How artists can befriend the “algorithm”: Piff Marti case study

Content creation isn’t just about the numbers of followers and likes you have. For independent artists, your content strategy is the most valuable tool in your arsenal; it shares insight into your passion, the work it takes for you to be your best, and the face behind your music and art, and you have all the creative liberty you can imagine. 

You probably already know this. You also probably already know that it’s way harder than it sounds to break through the noise on social media platforms, and to continually come up with new content ideas.

Piff Marti — managed by Phillip Payne (FTS Instructor) — has faced and overcome the hurdles many independent artists encounter when it comes to consistently creating and pushing out content. In this case study, we’ll evaluate his content creation journey to help you form a blueprint that suits your style and intention, and gets you results.

The start

As an independent artist from the Bronx, Piff has had an unconventional path throughout his career. Without a record label to represent him, it took time to find a space that best suits his art and style to build a community. In fact, he went through a tumultuous decade with music before his fanbase and community really grew. 

In 2021, Piff took his music to social media where his record “Boys Do Cry” went viral. After a long road of trial and error, Piff came out on the other side both successful and genuine to himself – two elements artists often struggle with maintaining. His online community is up to 233,000 followers on Instagram, and nearly 500,000 on TikTok.

Through his relationship with his manager, Phillip, Piff has approached content creation and art in a unique way. He started to understand that his own channel was the best place to develop value and push that value out into the world. 

Read more: Why Managers Should Orient Their Artist’s Business Around D2C

The journey

What about Piff’s journey eventually led him to success? You can’t pinpoint success down to a single moment or defining factor. His album going viral in 2021 can’t be accredited to a single post, but rather an accumulation of trying different things until striking the right chord.

Consistency in content creation is certainly a big part of the journey, but success often happens after doing a lot of things wrong before getting a lot right. Plus, the meaning of consistency may not refer to just one thing. In fact, for Piff, many elements go into his content and art.

Playing the long game

Building a community takes time. You may feel like your current community doesn’t even qualify as a community. But committing to communicating directly to your audience one by one is something Phillip and Piff continue to do to this day. It may seem corny or tedious. Your favorite big artists probably aren’t doing it. But for independent artists, having those intimate connections can be everything. Just because your fans aren’t paying for your music right now doesn’t mean that they won’t in the future.

Making space for yourself

A huge part of Piff’s content involves him making space for himself. Where some artists have their record label placing them in certain spots for commercials, ads, or playlists, Piff uses his own platform to showcase his art. 

One great example includes a remix of a Drake song he posted to a YouTube playlist with the original cover art. Because of the way he finessed the situation, people started to think this was a real collaboration. He took it a step further and posted it to his Instagram, which only generated more conversation and engagement.

Consistency in inconsistency 

When most people think of consistency, they probably think of volume of output. However, volume can only take you so far before you might burn out. Piff found the best way to stay consistent was actually giving himself grace when he fell off. Before, he would beat himself up and say he wasn’t deserving of what he was trying to achieve. Now, he accepts those periods and takes the time to rest and have fun. By not berating himself for having off periods, he’s eventually able to start up again and keep pushing forward.

Recycling ideas

Instead of constantly coming up with new content ideas to post, Piff reshares certain posts to get more usage out of one idea. Coming up with new ideas one after another may not be a viable option for many. But having basic types of posts you can come back to when you’re in a slump might be what gets you through to the next phase. Now, Piff’s feed shows a diverse range of content with a robust history, creating credibility in his brand, music, and online presence.

Allowing vulnerability

Vulnerability as an artist means a lot of things. You might be nervous. You might not know where to start. Piff said that he’s always nervous, but he’s always going to show up as himself anyways. Showing up as yourself might mean a few things. One huge step Piff has taken is that he actually stopped curating his content so much. Now, his posts come from a more genuine place, which turns out to deeply resonate with his audience online.

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The results

Even with 480K TikTok followers, 230K Instagram followers, and over 400K monthly Spotify listeners, Piff would say that he’s stopped focusing on the numbers. Instead, he started focusing on the art, quality, and intention behind it. 

Piff’s dedication and commitment to finding his true voice has paid off in a multitude of ways. Rather than being concerned about fame, Piff strives to focus on adding value into the world. It’s evident in both his music and social media presence that he aims to uplift his audience and create things that speak to people. 

The true result? An online presence that conveys a genuine artist who shows up for themselves and their community. When you’re loyal to yourself and your art, the community will return it tenfold, even if it takes time. 

Takeaways

Many artists struggle with the content creation side of their career. Being an independent artist comes with a lot more freedom to create what you want, but it also means you are in charge of constantly producing and innovating. 

Based on Piff’s story, you can keep these in mind as you start or continue your own content creation journey as an artist:

• Playing the long game pays off in the long run.

• If someone hasn’t given you a space for your art, you can always create your own.

• It’s okay to post the same idea multiple times; recycle ideas as much as you can to get the most out of them or reach different audiences.

• Vulnerability with your community means being scared but showing up time after time anyways.

• People care about the person behind the artist, so show up as your authentic self.

• Having grace with yourself in off periods will lead to more consistency in the future.