Are you a true fan?

I just read this article and found it very interesting.

Basically, Kevin tells us that any music artist could and should focus on gathering 1,000 fans in order to make a living. The reason is that choices are exploding, and it becomes harder and harder to make yourself known in the long tail of the music industry. Thus, people that are actually happy to pay for your music, or drive more than 200kms to see you in concert are the people to interact with, sell music to. And they actually might be your best advertising tool, telling their friends about you and your music.

I think it makes sense, but I do not really believe in it entirely. Here's why:

My definition of "fan" would be someone admiring, following and adoring an artist. But there's a second level to this: "being a fan" implies distance, inaccessibility, dreams... If you get too close to your fans, then the dream evaporates. Actually, there seems to have an optimum distance with your fans. Be too far too early, and they will not hear you. Be too close, and the deam is gone. On the "Be too far" aspect, that might actually work - but you have to make sure that your true fans first saw you and started adoring you. Once you have the fans, you can go as far as you want it seems: The extreme example would be Bob Marley, Jim Morrisson or Elvis Presley. They are, by definition, real icons. BUt they're also not in this world anymore. They did have a huge impact in the music industry (and thus, got their fans on the wagon) but, the day they died, something else happened. They became totally inaccessible. They became gods.

Also, fans usually become fans to express who they are, or to belong to a community. In marketing, we would call that "positioning". You share the values/beliefs/ideas of the artist and therefore, you can identify yourself with a community. You will need a critical mass before you actually want to become part of that community. Is 1,000 people enough? Maybe, maybe not.

Finally, you cannot be a true fan of someone like you - someone who has a life that seems to be quite similar to yours. Think about it: could you really be a fan of a singer, playing in your town, in some bars you go to...and after have a drink with him? Not enough dreams, too much proximity. No way. So for local artists, I think the idea of "gathering" true fans, one by one, is a very difficult if not impossible task.

Don't get me wrong: If you're a music artist and you want to have fans, the solution is not to hide (or at least all the time) from people who might like your music. It's not either to die and hoping you'll become an icon. And it's not either to give up and wait for a record company to call you.

No, the best way to get fans would be to clearly express your style (if possible unique), be viral (give out some of your music for free or on donation basis as Radiohead did), and cultivate mystery. Keep that mystery box between you and your listeners. Do not tell everything. Be like a magician - because, if you start telling your listeners your "tricks", then the magic is gone and so are your fans.