February 2025 is Pop(Cult)-ing!

We are already a month plus into an “interesting” year.

There’s never been a more important time to take control of your (and your artists) destiny.

The beginning of a new year is always a time to reflect - honestly, we were too busy at the holiday "break" and over the past 6 weeks  to do that.

Back in 2023 we published a series of blog posts about why we were committed to music-oriented podcasting. We recently took a look back at it and realized everything we said then still holds up. If you haven't read it, please do. https://www.popcultworldwide.com/blog

Our core values and positioning have not changed  -- we continue to innovate, following our conviction that the intersection of music and pop culture is an underdeveloped region on the media map.

Three things distinguish PopCult from other content studios.

• Our Unique IP relationships

• Telling pop culture-driven stories that go beyond the obvious "behind the music" tropes and attracting an audience looking for something new.

• Our track record of developing content to exacting standards, across multiple media channels. Example: Producing the theme song for an episodic show prior to its release and getting streams and airplay that are helping with its acquisition.

• Way before the distributors deemed adding screen content to podcasts, we were already there.

What has changed since our last series of posts is...nothing.

PopCult continues to innovate - questioning what is considered the industry standard and evolve in an industry that seems to keep reassuring itself that keeping on keeping on will assure future success.

As hard as your sync department may work, sync decisions are at the mercy of filmmakers and TV producers. It's a boom-and-bust world that is impossible to forecast and can drives desperate and hasty, non-strategic decisions.

As traditional content channels have continued to give way to smaller screens, shorter forms, and most importantly, algorithmic discovery, the urgency of telling stories in these formats has only intensified.

If you are looking for an audience, you want to meet them where they live. But on social platforms, waiting for an influencer to find you, or worse, charge you an arm and a leg to artificially boost you, or for an algorithm to discover you is a sucker's game.

Here's why:

·      The Algorithm is not your friend

·      The Algorithm is never going away

Actually it's plural algorithms. And they need to be fed.  No two are exactly the same (which is why people are freaking out over potentially losing TikTok forever).

They all share one thing in common:  They are programmed to give the audience more of what they like, (whether they like it or not!). 

This inevitably causes more isolation from serendipity and context - two things that an algorithm inherently cannot provide, and but storytelling does!.

The good news is that the algorithmic hamster wheel is not the only option.

The solution is direct engagement with your audience. It's time to take control of your own destiny.

Own your audience, know your fans.

PopCult helped Metallica do that (with our friends at Pantheon), and they are now 78 episodes into a weekly podcast that engages tens of thousands of listeners every week and we have more comping shortly…

Stay tuned…