Regan McVeigh<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Abstract<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This paper identifies that Web 2.0 affordances and social media sites are\nuseful tools for musicians and fans to build and maintain thriving music\ncommunities. It explores seven articles which provide evidence that online\ncommunities can exist, and that musicians are using them successfully to\nbenefit their careers and their fan base. The article also explains that record\nlabels are now using these methods to enhance their business models. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Social media sites have become a part of our everyday life. It is quite\ncommon for people to connect with people at home or even overseas using social\nmedia. But can it be used to build and nurture communities? And, furthermore,\ncan it be useful for independent musicians to strengthen ties with their fans\nand foster music communities? In short, yes, but in this paper, there is\nevidence that it is so helpful to independent musicians and fans, that record\nlabels have adopted this strategy into their business model (Choi & Burnes,\n2017). To begin with Gallant\u2019s (et al, 2007) paper establishes that online\ncommunities are indeed built and maintained online. Using Gallant\u2019s work as a\nmeasure, Forman (et al, 2012) provides an example of thriving online\ncommunities on Facebook. Tarassi (2018) gives some insight into the lengths\nmusicians need to go to in order to have a career as a musician, which includes\nconnecting and maintaining relationships with their fans and music community.\nFountoukidis (2015) investigates the Greek music industry and provides evidence\nthat artists and fans are using Web 2.0 affordances to form close bonds and\nnurture music communities through direct lines of communication. Ball (2010)\nexplores Portland\u2019s independent music scene and discovers extensive use of Web\n2.0 and social media sites to provide accessibility and promote participation\nbetween artists and fans, and in their doing so have created a thriving music\ncommunity. Warren and Evitt\n(2010) explain how Web 2.0 and social media sites were vital for the forming\nand maintaining of hip-hop communities despite originating in remote far North\nQueensland. And,\nfinally, Choi and Burnes (2017) highlight that record labels have incorporated\nthis strategy of using social media to strengthen ties and build communities\nwith themselves, artists and consumers. This article provides evidence that Web\n2.0 platforms strengthen ties and help form communities with musicians and\nfans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Online communities strengthen social ties and increase interaction\n(Gallant et al, 2007). In Gallant\u2019s (et al, 2007) article we can achieve a\nbetter understanding of how communities are built and maintained online.\nGallant (et al, 2007) explains that through the affordances of Web 2.0 people\nare able to participate in social relationships with ease of accessibility.\nThey are able to interact with one another, establish their online identity and\nmake social decisions based on the identity of others. Using social network\nsites such as Myspace and Facebook, people were able to build friendships,\ncoordinate as groups and form communities (Gallant et al, 2007). Gallant (et\nal, 2007) also indicates that even though their research was focused on\n\u201c\u2026social web-based communities\u2026\u201d (Gallant et al, 2007), it can also be applied\nto other online communities such as entertainment, among other aspects of\nsocial life. As you will see in this paper, music communities are taking\nadvantage of Web 2.0 affordances to strengthen their communities. Gallant\u2019s\nwork highlights the ability to cultivate communities online and strengthen\nties. When people interact online they are establishing a connection that can\nbecome a foundation for a community. Gallant\u2019s subjects frequent the same\nplatforms online and develop social relationships. As they are able to\nestablish an identity online, they are then able to read other people\u2019s online\nidentities and make an informed decision on whom to connect with. These\ncommunities were then able to form around these relationships, much like the\nmusic communities in the following cases. Gallant\u2019s (et al, 2007) article shows\nthat social ties are strengthened, and that interaction is increased through\nonline communities, as is prevalent in the music community cases in this paper.