How the Music Industry is Using Clubhouse to Stay Connected

Whether you’re hosting a room, requesting an invite or listening in, Clubhouse has become a hot topic for many members of the industry over the past few months.

What is it?

Clubhouse is an audio-centric social media app, it’s currently still in beta mode and it’s invite-only. It works by a ‘drop-in’ approach, where users can visit rooms within the app. Inside these rooms, you’ll find conversations on a range of topics, from wellness, to world affairs, tech, arts and so on.

The conversations on Clubhouse are live and unrecorded, and draw a lot of parallels with live podcasts or panel discussions. If listeners want to put in their two cents, they can request to speak and take to the ‘stage’, if they’re given permission by the room’s moderators.

Why is it important to the industry right now?

To dig a little deeper into the app’s relationship with the music industry, we caught up with Larissa Jane Ryan of Hutch Collective who co-founded the Australian Music Club, alongside some of her industry peers.

She describes the club as “a nurturing and inclusive space for all music lovers, artists and music professionals to have a yarn, listen and get involved in valuable and meaningful discussions, share, have fun, feel inspired, learn and connect.”

Within the Australian Music Club you’ll find managers, booking agents, tour promoters, record label executives, photographers, producers, radio presenters and more, alongside scene-shaping artists and musicians.

The club has seen drop-ins from names like music producer OMEN, who has worked with artists like Beyonce, Drake and Usher, and Axel Mansoor - founder of the Lullaby Club. Both have since become Australian Music Club members.

The club begins with a topic idea or subject that resonates with the group, and lets the conversation unwind organically.

“We've spoken about the work and role of APRA AMCOS, grant writing, touring, photography, owning a music venue in 2021, movement in culture, live music and what that looks like for the future and other discussions like what is the importance of cover art. I know we all know what cover art is, but when was the last time you talked about it in detail? It's fun to go a little deeper on things."

“We also use this space to highlight those in the industry who are doing incredible work and hear their story - what shaped them, what they do, how they got there, how they want to see the industry evolve,” Larissa explains. “We also spotlight one incredible artist each night, talk to them and sometimes even hear a special, never heard before, version of their new song.”

“Essentially, we celebrate ideas and others, trade stories and hear from a mix of people from all different corners of our world. It's hard to explain just how incredible the space has been so far and the number of stories and voices we've heard, and the impact it's had. You have to go and check it out for yourself!”

So what’s making the app stand out?

There’s a number of factors contributing to the app’s popularity, Larissa explains, “I think it would be easy to give all the credit to the pandemic, to say that many of us are over video calls, and we're exhausted by being 'on' for social media. That we're missing our regular meetups, touring, passing each other at airports, festivals, and so on. These things help, but it's more than that,” she says.

Larissa reminds us of the old saying ‘everything old becomes new again’ - common interest clubs are nothing new, but instead of taking place in your town’s hall, they're finding a home at Clubhouse.

“The experience isn't like other apps. If you're thinking like a brand, you're behind,” she says. “It's really about letting people be people and talk. It's not supposed to feel like work. You might listen to it, you might learn like a podcast, but it's not media. It's real people getting together.”

Larissa adds that Clubhouse rooms’ focus on conversation and interest means that people of all ages, experiences and all cultural backgrounds can be involved.

Praising the app as a “new space to chat with peers, meet people, give some time to some new aspiring artists/professionals, speak with people who care about what they do”, Larissa highlights that “whether you are an artist, work at or own a corporation, company or sole-trader business, you will find something rewarding in this app if you are open to it.”

You can listen to the Australian Music Club’s rooms on Mondays and Wednesdays at 8pm AEDT.

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