Incubation versus Lockdown

Stuck is not a place.

March 17, 2020

Last week, I wrote about how we’d see live music shutter its doors across the globe and how that would reverberate through the industry. In retrospect, some of what I wrote missed the mark.

Namely, that artists can use this time to market their music into merch bundles - it looks like all non-essential businesses will close nationwide sometime this week, which could affect shipping and supply chains. Also, while the streaming business will probably benefit from COVID19, it will also lose listeners who’ve lost discretionary income. Thanks to Adrien Stern for bringing that my attention.

Since last week, major festivals have been postponed, venues have closed their doors, and the show I was most excited about - the North American tour by Snoh Aalegra - has been postponed indefinitely. Now that it’s happened to Snoh’s tour, it’s sinking in that this could last a while.

That said, this isn’t a time to shrink and let fear take over. It’s okay to get off social media to take a break from the news, but as an artist or label with a following, you can make time to communicate and give your listeners something to look forward to.

There’s no shortage of opportunities to communicate with everyone at home. Tik Tok is a great place to start with 44% of its users aged 16-24. The app reported an astounding 500 million active users in 2019 and was the most downloaded on the App store. If you’re not on there yet, now is a good time to experiment. Find a video-savvy friend and workshop some content.

We can all use the newfound time to develop ourselves, the music industry included.

Stuck is not a place. Reframe your mindset to understand this as an “incubation” period instead of a “lockdown.” Think about the connotations attached to both words. A lockdown is hindering, impeding, obstructing. Incubation is life giving, sustaining, revitalizing. Explained in business terms, incubation suggests a time and space that acts as a catalyst for research, development, and growth.

Learn from the greats. Work on new material. Hone your craft as a musician, songwriter DJ. Artists, businesses, speakers, and event planners can research how to take advantage of live streaming. Artists can use this time to learn how to maximize income from various royalty streams.

Now is the time to experiment, adapt, and strategize.

I’ve already seen some folks in the music industry accepting the circumstances and using their incubation time to work on new material or step back to see things from a new perspective.

Not everyone’s home project studio looks like Abbey Road, but there’s still opportunity working with your DAW of choice.

To end this pick-me-up rant here’s a couple of fun reminders because we can all learn from history.

No pressure; you don’t have to reach a new forefront of math, science or even write a King Lear. Just make sure you use some of this time to develop yourself.

Be safe and be well!