Social Media and … Jazz?

Tito Puente

I have been on Twitter now for a couple of months, and when I first joined I did a couple of keyword searches to try to find other people who might share some of my interests. You know, books. And music. Specifically Jazz. And what I found is that a lot of people who used the word “jazz” in either their username or bio, weren’t talking about the music. Jazz is just a cool name to some people, and to others it’s some type of computer thing.

The other thing I found, although very sad to me, is that literally dozens of people who had started Twitter accounts, and did have something to do with Jazz, the music, had abandoned them after one or two posts. Perhaps they thought it was like My Space, where all you have to do is throw up a page, and wait for people to “friend” you.  I have seen a lot of great musicians on My Space. Not so much on Facebook or Twitter, unless it is a “fan” page on Facebook. Not the same thing. Twitter requires a little personal interaction. But Greg Osby does it, even if it is just to put up dates of his gigs. The other night I was “followed” by Tito Puente Jr., who may have just done it because I use one of my photos of his father as my “wallpaper” there. Dave Matthews is twittering fairly regularly, whether it’s about politics, or places he has been touring, or to put up a funny photo on twit-pics. And these guys have great numbers of followers.

My point is, Twitter is not only a great networking tool, as in, got a gig in South Carolina? Let people know you’ll be there. Not only will they let you know the best places to eat, stay, hang out after hours, etc., but you may see your audience increase. You may hear from an old friend who can put you up for the night. And you may convince someone who has never known much about Jazz to want to learn more.

Let me know about your experiences with Social Media, and how it has helped you to deliver your message or express your art. If people can use this as an ever expanding business tool, why can’t it be used to increase interest in art, music, books, and movies?