Piggybacking off acts with a massive fan base – like your boy Usher here who boasts 43.8 million Facebook fans – harkens back to most basic principle of hype dissemination: trust. Think about it for a moment. How did you discover most of the artists you love? Some we stumble upon organically, which is a given, but most come recommended by sources we trust. I initially got into Jimi Hendrix because my tasteful big sister had his tapes; I first heard Kanye West on a guest verse for Jadakiss (yes, Jadakiss is a trusted source. Kiss Of Death is a really solid album, you guys); then there are the blogs, radio announcers and buddies whose authority you swear by. There are literally millions of Usher fans who like his music and therefore respect his taste. The circle of tune/life perpetuates as the endorsement gets paid forward.
ARIA’s mission to scatter hype taps into the principle of trust – and the opportunity for spreading the word is as simple as clicking the ‘like’ button.
Familiarise yourself with the 2013 ARIA Award nominees with a mixtape we prepared earlier:
