July 21, 2018 – Inspired by the talk of country music, I paid attention in that genre this week. Other than Taylor Swift having been cast in a movie-adaption of the play Cats, there was news of country singer Eric Church’s planned release of a new album. The album is set to be released on October 5, with the normal advance single having been released this week. The single and the album are titled Desperate Man. The video for the single features Church going to some lengths to run off with the release of the vinyl records, essentially being Robin Hood, stealing to then slip them into the houses of fans.

News to Mr. Church, that’s not the normal format; in this day and time, the theft would need to be of the digital code. That aside, the video is a precursor to the way in which Church will distribute the album. On October 5, without pre-sale publicity (other than the news this generated), the fan-club members of Eric Church, called the Church Choir (cute, I think) will receive the album (I think in digital form) for free. Church even negotiated this with his record company. It shows the importance of the fans. Church and his record company EMI are acknowledging the fans by giving the album to the most ardent fans for free.

Then there’s the almost constant news from the Tom Petty camp. Following on the heels of the announcement of the upcoming box set of unreleased and different versions I talked about in the last story, the Tom Petty camp is asking for pictures and videos from the fans to be included in the upcoming project. The statement on the late Tom Petty’s website said: “We are making a very special music video in honor of Tom Petty and his profound 40-year relationship with his fans, and we would love for you to help us…. We invite you to share your favorite moment with Tom and the band for possible inclusion in this video, such as a picture you took with Tom, a favorite video moment from a show, or any expression of love for the band that you have photographed and cherished.” They have a place for uploads, if anyone is interested. I think that’s really nice fan interaction too.

Then there’s the power of the fans, in general. Taylor Swift continues to set attendance and gross sales records on her stadium tour in support of her record Reputation. Showing the importance of touring, and honestly this should serve as a message to performers, both old and new, going into the tour Reputation was not on the charts, or if it was, it was at a very low position. While the record had good initial sales when it was released, was the best-selling record of 2017, the record failed to garner the type of success Taylor is used to, meaning repeated number 1 singles that get played for a long period of time. But… enter the tour. Riding on the tour, Reputation has reentered to top of the chart and is now number 15, one of the top rising records, and the record finally has a top single. The single Delicate debuted at number 84, then just creeped, never entering the top 40. Enter the tour, and the song is everywhere. It’s number 1 on the contemporary chart, number 15 on the top 40 chart, up from 23 last week, and rising, rising in the face of releases by the hip hop darlings of the day too. All of that is due to the Swifties, the name of her fans, and the excitement from the concert. I mean, you’ve got to know the album to be able to sing along at the concert. Oh, and the song … I love the song. It’s my favorite song right now (how could I not like the lyric my reputation’s never been worse, you must like me for me), and I love this concert version.

So, Church, Petty, Swift, these people get it. Give to the fans. Participate with the fans. Even ask of the fans. We all win.