Ghetts Gets Fans Buzzing With App - ‘Rebel’ #12 in midweeks
- Mobile app designed around fan engagement- 3,000 downloads in first 24 hours- Eschews traditional social media to create own community- Paves the way for new album ‘Rebel With A Cause’ 13th March 2014, London:- British MC Ghetts has released his brand new album ‘Rebel With A Cause’ following a campaign that saw the creation of a mobile app that brings the artist and fan together as a community.The app quickly ignited the fanbase, gaining over 6,000 subscribers following a soft launch in late January and notching up over 60,000 track streams by the album’s release date. The app was also key driver of attendance at a release day pop-up gig near Barbican, which saw a 500-strong crowd gather within just two hours of its announcement. The buzz appears to have translated into commercial success with ‘Rebel With A Cause’, released March 9th by start-up indie label Disrupt, grabbing a midweek spot of #12 in the UK Official Albums Chart.Cutting across the different social media channels, the app functions as its own social network built solely around the artist, with fans able to comment on content, interact with one another on the fan wall, share photos and acquire points based on their profile’s activity. Ghetts even maintains his own profile, enabling him to communicate directly with fans, post updates and generate new content. The app is also the only place where tracks were previewed, eschewing traditional sources such as iTunes and other platforms, as well as featuring exclusive videos, songs and news.Data generated by the app is being used to directly reward key fans, and in turn gain a better understanding of the fanbase. The app led to Ghetts meeting with fans in Manchester, Newcastle, Brighton and Leeds through secret gigs, and has been used to recruit a regional street team to help promote the Rebel With A Cause campaign and Ghetts in general.Powered by Mobile Roadie, the Rebel With A Cause or #RWAC app is available to download free of charge on iOS and Android. Ghetts released ‘Rebel With A Cause’ on March 9th via Disrupt, with Essential Music & Marketing handling all label services, including distribution and digital marketing, through a global product management deal. Matt Thorne of Disrupt said: “We created the REBEL app to cut through that noise and illusion conventional social media channels like Facebook and Twitter create. We have over 180,000 followers, friends, likes, whatever you want to call them, but no real way of owning that data or engaging with them all directly. This is incredibly frustrating for artists, who if they are going for it independently, will struggle to convert fans to purchases through these traditional outlets.”Ghetts added: “I want to do something more than just chart, I want to leave a legacy – music that changed a demographic; changed the game. When I sat down with Disrupt they just got that. I saw this would be a good relationship. I was always the newcomer, now I see myself as the underdog – it's where I'm most at home.”
About Essential Music & marketingEssential Music & Marketing was founded in 2003 by Mike Chadwick, former MD Vital Distribution, and Martin Goldschmidt, owner of Cooking Vinyl Records.Initially launched to offer marketing and distribution services to select North American independent labels seeking to release across the UK and Europe, the company has grown into one of the UK’s leading independent distributors and service providers.Celebrating its tenth anniversary in 2013, Essential has now partnered with a wide range of independent labels, all of whom utilise the company’s range of bespoke services – from manufacturing and digital expertise, through to creative management, marketing, promotion and sales.In 2012, the company delivered 14 UK Top 40 albums, and in 2013 it scored its first Platinum hit single, Passenger’s Let Her Go, on Nettwerk Records.Essential is a member of the CV Group of companies, which include Cooking Vinyl Records, CV America, Cooking Vinyl Publishing and Cooking Vinyl Property.