Why are Artists Putting Out a Snippet Before Releasing The Song?
Late Sunday night, while multitudes of eyes were glued to TV screens, being introduced to new housemates of BBNaija, several others were relishing a new, unexpected snippet from this year’s discovery of the year, Asake. Brazen in personality, with song texture made up of slick kick drums and soulful piano keys, Asake displayed again, much of that confidence social media commentators have associated him with. The snippet achieved its effect—triggering anticipation.
Too, side to side with BBNaija, Asake became the talk of social media platforms that night, the video ejecting over 20k+ comments from viewers. By Monday night, Asake’s followers had increased from 973k to 990,000k. Just from a snippet.
Asake is not the only one banking on snippets to usher in his release into the market. In fact, almost everyone is doing that now. Snippets have witnessed an unprecedented rise this year like no other before. Case in point, snippets have been around for as far back as God knows. OGs Legendury Beatz said in an interview the other day that Wizkid’s smash hit, Azonto was previewed in clubs before its eventual release, a move Davido replicated later last year with Champion Sound.
And we know before the ‘“mysterious version” of Wizkid surfaced on social media post-Made In Lagos, his 2018/2019 self was fond of treating listeners to minute clips of his freshly-made creations. Every now and then, there’s a thread of Wizkid’s snippets on Twitter.
Case in point, teasers are different from snippets. Teasers are more of showing your audience what you just made, which you’re unsure of releasing. But if the comments are nice and then it goes viral, it receives the green light. In reverse, snippets are cut from a song about to be released. You know for certain, that’s your next song. You want the audience to demand for the release. You want those fire comments and people screaming “when are you dropping it!”
But the viral spread of snippets has infected other artists across the industry. Adekunle Gold first showcased his latest single on tour and then, shared the 1-minute clip for use on TikTok. That was three weeks before release. Crayon followed the exact template, sending a lot of people into frenzy for Ijo. The song would have really popped if it had avoided being released in the same window as Burna who marshaled the chart for two weeks.
And even Burna used snippets as a marketing tool, days before his album’s release, letting listeners have a peek and feel of the album’s focus tracks (Cloak and Dagger, For My Hand). However, the reason why there’s been a surge in the use of snippets ties back to TikTok. Between 2020 and now, clips from songs can go viral on the platform, leading users to “Shazam” the song and proceed to streaming platforms to listen to the whole song.
We might continue to see more of snippets this year because for sure, it’s working.
Stuff I’m reading
Those who know me know I like reading a lot. Here are a few ones that have aroused my curiosity:
1. Viral Revivals: From Kate Bush to Tom Odell, Inside the Business of Oldies as New Hit Songs
Insight: “Warner Records couldn’t ignore 85 million global streams (this week alone) and re-serviced “Running Up That Hill” to radio. Without a sync on a cultural juggernaut like “Stranger Things” to open doors, artists and their teams are tackling this increasingly common scenario in a variety of different ways — from approaching radio stations and DSPs individually, to releasing new videos and alternate versions. The goal is to extend the viral moment and hopefully make an impact across the wider music ecosystem.”
2. Labels Are Still Pushing for 360 Deals — But the Terms Are Better
Insight: “More established acts and young artists with a little momentum — a TikTok hit is great leverage — arguably have more options than ever. Flush with cash and eager to break artists, labels are increasingly eschewing traditional contracts and getting creative. “Labels are more willing to be partners,” says Derek Crownover of Loeb & Loeb. An increasingly common option is a distribution deal that gives the artist back his or her master recordings after a fixed period, he says. Also, labels do what is called a “cut-in,” or override, agreement, where a party develops an artist as a producer and hands off the project to a label in return for points from the artist or label.”
3. On Discord, Music Fans Become Artists’ Besties, Collaborators, and Even Unpaid Interns
Insight: “Artists have used the platform to preview new songs, solicit merch feedback, host beat competitions, and simply shoot the shit. “From the start, I didn’t want to be excluded or above anyone in terms of hierarchy,” Venezuelan-born producer Arca says about her mutants1000000 Discord community. “And amidst the turmoil and uncertainty [of the pandemic], it was where I felt like I belonged.”