MusicWeek interview – Kode9

Kode9 is a DJ/producer and runs the record label Hyperdub. As Steve Goodman he is also the author of the book Sonic Warfare, a study of sound, power and “the politics of frequency”.

CISION: How important is the use of social media as a promotional tool when reaching out to your target audience? And why?

KODE9: It’s very important when you have no marketing budget. It also makes it possible to be in direct contact with your audience without marketers or journalists being in the way.

What are the pros and cons of using traditional media outlets and social media platforms when targeting and communicating to your audience? How do you think this will affect corporate label marketing?

Traditional media is slow and usually involved too many intermediaries. I’d imagine that if corporate label marketing doesn’t keep up with ways people market themselves using social networks, it will stagnate and die.

What challenges do you face when positioning yourself as an artist and promoter, now that social media plays such an influence in today’s media landscape? How do you feel about marketing becoming a skill required by artists?

While I’d rather not be involved in marketing myself as it takes time, it does provide an autonomy that wasn’t previously possible.

Would you know how to strategically use the variations of social media outlets to promote yourself? How are you involved in the communication process of promoting yourself as an artist and promoter?

I know how to use some, but not all. I don’t use them in a particularly sophisticated way.

Which social media platforms do you currently use?

I use Twitter and MySpace and have a blog to announce releases, DJ dates, etc.

Stay tuned for more interviews on UK artists.

Next: Rod Gilmore