THE BEAST

It’s imperative that I remind you that the more people discover your band and your music or whatever project you have going – the more people have an opportunity to formulate an opinion. If negative comments and feedback are showing up, as hard as it is to see it this way, it’s actually a good thing! If the trolls are rearing their ugly heads, this could actually be a positive affirmation. This means people are finding out about you and discovering your art. At the very root of artistic expression, is a desire and/or an attempt to elicit an emotional response from your audience. Don’t take it personal. It’s difficult, but it’s necessary. Having restraint and understanding and patience is the mark of a mature artist or company.

A word of advice moving forward… Never let negative comments or feedback stop you from doing what you love or creating music that you care about. There will ALWAYS be people who don’t love what you do, and may downright despise it. Keep in mind that for every 1 person that doesn’t like your music – there are several people out there that DO; and those are the ones that matter. Sure, there are legit cases of constructive criticism – take those as you see fit – but there are some people in this world who would set out to tear down and destroy, without cause. Chase your dreams, follow your heart, and let no obstacle get in your way! The absolute best thing that you can do is ignore the hate and refuse to engage in negative exchanges regarding your art… Don’t feed the trolls!

I always had my mind set on accomplishing as much as I possibly could in the music business. In the early days, playing the local clubs and bars, building a fan base, touring regionally – I didn’t really receive, first hand, too many negative reactions; not directly anyway. The instant I was fortunate enough to sign a record deal and tour the world, and our music was available to a much wider audience… the hate began to flow. And flow it did. Our YouTube videos and social media sites began to explode with activity. Suddenly there were thousands upon thousands of comments. Of course, there were a lot of people praising our efforts and cheering us on… but for the first time there was this insane rash of nasty remarks, fueled by pure hatred. It was a lot to take in at first, but I quickly realized that the more people that know about you, the more people have an opportunity to form an opinion. I vowed to never let it get to me, and I’m not saying it was easy. The bigger we got, the grander the design for the hate. I always wanted to “make it” in the music business, but until it begins to become a reality you don’t really stop and think about what people will say about you or your band on sites like Lambgoat.com, Blabbermouth.net, or Metalsucks.net. You’re not immediately prepared for what people are saying in Forums and on Twitter and Instagram, etc. When it happens, just remember that, not always, but sometimes – “there’s no such thing as bad publicity”.

There are rare cases, but in most instances this saying rings true. When a top metal website rips your band apart, it may be easy to get discouraged… but think about the countless people that saw that article, went and checked out your music or band, to form their OWN opinion and decided the author was way off! People will form their OWN opinions about your art and that is exactly what art is designed to do. And it’s media attention like this that makes the positive articles and reviews that much more enjoyable. Keep your head up, soldier on, and never let anyone get in the way of your aspirations. Rock on! \m/ \m/

Kind regards,
Noah "Shark" Robertson
www.swimmingwithsharksentertainment.com