Podcast: http://greatunknownspresents.com
MusicMagazine: http://greatunknownsmusicexpose.com
The Great Unknowns Presents is a weekly music/talk show designed to spotlight new music artists from the unsigned and independent industry.
Each episode is a music showcase dedicated to one artist. The artist has the choice to be a guest on the show with a one-on-one interview with the host.
In conjunction to The Great Unknowns Presents is Great Unknowns Music Exposé, a feature music magazine with one-on-one interviews, music reviews, and advice for indie artists.
Q) Tell us a little bit about your site. What inspired you to start it?
A) My podcast started as a hobby really. Originally, it was a class project for my journalism class. The podcast option was open to several ideas and I wanted to come up with something that would showcase my talent as a radio host, but also provide a service. Since radio is over done and played out by the “mainstream payola giants”, I wanted to feature artists that no one has heard of. If people had heard of these artists, I wanted to re-introduce these artists to other people. What started out as a mere college program turned into something much greater.
When I received an invite from Ariel Publicity and after I had won two prestige’s awards for best college podcast, I realized that this was more than just a project and I took it to the next level and I began to track my track statistics. With the help of Ariel Publicity, I began showcasing unsigned artists and I moved my show from a free podcast hosting site to a pay site for better quality and for more storage space. Since my very first show, I have been constantly improving my format and it has paid huge dividends and I created a huge following that went from 300 listeners per week to nearly 2,500 listeners per week. When I placed my podcast on iTunes, that was a major catalyst for the shows success and it has grown to a 40,000+ listening audience which is continuing to grow at a rapid pace.
Q) Why do you believe new media resources (i.e. blogs, podcasts, internet radio stations) have become so popular?
A) Blogging, podcasts, and internet radio stations are the waive of the future. Musicians cannot rely on print media, magazines, YouTube, and MySpace alone. If an artist wants to service in this ever changing market, one must take advantage of every media outlet possible. The media giants like MTV and Rolling Stone Magazine are struggling to meet the demand against the free media and not every musician has a label to back them and pay their way to the top of mainstream media. Many web-goers go to Google and type in an artist name, and at the top of the list is more than likely a YouTube and MySpace site, under those results are interviews from bloggers and podcast shows like my own.
Almost every artist that has appeared on my show is in the top 5 on Google search, so having an interview with myself on a featured article in addition to a guest spot on podcast shows like mine, are detrimental for every musician to adhere to in today’s industry. If they don’t embrace the opportunities that are out there, they may be doomed to fail.
Q) Media 2.0 has changed the way artists communicate with fans. Where do you envision online communication going next? Any thoughts on what Media “3.0” will look like?
A) When speaking of Media 3.0, we are referring to applications with iPods, iPod touches, and PSP gaming systems, etc. I am already making preparations to these new technologies. I already have an RSS feed which is compatible with almost any device and my show is set up with Viigo which is an application for PSP, iPhones, Blackberry, Droids, and other portable devices.
In the coming years, vehicles will be equipped with internet access and will be able to access this same technology on their multi-media systems. Eventually, analog radio will go away to adapt to this growing technology, so listeners can tune into their favorite podcast shows. Whatever changes that may arrive, I am open for change. We have to adapt to the ever-growing and every-changing technology that comes our way.
Q) What does an artist have to do to get your attention?
A) This answer is pretty simple. To get my attention, they just have to have good product (their music). I get inbetween four to eight invites to listen to an artist’s music per day. Just recently, I attended a pre-Grammy award mixer in Los Angeles and I was invited to listen to a performance by newly signed hip-hop artist that just signed with Universal Records. I was recently listed in the Indie Bible and my show will be featured in the 12th edition which will be available this coming December. I’ve already had a huge response from those who subscribe to the online publication, plus I get invites from a number of independent labels to bands from local bar asking me to feature them in my podcast, so it is not hard to find me.
Q) Are their specific characteristics that you look for?
A) Not really. To be fair to everyone, the music speaks for itself. I try not exclude anyone and I listen to everything that comes my way. I think I have a good ear for music and my listeners tend to agree with me. If it sounds good and I know people will listen to it, I don’t object to placing them on my show. I have made a few bad judgement calls in the past based on my statistics, but this is a rare occurance..
Q) What do you ultimately hope to accomplish with your podcast?
A) I want to continue to provide a service to the artists that appear on my show and provide a service to my listeners. People tune in week-in-and-week-out for a reason…because they know to expect a good line-up on my show and I’ve been pretty consistant. My listeners that follow me on Facebook tell me how great my show is all the time. I don’t play anything that I myself wouldn’t listen to. In conjunction to my music publication, Great Unknowns Music Exposé, I want my audience to be well informed about all the artists that appear on my show. Together with my podcast show and my interview articles, I hope to give artists the spotlight they deserve for making great music, even if it is only one listener at a time.
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The Indie Maximum Exposure List is Ariel Hyatt’s manifesto on how indie musicians can realistically profit from Web 2.0 & social media. 