Beyond IG Live: Three strategic case studies of artist-fan engagement

Over the past five months, livestreaming has blossomed into a powerful, if somewhat overcrowded, way for artists to cultivate deeper relationships with fans online in real time.

Some major artists are choosing just to make one-off appearances, such as Katy Perry’s headlining appearance at the virtual edition of Tomorrowland. But a growing number of artists are pushing beyond single performances into using more frequent livestreams and videos to keep fans engaged organically over time — from virtual “tours” with “stops” for different local audiences, to more holistic, virtual spaces and community experiences with livestreaming at the center.

Looking at case studies from artists such as Kitty Cash, Lianne La Havas and Phony Ppl, not only has their content been exclusively online during the pandemic, but they also offer an aesthetic that expands far beyond the confines of an Instagram Live pop-up stream, from C.G.I. animation to multi-camera shows on a proper concert stage. Moreover, their steady engagement over time has only prompted greater demand from fans — helping to appease a growing sense of livestreaming fatigue on both sides of the screen.

Kitty Cash: World-building with Kitty’s World

In the wake of event cancellations, D.J., model and social-media influencer Kitty Cash — who previously toured with Jhené Aiko and The Internet as their house D.J. — segued online to magnify her industry presence. Unsure of when performances would return to the real world, the Brooklyn, N.Y. native decided to create her own world instead.

Paralleling the moves that the likes of Travis Scott and Lil Miquela have been making into virtual reality, C.G.I. and immersive worlds, Cash debuted her own animated web series Kitty’s World — an homage to early-2000s BET music countdown Cita’s World — on May 20. Like in Cita’s World, Kitty’s World features Cash hosting a show as a “cyber V.J.,” curating music videos around specific themes while sharing her opinions on current events and other topics in between clips.

Importantly, Kitty’s World, which is now five episodes in, is not livestreamed; instead, the show is uploaded directly to IGTV for on-demand viewing. CGI artist Niyeezy designed and animated Cash’s 3D avatar in the virtual online game Second Life (which itself has had a deep historical relationship with the music industry). Digital artist Jackie Carlise became an additional member of the Kitty’s World creative team following the show’s  inaugural episode, adding 3D graphics to the music countdown and the main logo.

“I think what is drawing artists toward CGI work is a combination of practicality due to the conditions of COVID-19, and the creativity and limitlessness of the medium,” Carlise tells me. “As someone who has been working in 3D for about three years, the freedom of working without physical or financial limitations has always felt inspiring. The medium really allows for artists and collaborators to stretch imagination and create something truly specific to the artists’ vision.”

Rather than solely focusing on music, Kitty’s World is also socially-conscious, as Cash devotes much of each episode to relationships and activism. The second episode, released on June 3, was dedicated to the Black Lives Matter movement, highlighting songs and musical moments that have touched on police brutality (such as Kendrick Lamar’s 2016 GRAMMYs performance). Not only has Cash used her platform for awareness during protests, but her team also created a page for Black Lives Matter resources on the show’s official website.

“One of the original purposes of the show was to help uplift [Cash’s] audience during COVID-19, and turn the focus to something more positive like music, shedding light on up-and-coming artists in the hip-hop community,” says Carlisle. “Kitty and the team shifted [our] course to make the show a commentary on current events. We felt a responsibility to talk about what was going on in the world at this moment. I hope that the Black Lives Matter-centered episode can help open up some people’s eyes to Kitty’s perspective.”

Always crediting her team in Instagram posts when an episode releases, Cash relies on a close network of contributors based in the United States and the U.K., including show producer Muneerah Livingston, fashion designer Richard Quinn and writer Nadirah Simmons in addition to Niyeezy and Carlise. The series has helped Cash’s fans recognize her vision not just as a D.J. and influencer, but also as a multidimensional artist.

Lianne La Havas: Livestreaming as album rollout & audience development

Already known for her cozy, intimate sound, British singer Lianne La Havas has made a more proactive effort to showcase her personality through her music since the pandemic began.

To promote her third, self-titled album, La Havas performed six different livestreams over the course of ten weeks, each produced in partnership with a different festival, media company or brand partner.

She first took to NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert on May 5, performing two singles from the album (“Paper Thin” and “Bittersweet”) and a third song from her back catalog (“Moonlight”) from her home in London; just two days after, she broke down the lyrics to “Bittersweet” in an appearance on Genius’ “Verified” series on YouTube. The week of May 18, La Havas performed a nearly hour-long livestream as part of La Blogotheque’s “Stay Away Shows” series, followed by a shorter performance of “Bittersweet” for BBC’s Later… with Jools Holland.

