you better take the time to create something irresistibly buzz-worthy.

Before you finish your next video, think; Will this video entice the viewer to share it with his friends? Is there an element or scene in the video that compels the viewer to watch it again?

If the answers to either of these questions are no, then you don’t have a viral worthy video. And no amount of Facebook postings or Twitter spamming will change that reality.  If you’re fortunate enough to get a video shot to one of your songs, here are a couple of tips to consider, if you want to create one that’s hard to forget.

Concept:

Having a good concept or story to tell, helps the viewer become more engaged with the visual imagery of your video and how it connects to your music. Performance videos can sometimes be entertaining, but if you create a video that only features you performing the lyrics to your song, don’t expected it to spread very far.

Oftentimes the director shooting your video has a some great ideas and experience with creating concepts, so is good to work with him or her on developing one that will make your video interesting.

Shock value:

You’re competing for attention with many other artists and other forms of entertainment. What will people remember about your video after viewing it?  It doesn’t take a big budget or a bunch of  props to create a video that people can’t help but talk about. Adding something surprisingly shocking or funny to your video will definitely help it go viral.

A video’s virality is not determined by how much money you spend on it, buying Youtube views, or how many half-naked strippers you cast in it. You need creative ideas. Make a list of videos you’ve seen lately that you can’t forget about, and study them to find out which elements made them stick with with you.  You want to create the kind of video that promotes itself. People are annoyed by aggressive promotion. They’d rather discover your video through a friend. If you have  to repeatedly post the same video day after day, on your Facebook timeline, to the same bunch of friends, to make them pay attention, you have to go back to the drawing board.

Videos are potentially a very powerful way to spread your music, image, and message. No amount of promotion will make a boring video interesting. Don’t make the mistake of putting more time and effort in the promotion of your product and not enough in the quality and creativity of the product itself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_wlSODOQh8

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(North Carolina) Phonte delivers this video to his single, “Life of Kings” ft. Evidence and Big K.R.I.T. It’s on IHH so I fux wit it. Check it out.

http://twitter.com/phontigallo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dbd4h1kaFlY

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(New York) Independent hip hop artist Aesop Rock delivers this video to his single “Zero Dark Thirty”. It’s on IHH so I fux wit it. Check it out.

http://twitter.com/aesoprockwins

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAEuCyX6esI

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(Brooklyn, New York) DownBeat Keys return with this video to their single, “Deer in the Headlights”. It’s on IHH so I fux wit it. Check it out.

http://www.downbeatkeys.com

Undeniably posting videos online won’t guarantee that they will go viral. But having a smart marketing campaign can reap considerable results and bring you closer to your objective. To illustrate, Azealia Banks racked up a hefty fan base using YouTube and Tumblr. Often compared to Nikki Minaj and Lauren Hill because of her versatility, this Harlem MC is on a fast come up since releasing ‘212’ on YouTube. The fact that the video has over 12 million views confirms that it is well executed by means of creativity and budget. Equally important, she connects with her fans via Tumblr which keeps them updated on mundane things from her hair color to sexually explicit images. Azealia’s online success is a reminder that thinking outside of the box generally works. Furthermore, being fully aware of your audience and truly utilizing online mediums is what building a strong buzz is all about. Talent is not always enough but no doubt she can rap her ass off.

• Azealia Banks was born on May 31, 1991 in Harlem, New York.
• She started acting and singing at a young age.
• When she was ten years old she began performing in off-Broadway musicals with the Tada! Youth Theater in Lower Manhattan.
• Azealia studied performing arts at LaGuardia High School of Performing Arts in Manhattan.
• When she was sixteen, she stared in the musical City of Angels.
• After performing and attending school for acting, Azealia wanted to be an actress and started working with a manager and an acting agency.
• After not getting calls back from casting calls, she lost hope, spiraled down into a depression, and dropped out of high school.
• Just for fun Azealia rapped for a group of people after meeting a rapper who inspired her.
• People around her began to tell her that she should pursue a career as a rapper.
• Azealia kept rapping to keep herself busy and out of trouble.
• She began recording under the name Miss Bank$ and got a job at Starbucks to pay for her recording sessions.
• To get her name out, Azealia posted her songs on MySpace and sent them to several people online.
• In 2009 she released ‘Gimme A Chance’ and then ‘Seventeen’ via the internet.
• Miss Bank$ was signed to XL Records in 2009 but the deal only lasted a few months due to creative differences.
• In 2010, she dropped the name Miss Bank$ and started recording under Azealia Banks in Montreal.
• Azealia started using YouTube to market her music.
• On her website, she released her official debut single ‘212’ as a free digital download.
• ‘212’ was selected as Record of the Week on BBC Radio 1 and #9 on Pitchfork’s Top 100 Tracks of 2011.
• The video for ‘212’ has reached over 12 million views on YouTube.
• Her video ‘L8R’ has over 1 million views on YouTube.
• Azealia is now working on her debut album with producer Paul Epworth who produced music on Adele’s 21 album.
• In February 2012 she went on her Two Door Cinema Club tour.
• Azealia is scheduled to launch the Azealia Banks Tour later this year.

Here is what Azealia Banks said about making videos in an Interview with 2^nd Guess TV: “I love making videos. One thing about videos is that it’s really smart to just kind of like take into consideration what you can do and what you can’t do and then like you know just make sure whatever you do you looks… it doesn’t look like it was thrown together. Because it’s really easy to get ambitious just by virtue of having a camera. Like there are all these possibilities, but a lot of the time just because you have a camera you know what I mean….doesn’t mean you can do all kinds of crazy shit.”

Post by: Rosie J - music marketer
@StudioDiva