My buddy swore by 'algorithm-friendly' for his band's posts and it tanked their reach

He runs a small punk band in Portland and for six months, he kept telling me every post needed to be 'algorithm-friendly.' He meant short videos, trending sounds, and using whatever meme format was hot. I watched their account and the numbers just got worse. Their actual fans started commenting stuff like 'post a real song' or 'this feels like an ad.' Last week, he admitted their show turnout dropped because people forgot they were a band, not a clip page. He ditched the plan, posted a full live song, and got more likes than anything in months. Has anyone else seen a buzzword strategy backfire this hard for artists?

3 comments

3 Comments

robin_henderson8129d ago

Actually sounds like your buddy just did the algorithm thing wrong. Short clips work if you also give the core fans something real now and then. The problem was making every single post feel like a trend chase instead of a balance.

gracekelly29d ago

That Wired piece last month said bands need at least one long form video a month to keep the algorithm happy.

jamesfox27d ago

Exactly. The whole thing misses the point. Music should connect, not just feed a machine. If the art is good, people will find it.