2.10.12 US Radio Promo info, In:Demand Interview

muhhah of course : : but nothings worse than single 1 so here I go...

//or won't since it isn't available in my current location...

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First -- let me start with what is really great this promo cycle. And for the most part I am thrilled. Actually beyond thrilled!

1. The sequence of promotion has been great -- they have positioned Adam as a global artist and for a global launch.

2. For the most part, all aspect of this promotion has been well executed -- and there were very few promo activities that made ineffective use of Adam. In the FYE era they had Adam work really hard on things that did not have a big effect -- like the UK Radio tour.

3. The ground game across Sony markets is being smartly run -- even in places Adam has not been like Japan.

4. What is even more impressive to me is the passion of Adam fans around the world. BTIKM is getting airplay all over the world and I lot of that is due to fans who request and promote Adam from their local stations. And that is brilliant!!!! [Many long time Idol watches have seen fanbases shrink dramatically a couple years after Idol -- and Adam seems to have more fans now than in 2009.] There is no need to worry that his fan base has faded away in the past 3 years - he is bigger than ever.

5. BTIKM music video got buzz and great reviews from press, fans and even some detractors -- credit for this goes to Adam and Ray -- not so much to RCA.

WHAT IS NOT WORKING -- the lead single

This has nothing to do with what I think of BTIKM creatively. It is about the selection of this track as THE lead single.

A lead single has a job to do -- for a major pop artist it needs to break through the clutter and get casual fans and non-fans excited about an upcoming album -- plus it is supposed to sell so that when the album in released people want to buy the album. With digital sales being more important - it matters even more because if fans own a tract or 2 or 3 they are more likely to complete the album on iTunes.

>> BTIKM is currently at #194 on US iTunes Pop -- in other words, not selling very much.

>> BTIKM is off to a slow start on radio.

>> BTIKM is not doing its job.

Why didn't the Dec buzz campaign work? -- IMO -- BTIKM is safe and conservative and kind of a standard label-selected track. IF they wanted to do an online buzz launch as they started in December, this "manufactured in the song sausage factory" song (even in the hands of possibly the best pop vocalist in the world) is just not going to create a lot of buzz. (NOTE I think it would have been a huge mistake to introduce the Trespassing era with a controversial single, so my opinion is they should have nixed that whole December internet launch.)

>> They missed on the concept of the buzz campaign. But it cost almost nothing and there was plenty of time to go with a traditional radio promotion.

We are now 8 weeks after BTIKM was sent to radio, 3 weeks past the HAC Impact Date and 2 weeks past the Pop Impact Date and BTIKM is at best off to a slow start -- particularly on Pop Radio. The track is doing OK on Hot AC -- but this is the radio format that loves Adam and was ready to play any Adam music.

>> When a station that has been a huge supporter of Adam's music like WSTW Wilmington DE and was an early adder stops playing this track, it is a sign that there is a lack of enthusiasm for this track.

>> When a significant percent of airplay is from fan voting and not from the PDs, this is a sign that the is a lack of PD support for the song. For example - Q102 had 9 spins of BTIKM last week. Only 3 monitored Pop stations played it more than 10 times last week -- plus on satellite channel.

Now it could all turn around next week and if it does, I will post a public apology to RCA on page 1 about being totally surprised and wrong. And I sincerely hope that I have to post that apology.

SO MY MESSAGE TO RCA

Why not just release "Trespassing" NOW? We are 5 weeks to album release. You have time. We're already been here before -- FYE (album) was released without a lead hit single. Don't let that happen to Trespassing (album). And don't wait until March, do it now or do it next week.

Finally, I am happy if you want to disagree with me and defend this lead single. But I have two requests.

1. Please do not post that I am "hating on Adam" or that I hate this track -- I am pushing for Adam to get the promotion he deserves and to have a single out before the album release the he created and co-wrote.

2. Please do not clip out one sentence of this and characterize it that I am saying Adam is not doing well, or similar comments. If you want to quote me -- then at least link to this entire post.

MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL -- Quote this if you want my opinion in a "sound bite" -- Adam and his new album will be a big success but IMO he will sell more with a stronger lead single. [/quote]



I TOTALLY AGREE WITH EVERYTHING YOU SAY HERE and it is also extremely relevant for NZ.
We have been sooooo frustrated cos our biggest nationwide top 40 station seems to have pulled BTIKM completely. One NZ fan was in email contact with the music director of the station (The Edge) and she told us this:

In our weekly research done on our listeners, it came up at the bottom of the list every test so we couldn't keep playinga song that majority of our audience weren't feeling ...

Some confusion re the survey she's referring to, cos we know at least 2 fans who have done every survey (kind of like rate the music but for NZ radio) and they have NEVER heard BTIKM on the surveys. ???

SO we have been requesting on our other nationwide station, ZM and have had some success with it playing on their evening request show - (only once tho as far as I'm aware)

One other station (Classic Hits) has apparently started playing it recently... time will tell how much airplay it gets on that station.

SO YES TO RELEASING TRESPASSING AS A SINGLE NOW!!!!!!!!

And some promo here in NZ would be awesome too!!! We have had ZERO promotion of any sort :(
I know we are a grain of sand in the global music market, but history of FYE era shows how well he can do here BUT he needs promo, as does anyone!

I've said it before. Probably sounding like a broken record. There are many thousands of excellent musicians out there across the country. Go to any Karaoke bar on an evening and there will be at least one or two singers who sound great and would blow most of the Idol contestants clean out of the water. Go to a local community recital, and you will hear a handful of very gifted performers.

Have you ever gone to an audition for a musical, for example? You will see person after person after person get up and sing beautifully. 100, 200 hopefuls auditioning for one role. And no ringers like they show on Idol auditions. These folks have training, experience, years of practice, resumes, head shots, and all but one will be told "No" for whatever reason or for no reason at all.

Whatever the music business is, it is most definitely NOT fair. Never has been. If it were, I have a handful of friends, and my sister, who would have multiple albums, tour the country, and give me a car just to say, "Happy Birthday, cassie." I, myself,( and I don't mean to say I am a "top" musician or singer, but, I can sang and play the keys) lost out on two auditions because of a literal coin toss.

Because of that perspective, I will always be grateful and a little surprised that Idol chose to put Adam thru. Grateful that the public and the music industry got an opportunity to see and hear him perform. That he was able to garner a fan base that justified giving him a recording contract. Even among the very talented musicians I have known over the years, Adam is outstanding. One of a kind. I am thrilled to have found him, and thrilled that he has a successful career that will ensure I hear/see much more of him in the coming years.

I think there are only two reasons Kris is relevant here: Most importantly, for comparison purposes Adam and Kris are both releasing debut singles off of sophomore albums at the same time by the same label, and they are both dealing with the AI stigma. I think it is interesting to see what is being done to market each and the results. For the last few weeks, the only sour e of any angst I may have had is thatthe BRINK has had next to no radio promo. Now that radio promo seems to be picking up, much of my anxiety has been relieved. However, I can't help but compare to the fact that Kris already has a deal in place with Donors Choice and Clear Channel where his single is being used asa background to his Donors. C boar commercial being played on all these Clear Channel stations. I will not be surprised if these stations, almost none of whom have added Better Than I Know Myself, quickly add Kris's song. So I have to ask, what's going on RCA? Or is there just a glass ceiling for Adam at US radio?

My other point is that I hate that Kris and Adam are releasing singles as the same time. It shouldn't, but I'm afraid it will reignite all that stupid AI and guy next door versus guyliner stuff that IMO hurts both of them.

Sorry if this is sloppy. I can't type well on my phone!