Hot Topics Of 2021
Credit: Splendour XR
It’s been another year of big headlines and big changes in the music marketing business. Plenty of stories intrigued, shocked and delighted us. Some even had us Googling brand new lingo. To wrap things up before the holidays, we're taking a look back at some of the year’s game changing topics.
NFTs
As NFTs rose to popularity this year, we began to understand how the face of music merchandise was going to transform. The unique digital assets have made plenty of headlines this year. Notable stories have included Universal’s new partnership with Genies that will see their artists gain NFTs and a never before heard recording by Whitney Houston selling for almost $1 million USD.
The Metaverse
Thanks to the combination of elements like augmented reality, virtual reality and video, we now have an alternative universe where we can experience everyday events like attending school, work and entertainment events. The Metaverse has been credited as a rapid moving concept, one that is set to revolutionise digital interaction. With music events taking up more space in the digital sphere, we’re looking forward to seeing how the Metaverse transforms the way audiences interact with performances.
Facebook’s News Ban
Back in February, Facebook threw Australian social media into a tailspin when they restricted access to news platforms through their site. Music media couldn’t use their pages to share their content and the artists they covered couldn’t share that content with their fans - so artists who relied on media coverage to populate their Facebook pages were left in the lurch. News made its way back onto Facebook by the end of the month, but artists were left to consider the importance of owning their own data, creating engaging content and spreading their efforts across multiple platforms.
Vertical Short Form Videos
Last year, we learnt that TikTok was here to stay. This year, we’ve seen the app continue to make waves and influence the way that audiences engage with video content. Short form videos have become a popular and important form of content. Even Spotify is dipping its toes in the waters of vertical video feeds, beginning to test the feature, just last month. Late last year, Instagram also introduced its own short form, vertical video tool - Reels, which borrows a number of features from TikTok and has continued to grow during 2021.
As we say goodbye to 2021, we’re looking forward to seeing how these trending topics continue to transform the music industry.
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