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n Online communities are built through a support system when people come\ntogether to interact online (Forman et al, 2012). Unlike previous forms of\ncommunity building, online communities do not require physical closeness, and\ninstead are built upon human interaction (Forman et al, 2012). Forman\u2019s (et al,\n2012) article follows a community of mourners on Facebook R.I.P. pages. Using\nGallant\u2019s (et al, 2007) work they are able to establish that\nthese communities are built from support, not unlike the underground music\ncommunities that will be discussed further on. Through these Facebook pages\npeople are able to come together to talk, support, offer advice and connect\nwith each other (Forman, 2012). The affordances of social network sites offer\naccessibility to the members of the community that may have previously been too\nintimidated to take part in, in previous community forms. Forman\u2019s (2012)\narticle highlights how a community can grow around support and connectivity\nover a mutual subject. The people in Forman\u2019s (2012) article are able to share\nexperiences and participate in open dialogue using the affordances of Web 2.0\nas will be shown in the cases of music communities below. Through this open\ndialogue, sharing of experiences and support, relationships are formed. These\nrelationships are then able to grow into a community. These communities are\nable to form due to the accessibility of Web 2.0 platforms as is highlighted\nfurther on with the music communities used in this article. Forman\u2019s (2012)\narticle illustrates that online communities are built on human interaction and\nsupport. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It is important to point out at this stage the\nlengths that independent musicians need to go to in order to establish\nthemselves as working musicians and create local music communities. Musicians\nare required to do more than just write and perform songs (Tarassi, 2018). They\nmust be engaged in multitasking and take on multiple jobs to connect with fans\nand promote their shows as well as distribute their work and organise with\nother artists and promoters (Tarassi, 2018). The musicians must actively build\nand maintain their community (Tarassi, 2018). Tarassi\u2019s (2018) article gives us\ninsight into this world by researching artists in Milan\u2019s music scene. The\nartists maintain many platforms to achieve the different aspects of their\ncareers and therefore take on a level of entrepreneurialism. The musicians in\nTarassi\u2019s (2018) paper are frequently working towards ensuring their music\ncareers have room to grow and a fan-base to play to. This is achieved\nsignificantly by cultivating and motivating their community. Incidentally,\nTarassi points out that during the research of their article they collected\ndocuments from the musicians that included blogs, websites, letters, articles,\nflyers, posters, fanzines, songs, webzines produced online and offline. This\nindicates that these musicians are also using the affordances of Web 2.0 to\nbuild these communities. Musicians need to go to great lengths to establish,\nmaintain and be active members of their music community. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Web 2.0 platforms allow musicians to communicate\ndirectly to their audience (Fountoukidis, 2015). Fountoukidis (2015) article\ninvestigates the Greek music industry surveying industry types as well as fans\nwith aim of establishing how modern technology has impacted the music industry.\nThe findings from this study give insight into how musicians are using Web 2.0\nplatforms to strengthen ties and build communities. For instance, the internet\ntechnology available to musicians now grant much more access to processes and\nmethods that were previously limited to large companies and agencies\n(Fountoukidis, 2015). Fountoukidis (2015) explains how the different aspects of\nmusic career practice i.e. production, promotion distribution and consumption,\nhave been impacted from new internet technology. Musicians are now able to\nwrite and record music without record company interference and demands. This\nnot only allows the musicians to write genuinely, but also allows them to\ndistribute the music directly to their audience, sometimes free of charge\n(Fountoukidis, 2015). The significance of these changes for this article is\nthat musicians are able to communicate directly to their audience. This allows\nfor a healthy thriving music community, just like the communities in Forman\u2019s\n(2012) article. The artists are able to set up their own sites for distribution\nand communication to their audience, allowing for feedback and comments, and in\ndoing so strengthening ties and fostering a community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Web 2.0 affordances allow musicians and fans to\naccess music, promotion, distribution and community building tools much easier\nthan before (Ball, 2010). Ball (2010) investigates Portland\u2019s independent do-it-yourself\nmusic community and highlights that Web 2.0 affordances are being used to the\nbenefit of musicians and fans alike. Using these platforms to write, record,\nand promote, they are also able to make local music more available and\nencourage people to be involved, and therefore, grow the community (Ball,\n2010). The participants are identified as active members of their community who\nwork