How Deep Cuts Build Music Fan Bases (According to Coldplay, The Chainsmokers, and Ikea)
If you’re an artist, and you chase hits, a solid fan base will elude you. Deep cuts are what build fan bases. For every reason inside a Marketing 101 textbook, deep cuts are what build fan bases. But don’t just trust some guy on the internet with a blog. Let’s look at what The Chainsmokers have to say, what Coldplay has done for two decade, and how Ikea built its fan base.
What is a deep cut?
A deep cut is “a piece of music by a singer or group that is little known in comparison to their other music." A deep cut is “something that is recognizable or familiar only to passionate enthusiasts of a specified area." These are the dictionary definitions. Marvin’s Room was Drake’s hit; Karaoke was his deep cut. Can’t Feel My Face was The Weeknd’s hit; The Party & The After Party was his deep cut. Smoke on the Water was Deep Purple’s hit; Black Night was their deep cut.
A deep cut is a song that only the real fans know. And even though these songs don’t grow fanbases, or spread the word like hits do, they build fanbases. Brick by brick, with a strong foundation, from the ground up.
The Chainsmokers vs Coldplay
I was talking with Matt McGuire, the touring drummer and show designer for The Chainsmokers, in early 2020. The Chainsmokers had just finished a US arena tour in late 2019 that they didn’t sell out. “You look at a band like The 1975, and they’re selling out every venue,” Matt told me. “They have super-fans at their shows, they have couples, indie fans, rock fans, industry heads.” He went on to tell me that The Chainsmokers were going to take a bit of a break, work on a new album, redefine their brand. Hopefully with more deep cuts.
The Chainsmokers chased hits for two straight years. They released a pop single every month during 2018 and 2019, incorporating different collaborations and genres. At the end of each year, they compiled their songs into a full album, but both Sick Boy (2018) and World War Joy (2019) were more like pop playlists than cohesive albums. I’m not saying this is an easy feat. What The Chainsmokers did was an accomplishment in creativity and consistency. But through the genre-bending and constant rebranding, they saw their fanbase become alienated, little by little.
Compare this with the trajectory of Coldplay. Say what you will about Coldplay, but they’ve been on pop radio for two straight decades. Every album they release has at least one or two songs that gets spun on whatever local station plays hits. They’re one of the highest grossing touring artists around, hosting massive stadium shows, boasting raving fanbases on every continent. How do they do this? They make deep cuts.
Let’s take a look at their last six albums. Viva La Vida had an organic, world-influenced rock vibe. Despite the lack of a traditional drum set, and big guitars, the song Viva La Vida was a smash. They rode that momentum into Mylo Xyloto, which was designed to dominate pop radio. Every Teardrop is a Waterfall and Paradise took them to another level. Then, immediately after those gargantuan successes–Ghost Stories. Ghost Stories might have some of the saddest songs I’ve ever heard, following Chris Martin’s and Gweneth Paltrow’s divorce. Most of that album would never be heard through the FM airwaves. (They still made sure to cash in with A Sky Full of Stars, though.) Their back and forth ping-pong strategy continued with the electric and energetic A Head Full of Dreams, and then the raw, spiritual Everyday Life. Just a few months ago, they dropped Music of the Spheres, touting collaborations with BTS and Selena Gomez–you’ll hear these hits for years.
The strategy is simple to follow. One album has hits, and the next one has deep cuts. But how has this worked for Coldplay? And why do deep cuts work at all?
Specific music hits deep, general tunes don’t
If you were trying to grow a YouTube channel, or build a direct-to-consumer business right now, you would do well to find a niche. I’ve written a few times about my friend who runs one of the most niche YouTube channels and brands I’ve seen–a fully recycled disc golf brand. Trash Panda, he calls it, grew to 10,000 Youtube subscribers in about 6 months, and is at 20,000 now after about 12 months. Trash Panda has a raving fanbase, and constantly sells out of it’s fully recycled mini discs, generating $10k-$15k with each drop. They sell out within minutes of dropping. These numbers aren’t Forbes 30-Under-30 stuff, sure, but they’re worth looking into all the same. A niche won’t get you on the shelves next to the major brands. But if someone is looking for the niche you offer, you’ll be the only option, and you’ll sell out in minutes.
What does this have to do with music? Deep cuts hit a niche, while hits cast the net wide. Hit-making is as much about trend-tracking as TikTok dances are. If you land on the trend, there will be a dozen more ahead of you and two dozen more right behind you. Deep cuts, on the other hand, stand alone. They’re unique in their offering, bringing something to the table that hits can’t. If the lyrics are specific to a niche experience, then by definition, it won’t be for everyone. But for the people who relate, these songs are everything. Think of the songs that got you through your awkward high school phase, or the days following a breakup. I’m guessing they weren’t pop hits. They were probably track eights, or later. Slow, acoustic tunes at the end of rock albums. The songs that never had a chance at getting playlisted or surfing FM waves.
It’s about investment and personal storytelling
Deep cuts go beyond filling a niche artistic need, however. Another principle that marketers consider is price storytelling. You could sell a quality set of sheets for $80. You could make a sustainable profit off of those sheets at that price point. Or, you could up the price to $130 for no reason. And guess what? Customer will likely be happier about it. Why? Because price is a story. When people invest more money into a product, the perceived value of that product is greater, and they’re more likely to have a positive experience with that product due to their perception of it.
This is the same reason Ikea has customers build their own furniture. It’s no secret that most of Ikea furniture is cheap particle board. But when people invest time into building the furniture themselves, they ascribe much higher value to it. In a study called The Ikea Effect by Norton, Mochon, and Ariely, it was found that “labor increases valuation of completed products not just for consumers who profess an interest in ‘do-it-yourself’ projects, but even for those who are relatively uninterested.”
Deep cuts work like a high-priced sheets, or furniture you build yourself. Unlike hits, which capture listeners without their conscious effort, deep cuts give fans the chance to invest time, energy, and emotional thought into an artist’s music. When a fan has done this, they’ll emerge with a greater sense of connection and loyalty to an artist. And if a fan has already invested time and emotional energy into an artist, the ticket and merchandise sales become much easier.
Hits cast the net wide. They’re an essential part of an artist’s growth strategy. But deep cuts? They go deep.
