kidmercury

After our last post on Eminem and new media marketing, I got to thinking about Eminem's brand. Eminem's marketing approach for his "comeback" album follows the standard formula in terms of what song should lead the comeback:

• Pop song between 2-4 minutes long (or at least we can get an edit that is <4 min)
• Has a distinctive chorus, a hook -- something that lets people sing along
• Lyrics are "fun" (i.e. no talking about 9/11 being an inside job, and preferably nothing too soulful....you know we're trying to be entertaining here)

This makes sense when one considers the target demographic of pop music, which is pre-teens. The subject matter of some of these pop songs does make me question the appropriateness of their lyrics and rhythms for children, but then again I always have been an old-timer at heart.

Here is Eminem's new song, "We Made You." (All the versions on YouTube disable embedding on remote sites.....lame, and poor marketing)

It's a bit unfortunate that Eminem's social commentary has to be meaningless comedy about celebrities; it can't be anything serious, since that would violate the aforementioned marketing formula. The album will likely contain some more real songs, though, as social commentary is where hip-hop shines brightest, and Eminem has made some socially aware music -- even references to 9/11 being an inside job! But of course, such songs cannot be used to lead a marketing campaign. Maybe if the consumers woke up and started demanding better quality things would change. What can I say, I'm a dreamer (and an old-timer!).

I do appreciate the song for having a very well-crafted pop hook, though. Dr. Dre is the king of that, his tracks always have the best hooks and pop structure.

How the Internet Changes Things

Of course the Internet is here to shatter these marketing paradigms. In the future, when the Internet is the dominant means of music discovery and distribution, the brand will not be as easily manufactured. Engaging fans in co-creating the brand is an inevitable part of digital music, as it builds more passionate (aka more lucrative) fans and also increases the likelihood of fans spreading the artist/brand they have co-created. As fans increasingly co-create the brand -- the message, the meaning fo what the music is associated with -- such top-down, command and control branding strategies that worked in other media (i.e. radio, television) will not be effective in the age of digital music.