to make it more accessible and share their experiences with musicians and\naudience members (Ball, 2010). Ball\u2019s (2010) article is a prime example of\nmusicians and fans taking advantage of the affordances of Web 2.0 platforms to\nstrengthen ties and build online communities. The article illustrates an open\ndialogue between musicians and fans. There is also evidence of a willingness to\nshare, connect and participate in the music community. Ball (2010) explains\nthat these practices are not used to garner more consumers, but rather to\n\u201c\u2026increase the accessibility of local music and invite people to actively\nparticipate in the culture\u201d (Ball, 2010, p.123). The musicians and fans in\nPortland\u2019s music community have benefitted from the use of Web 2.0 platforms.\nThe musicians and fans are taking advantage of the Web 2.0 affordances to the\nbenefit of their music community. Web 2.0 affordances, in this case, are\nparamount to the success of a healthy, thriving music community in Portland, as\nis evidenced by the findings in this article. Musicians promote, distribute,\nstrengthen ties and create places to blossom their music community using Web\n2.0 platforms (Ball, 2010).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Social network sites allow\nmusicians and fans to build a community despite geographical boundaries (Warren\n& Evitt, 2010). This is evident in Warren and Evitt\u2019s (2010) article which\nfollows hip-hop groups from far North Queensland. Warren and Evitt (2010) are\nable to indicate the significance of social network sites and Web 2.0\naffordances in the building and maintaining of hip-hop communities from remote\nareas. Despite the groups and fans being spread across remote areas in\nQueensland and Australia they are able to grow a thriving hip-hop community by\ntaking advantage of the affordances of Web 2.0 technologies such as Youtube and\niTunes. The artists are able to make the music at home or in youth centres\nwithout having to travel to major cities to use professional recording studios\nand equipment (Warren & Evitt, 2010). They are then able to upload their\nsongs to platforms such as Youtube and iTunes to reach larger audiences rather\nthan just their local remote audience (Warren & Evitt, 2010). In turn this\nallows the group\u2019s reach and community to grow through promotion of their\naspiration and \u201c\u2026sharing, learning and helping others\u201d (Warren & Evitt,\n2010, p.156). As fans are able to keep in touch with the artists with social\nnetwork sites and stay up to date with the latest offerings and promotions from\nthe artist, they are able to participate in the community no matter where they\nare watching or listening from. This shows that without Web 2.0 affordances\nthese communities could not exist at this level and these particular groups\nwould not have a thriving music community. These social media sites are able to\nconnect people, like in Gallant\u2019s (2007) article, no matter how far apart they\nare geographically. Despite their remote locations, musicians and fans are able\nto participate in music communities due to Web 2.0 affordances (Warren &\nEvitt, 2010). <\/p>\n\n\n\n Record labels have adopted this strategy, building\ncommunities and strengthening ties using social media, into their business model\nto strengthen ties with their artist\u2019s fan base (Choi & Burnes, 2017). In\nan effort to communicate directly with consumers, record labels have begun\nusing social media (Choi & Burnes, 2017). As well as being beneficial to\nthe label, it also forms emotional ties with consumers who then become\nconnected to the larger music community and feel closer to the artists (Choi\n& Burnes, 2017). Using social media, the labels initiate contact with the\nconsumers and encourage participation (Choi & Burnes, 2017). The labels are\nthen able to communicate and share experiences directly with their consumers\nand therefore form close relationships (Choi & Burnes, 2017). These\nrelationships, as discussed previously, are integral to the formation of music\ncommunities and mark a significant change to previous communities and record\nlabel practices before Web 2.0. The record labels and musicians are encouraged\nto approach consumers to help enhance the consumers experience and in doing so\nstrengthen ties between themselves and the consumer (Choi & Burnes, 2017).\nThis highlights the success of community building Online, as it would not be\nused by successful major labels in the music industry otherwise. The fact that\nrecord labels have adopted this method of bonding and connecting with their\nconsumers is indicative of the importance of using Web 2.0 platforms to\nstrengthen ties and build communities in the modern era. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This article has provided evidence that in the\nmodern era, Web 2.0 and social media sites are an important tool in the music\nindustry. Gallant (et al, 2007) shows that legitimate communities exist online.