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We lurrrrve Macklemore.

In the past six months, indie hip-hop group Macklemore (Ben Haggerty & Ryan Lewis) has become HUGE. Not Harry-Potter-over-two-decades huge, but they’re certainly inching on Hunger-Games-over-five-years huge. “Thrift Shop,” a funky little ear worm that has everyone talking about poppin’ tags, has dominated YouTube waves with nearly 250 million views as of today and has gone platinum.

Macklemore is the first indie group (an artist or group without the backing of a major record label) in nearly two decades to top the Billboard charts with “Thrift Shop” and “Can’t Hold Us”; another hit, “Same Love” celebrates same-sex marriage, becoming a standard protest/civil rights anthem. Another hit on their 2012 album The Heist is a track called “Jimmy Iovine,” based on the legendary industry voice who helped make Eminem famous. (Allegedly, Iovine “loves the song and thinks it’s brilliant.”) The lyrics of a verse describe the music publishing industry, and Macklemore’s reasons for “going indie”:

He said, “We’ve been watching you, so glad you could make it.

Your music is impressive and this whole brand you created.

You’re one **** of a band, we here think you’re destined for greatness,

and with that right song we all know that you’re next to be famous.

Now I’m sorry, I’ve had a long day, remind me, now what your name is?

That’s right, Macklemore, of course, today has been crazy.

Anyway, you ready? We’ll give you a hundred thousand dollars.

After your album comes out, we’ll need back that money that you borrowed.”

“So it’s really like a loan?”

“A loan? Come on, no!

We’re a team, three-sixty degrees, we will reach your goals!

We’ll get a third of the merch that you sell out on the road,

along with a third of the money you make when you’re out doing your shows.

Manager gets twenty, booking agent gets ten,

so ****, after taxes you and Ryan have seven percent to split.

That’s not bad, I’ve seen a lot worse.

No one will give you a better offer than us.”

I replied, “I appreciate the offer; thought that this is what I wanted.

But I’d rather be a starving artist than succeed at getting ******.”

Ahem. . . . So Macklemore doesn’t really hold back any punches on his opinions of the music industry’s standard operations for artists. For “lucky” authors, this is quite similar to the way a traditional publishing deal looks, except that the $100,000 is more likely $5,000. If you’re lucky, you’ll get a deal and that little advance, and after your sales have made back the money from the advance, you’ll see a small percentage from sales (5 – 10%, typically).

Like many artists before them, Macklemore decided not to go this route. They were able to independently develop and launch their brand in a way that has exploded and reached the pop stations’ airwaves. What lessons can indie authors learn from Macklemore’s efforts?

1. Take advantage of social media.

We’ve said it a million times–social media has leveled the playing field for authors of all avenues, creating a grassroots marketing tool that not only engages audiences around the globe but makes the messaging personal. Macklemore has succeeded in using social media effectively by posting often and in a variety of ways, responding to questions, allowing fans to tag him in photos, etc.

2. Engage your audience in multiple ways.

In order to connect with their audience visually as well as in writing on social media, Macklemore has allowed fans to be their marketers by offering fans unlimited access to their music on YouTube. Until “Thrift Shop” reached 90 million views, they refused to sign a deal with YouTube/Google to have ads on their videos.

Authors can do this too; many authors do book trailers, but have you ever thought about offering your audiobook for free on YouTube as a giveaway? If it took off, how many books do you think you’d be able to sell? Hmmm….

3. Use alternative methods for funding.

In 2011, Macklemore set out to use Kickstarter to fund their music videos in order to become part of a movement and engage their audience in multiple ways! And how did they promote the Kickstarter project? By using examples 1 & 2!

4. Keep at it.

It might seem like Macklemore became a sensation overnight, but they have been releasing music since 2000–a.k.a., almost thirteen years. They’ve been gracing the underground music scene in the Pacific Northwest for over a decade, selling $5 ticket to audiences of 50 people. Operating under Macklemore LLC, Macklemore (Haggerty) said in an article on billboard.com,

“We are a small business that’s becoming a medium-sized business. With that, there is a learning curve and there are times when you feel like you don’t quite have the manpower to operate the business to the best of your ability. But we’re growing and we’re adapting to the best of our abilities.”

Authors, who do you follow on social media? Other than “because you like them,” why do you follow those people or groups? Think about the specific tactics they use–are there any that might work for you and your book?

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