Like I’ve said before, I was in a band for 6 years called The Kicks. About a year and a half into our career we put out our first album (called The Rise Of King Richie).
When that album came out we started having a lot of meetings. Meetings with all sorts of people and companies.
One of the terms that got thrown around from so many industry people was “building the story”.
What? Our album is awesome. If you like it, give us a million dollars.
I was confused as to what building the story meant. And while I understand it a lot more now, and I’ve even encouraged some other people using the exact same phrase, I really think music biz people throw it around out of insecurity and not really having a clue what it means themselves…much less HOW to do it or WHY do it in the first place.
But if you’re hearing that idea in meetings, I’ll try and break it down for you a little bit…
-what sets you apart from the other kajillion bands out there?
-what is a series of 4 or 5 sequential events that shows growth in fans and/or money and/or attention?
-what about you makes me feel good about liking you? (what sets you apart and what is actually making me like you can absolutely be different)
-are there other people who I respect who are willing to vouch for you? when and how did you get their respect?
-are you a magnet for a specific type of person or group of people?
-what about you is worth talking about (remarkable) so that I look cool in front of the people in MY world?
Everyone is looking for unique talking points, because that’s what makes anyone feel good about talking about anything. We want to have the punch line, the new info, the next best thing and above all, respect from our peers. Can your band give this?
It’s a lot to take in, and maybe that’s why it all gets bundled in the phrase “building the story”. Most bands don’t want to dive into these hard questions, but all your favorite bands have.
Go tell your story. And if you don’t have one, build one.