\nForman (et al, 2012) provided examples of communities on social media sites\nusing Gallant\u2019s (et al, 2007) work as a guide. Tarassi (2018) pointed out that\nmusicians multitask and perform odd jobs to ensure they have a thriving music\ncommunity to enhance their career. Fountoukidis (2015) highlighted the impact\nof Web 2.0 on the music industry and its use to connect directly between\nartists and fans. Ball (2010) illustrated that Portland\u2019s music community have\nembraced Web 2.0 affordances to the benefit of musicians, their fans and their\ncommunity. Warren and Evitt (2010) explained that without Web 2.0 and social\nmedia sites the music communities of their hip-hop groups in far North\nQueensland would not be able to exist. And finally, Choi and Burnes (2017)\nexplained that the use of social media to strengthen ties and build music\ncommunities was so successful that record labels are now using this as a\nbusiness strategy. Web 2.0 and social media sites can be used to foster music\ncommunities and strengthen ties between musicians and fans. <\/p>\n\n\n\n References<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ball, R. E. (2010). Portland’s\nindependent music scene: The formation of community identities and alternative\nurban cultural landscapes <\/em>(Order\nNo. 1478212). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global.\n(737556887). https:\/\/search.proquest.com\/docview\/737556887?accountid=10382<\/p>\n\n\n\n Choi, H., & Burnes, B. (2017). Bonding and\nspreading.Management\nDecision, 55<\/em>(9), 1905-1923. https:\/\/search.proquest.com\/docview\/1947034023?accountid=10382<\/p>\n\n\n\n Forman, A., Kern, R., & Gil-Egui, G. (2012). Death\nand mourning as sources of community participation in online social networks:\nR.I.P. pages in Facebook. First\nMonday, 0<\/em>. doi: https:\/\/doi.org\/10.5210\/fm.v0i0.3935<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fountoukidis, E. F., (M.B.A.). (2015). The impact of rapid\ntechnological developments on industry: a case study.International Journal of\nInformation, Business and Management, 7<\/em>(1),\n215-253. https:\/\/search.proquest.com\/docview\/1626374542?accountid=10382<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gallant, L., Boone, G., & Heap, A. (2007). Five\nheuristics for designing and evaluating Web-based communities. First Monday, 12<\/em>(3). doi:\nhttps:\/\/doi.org\/10.5210\/fm.v12i3.1626<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tarassi, S. (2018). Multi-Tasking and Making a Living from Music:\nInvestigating Music Careers in the Independent Music Scene of Milan. Cultural Sociology<\/em>, 12(2), 208\u2013223.\nhttps:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/1749975517733221<\/p>\n\n\n\n Warren, A. & Evitt, R. (2010) Indigenous Hip-hop: overcoming marginality, encountering constraints. Australian Geographer<\/em>, 41:1, 141-158, DOI: 10.1080\/00049180903535659<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Regan McVeigh Abstract This paper identifies that Web 2.0 affordances and social media sites are useful tools for musicians and fans to build and maintain thriving music communities. It explores seven articles which provide evidence that online communities can exist, and that musicians are using them successfully to benefit their careers and their fan base.… Continue reading Strengthening Online Music Communities with Web 2.0 and Social Media<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[131,45,44,8,133,192,136,125,126,128,127,134,7,129,130,116],"class_list":["post-231","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-communities","tag-bands","tag-communities","tag-community-2","tag-facebook","tag-festivals","tag-independentmusic","tag-indiemusic","tag-music","tag-musiccommunities","tag-musicfans","tag-musicians","tag-recordlabels","tag-social-media","tag-socialmedia","tag-web2-0","tag-youtube"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Open\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/231","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Open\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Open\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Open\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Open\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=231"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Open\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/231\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":234,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Open\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/231\/revisions\/234"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Open\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=231"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Open\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=231"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2019Open\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=231"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}