"Hello everyone, I hope this is the right forum to post in but I have some songs that I would like to know what other people think."
So begins a blog post that the artist Avicii (who then called himself Timberman) wrote on February 24, 2007. He asked for feedback on some songs that he put together at home in his bedroom at Östermalm in Stockholm. A plea to know what others think of his songs, really what the market thinks of the quality of his products. It didn't go so well with getting feedback that time. In March 2007 he posted the next post….. “None??”.
Although on this particular occasion Avicii received no feedback, he continued to produce music. He probably received positive feedback in other ways, through mates, friends and people he met. In the documentary "True stories", Avicii says that he sent his songs to other DJs (including LaidBack Luke) and asked for their opinion. And finally he got his songs out into the market. We know the result of course, it was a massive global success, and as one of our greatest artists of all time, he tragically passed away at the beginning of this year.
When Avicii became more famous and began playing as a DJ, he had the privilege of seeing in real time how people reacted to a song he played. At a concert, getting direct feedback from your market (approximately 50,000 at once) is quite unique. Avicii saw his "customers" spontaneously scream and raise their arms in the air to show their joy when the right song was played. A DJ who plays the wrong song, on the other hand, quickly receives feedback from his market. The audience then shows their displeasure by standing still and just staring and in some cases even leaving the dance floor deserted.
In interviews, Avicii refers several times to the fact that his songs received a "good response" at concerts. He must have felt that the songs received different responses, some worse, and removed them. Testing new songs, getting feedback on how the audience reacts is a natural development process for a DJ. In any case, for a DJ who wants to get his dance floor boiling and get recommended for more gigs.
With many years in the DJ and entertainment industry, I myself have also seen the opposite. DJs who weren't interested in feedback, weren't responsive to the market and just did their thing. Sure, in some cases it may have worked anyway, but almost always these artists eventually disappeared.
So what can we learn from Avicii and his success? Of course, a lot is about the back side of being an artist; stress, performance anxiety, the unhealthy pace of life etc. But I choose to remember his creative ability linked to the knowledge of wanting to know what people want to listen to. Wanting and being able to receive feedback is a success factor in the music industry as well as other commercial industries.
At Quicksearch, we believe that the desire to receive feedback is part of the secret to success in business and business. A curiosity about what others say about you, both customers and staff.
We have the people and tools to help you succeed in this. Contact Us then we'll tell you more!
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Written by Jonas Malmberg, founder, Quicksearch
