Tag Archive for: twitter

Twitter Bridges Fan/Artist Connection

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Twitter is becoming an increasingly common way for artists to communicate with fans. Stoney Creek Records’ Megan Mullins has been using it and other popular social networking sites for her “Total Request Video” extravaganza. Keeping within the weekly theme (ex. classic country), fans log onto Mullins’ Facebook, MySpace or Twitter account and request a song. Each week, Mullins will pick a winner and post a video of her playing the tune on her MM-TV YouTube channel.

Due West recently took requests via Twitter during a live radio stop in Spokane, Washington. Tim Gates, Brad Hull and Matt Lopez were Twittering with fans while on the air and trying to decide which song to play. So the band asked fans via Twitter what song they would prefer to hear, and followers quickly responded. Due West’s premiere single, “I Get That All The Time” is steadily growing at country radio (No. 34 on the Country Breakout chart). It will be on their debut album, set to be released later this summer on Bigger Than Me Records.

MR Launches Twitter Chart

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twitchart

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Country music trade publication MusicRow and New Media marketing group AristoWorks have formed a chart to track Country music artists’ popularity among Twitter users. Now in beta mode, the rankings are based on the number of users “following” each artist. Currently, there are 72 chart positions. Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift occupy the No. 1 and 2 spots, respectively, with Billy Ray Cyrus, Keith Urban, LeAnn Rimes, Kellie Pickler, Julianne Hough, Rascal Flatts, Martina McBride and Willie Nelson rounding out the Top 10. An artist must have a minimum of 100 followers to chart.

“Today’s media landscape is becoming a highly fragmented, on-demand media world,” says MusicRow Publisher David M. Ross. “As a result, artists are using an increasingly sophisticated new tool set to reach consumers and create new fans. This Twitter chart is the first of a series of projects we are developing with AristoWorks to help our readers quantify their online efforts.”

The first of its kind charting system, developed by AristoWorks, utilizes the Active Programming Interface (API) offered by Twitter and gathers data to update the chart daily.

“This system really stems from a simple idea, but gives labels, managers and new media marketers a unique benchmark for where their brands stack up against others,” says AristoWorks New Media Director Jon Walker. “Although the Twitter chart is currently operating in beta mode, the immediate response from artists, labels and managers has been impressive.”

Additional chart features, including user trending statistics, will be implemented in the official release.

Swift Leads Country Twitterers

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These are the photos used for the artist's Twitter accounts

These are the photos used for the artist's Twitter accounts

Updated: The Kenny Chesney, cUnderwood83 and SugarlandFans feeds discussed below are not authentic.

[Date: 4/23/09] Ashton Kutcher (username: aplusk) has the most Twitter followers, 1,356,958. However, since social networks are like ocean tides moving in and out, one can expect these totals to change. MusicRow, decided to research which country music artists have the highest number of followers and found some surprising results, not the least of which is that the publication’s own Twitter feed is among the Top 20 in country music. Also no surprise is the enormous lead which Taylor Swift enjoys in this area. (In fact, the No. 2 entry on our list is a Swift wannabe.) Ms. Swift communicates all throughout the day, sharing her feelings with her fans with tweets such as, “wandering around an arena. By myself, looking like a lost child.” or “Kellie just got here. She just watched my dress rehearsal and is recommending the perfect pairs of shoes to go with each of my outfits. :)”

Artists use Twitter in different ways. But sometimes the feeds are unauthorized and not really from the artists. For example a feed labeled KennyChesney has 5,487 followers, with no tweets, but is not really from the artist. cunderwood83 with over 10,000 followers (listed below) is also unauthorized and not from the artist.

Log in to Twitter.com/username and read some of the tweets for yourself to see how artists are linking up with fans.

The numbers and ranking below were culled from data on Twittercounter.com and should be considered approximate. If your artist is missing, please send in their data and we’ll add them to this list. CountryMusic is the username for the CMA.

Overall Rank     Username     Followers
86        taylorswift13 304,804
267      tayswift 46,622
1029    LeannRimes 12,794
1048    KeithUrban 12,531
1151    cUnderwood83 10,838
1712    RascalFlatts 8,101
1713    Willie Nelson 8,100
1995    MartinaMcBride 7,150
2457    CountryMusic 5,913
2880    JulianneHough 5,137
4066    FaithHill 3,885
3849    Sugarlandmusic 3849
4352    SugarlandFans* 3,541
4433    MusicRow 3,523
4506    DierksBentley 3,485
4607    JohnRich 3,385
* According to BigMachine Records, Taylorswift13 is the official username for Taylor Swift.
* cunderwood83 according to the label is not authorized.
* SugarlandFans according to the label is not authorized.

Social Nets Get Facelifts

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Twitter, home to about 6 million users, recently started to introduce design tweaks aimed at making the service more relevant and allowing users easier access to search across trends and more. The new features are spreading slowly, for example they still haven’t arrived on the Music Row Twitter page, but as they move throughout the network they should increase involvement with this mini-blogging, real time conversational experience. All sites will soon include lists of top trends, topics, featured users, queries and easy access search bars.

Facebook is also making vibrant changes which are heating up the debate over whether Twitter is the new Facebook or vice versa. Facebook will move brands away from specially designed pages to layouts that seem more similar to the individual user pages which will also allow more interaction with friends, updates and links. Secondly, the updated info flow will refresh at a faster pace, near real time vs. every 10 minutes, according to a recent Advertising Age article. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s blog states, “This creates a continuous stream of information that delivers a deeper understanding for everyone participating in it. As this happens, people will no longer come to Facebook to consume a particular piece or type of content, but to consume and participate in the stream itself.”

The streaming nature of the new info is what is casting the Twitter comparisons. Techcrunch’s Erick Schonfeld analyses, “Facebook doesn’t want Twitter to become the way large companies and public figures connect to fans.” As the sites compete the real winners are the fans who get improved tools and new functionalities as they continue on the quest to communicate across the data universe.