Last but not least, La Havas gave two more performances the week of her album’s official release date (July 17): A live acoustic set for Focus Music Festival, followed by a pay-per-view show filmed with multiple cameras at the iconic Roundhouse venue in London.

All of these livestreams featured La Havas performing acoustically without a band, helping to create a more personal atmosphere of relaxed candor for fans. Ironically enough, performing from home has been fitting for the artist’s recent melancholic material — especially for her new album Lianne La Havas, which focuses on the cyclical phases of a relationship. Like Kitty Cash, La Havas also used her platform to generate awareness of social issues, donating proceeds from her Roundhouse show to numerous organizations associated with Black Lives Matter.

Yet while the feel of these livestreams is more personal and intimate, La Havas’ choice of appearances on specific brands’ channels can also be considered highly strategic and meant to expand, rather than narrow, audience reach.

Phony Ppl: Livestreaming as community-building

With a multi-generational audience, Brooklyn-based alternative hip-hop band Phony Ppl attracts not only Instagram-apt Gen-Z fans, but also older, jazz-oriented listeners. Pre-COVID, the group frequently embarked on global tours and festival treks, and most recently wrapped up a North American tour in fall 2019 to support their album mō’zā-ik. The group is also no stranger to building their momentum with the help of online performances and the Internet in general — from first gaining a following in the Tumblr age, to backing Megan Thee Stallion during her Tiny Desk show in 2019. (Their single featuring Megan, “Fkn Around,” was released in January 2020.)

Over the past few months, Phony Ppl have kept their fans engaged more frequently through a series on Twitch called “FKN Around Fridays,” named after their eponymous collaboration with Megan. Though Amazon-owned Twitch is best known for its gaming content, some of its fastest-growing channels are unrelated to gaming, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to eMarketer, viewership of “Just Chatting” livestreams on Twitch grew nearly 2.4x year-over-year in April 2020, while viewership of the “Music & Performing Arts” category more than quadrupled in the same time period. Twitch’s rapidly-expanding music team is also leaning more heavily into exclusive deals with artists like Logic and music brands like Brazil-based KondZilla.

Phony Ppl takes a more DIY, multi-platform approach to distributing and marketing their livestreams. They promote each show with an Instagram-friendly graphic on their profile, stream episodes live on Twitch, Twitter and YouTube simultaneously and then make on-demand viewing after the fact available only to paid subscribers to their Twitch channel (starting at $4.99, the standard starting price for all Twitch channels).

One of their earlier streams expanded beyond just music, and focused on mobilization strategies around the BLM movement; many other streams have featured artistic peers and collaborators, including JoJo, iMarkkeyz and CJ Fly. The group also ensures that viewers are a focal part of “FKN Around Fridays,” as fans’ comments are projected onto the stream.

While Phony Ppl have also done guest performances for branded online events such as Rolling Stone’s “In My Room” series, the band seems to be focused more on using livestreams as a vehicle to strengthen their relationships with their existing, core fan base — a stark contrast to artists like La Havas who focus more on audience development through third-party streaming appearances. Both of these approaches can be valid and complementary, depending on a given artist’s career goals.

For Phony Ppl in particular, strengthening existing fan relationships while showcasing their network of creative collaborators can help lay the long-term, community-building groundwork needed for a new album rollout expected later this year. As band member Matt “Maffyuu” Byas told Essence in April: “When we were starting, it was all awareness of creativity and zero awareness of the business. Now, we can start to see a bridge between both sides and you know, have a wider scope.”

A new kind of livestream narrative

Kitty Cash, Lianne La Havas and Phony Ppl have each functionally created their own performance spaces online through livestreaming and multimedia experiences across various social platforms — accommodating viewers on a regular basis, while staying true to their own brands, personas and career goals.

In the process, they are part of a growing group of artists pushing the dominant narrative around livestreams and online video experiences for music. It doesn’t just have to be limited to pop-up IG Live streams; taking note from Cash, La Havas and Phony Ppl, there are many ways to bring online performances a step forward by experimenting with different platforms and partnerships, and by investing more in building physical and digital stages beyond the monotony of Instagram. Live concerts and multimedia experiences can be performed effectively from home, as long as artists remain proactive in exploring original methods of keeping fans intrigued.