Is fandom dead?

What do we do with Norwegian Blue?

I’m in the middle of a plateau, or as I’m calling it ‘fanteau’. I know, it’s a rather shit portmanteau, but it gets the job done in a pinch.

Back to the point. My Substack is growing, but very slowly. I’m producing loads of music, posts, thoughts and borderline abusive puns on various platforms from here to IG to LinkedIn, but my fanbase numbers ain’t growing very quickly. Now, for those of you reading this who came via the email or just following - thank you - you’re a fan! But the lack of new fans got me thinking…

First of all, what am I doing wrong? Is my music getting worse? Is it objectively rubbish (be quiet, inner negative voice…!), am I doing something really stupid and missing a trick?

Of course, I could be doing more. The current state of play in the creative industries (this is more music based, but I’d imagine the landscape is similar whatever the medium) is you need to be an artist, brand strategist, promotor, manager, marketing expert, content production specialist, podcast producer, and pastry chef rolled into one. You simply can’t do all of this (although DIY and owning your stack is another matter for another day…)

And, if you read the ‘experts’ online, you need to be posting authentically. You need to be showing your workings, what went wrong, your tearful thoughts for Gen Z as you make a cup of Earl Grey - hell, you probably should be livecasting from your toilet to get engagement. Talk about a photo dump.

Again, I get it, but is there something happening that perhaps isn’t an artist output issue? Maybe it doesn’t matter how much stuff we put out. How much we try and build communities?

Maybe our ‘content’ - horrid term - and strategy isn’t all of the problem?

Perhaps it’s the fans. Perhaps they’ve died. RIP.

Not literally, obviously. Everyone, broadly speaking, is upright. I’m just considering something a bit wider. Perhaps the concept or state of fandom, of attention, of audience, is, in its defined form, somewhat over. Or, as Monty Python said, just unwell.

But let’s not light the candlelit vigil just yet. Because I don’t really think fandom is dead. Maybe it’s… passing through. Maybe it needs Cleese to whack it on the countertop for a reset.

Back to that dreadful portmanteau: What if (sorry, Taylor) we’re living through our Fanteau Era - where audiences still exist, they’re just less likely to tell you. Or buy the merch. Or comment. Or, look up from their doomscrolling long enough to realise they liked it. Maybe fandom - your audiences - are morphing into something else - something there, but more detached.

Let’s look at issues - as I see them - via a little autopsy, shall we?

1. Fragmentation: the splintering of attention

It’s all too much.

There’s just too much of everything now. Too many songs. Too many films and cosy crime books. Too much choice in supermarkets. Too much Netflix. Too many smart people with Substacks (hi!). Too much capitalism.

It’s a splintering of attention. We’ve all become cultural grazers - chewing a bit of this, trying a bite of that, and wobbling off before dessert. It’s like we’re all too cognitively fried to enjoy a simple square meal and just want cultural bento boxes on the run.

So, it’s not that people don’t love things anymore - you only need to watch some recent Oasis reformation footage to know that’s not true. It’s just that they don’t stick around long enough to feel and share the love like they used to.

Fans used to invest. Spend time. Get to know you.

Now, there’s always something else demanding attention. They don’t get a chance - and have been socially trained out of - developing a love of something and becoming (gasp!) a fan. The new shiny quick fix thing is always calling.

(Caveat: vinyl sales are up - this means lots of people want an object, not a stream, which means that engaged fans are still there and want be a part of creative worlds - but this isn’t mass. Yet.)

2. Social Media burnout: the party’s still on, but everyone’s grabbing their coats.

We were sold a dream: post consistently, be authentic, and connect directly. Instant fans, hurrah!

But the reality? Algorithms throttle reach, attention spans are collapsing faster than your old mud-riden 1997 Glasto festival tent, and even TikTok now feels like it needs to be taken for a good lie down. Or perhaps shot.

Daily time on social media has dropped to ~141 min/day, signalling fatigue and very selective engagement.

Actual stats: engagement rates across all major platforms are dropping year on year.

• IG? Down 16%

• TikTok? Down 34%

• Twitter/X? Down 48% (so much that even the fascists might have to leave).

• (RIP Threads, you poured your soul into that, got three likes — one of which was your own.)

So maybe it’s not us. It’s the platforms.

They’re designed for speed, not depth. Which is fine if you’re flogging leggings, but trickier if you’re trying to make emotionally resonant art for actual humans.

3. The cost of living crisis = emotional austerity

People are broke. Rent’s up, hopes are down, and the average fan has maybe £12 of disposable income and 1.6 minutes of concentration per week.

So they’re more cautious with what they invest in - emotionally and financially. Globally and locally, we’re not currently in a good place: economically, politically and emotionally.

We’re all feeling poor. That doesn’t mean they don’t care.

It just means they’re not in a place to show up loudly.

4. Lurkers: the silent fandom majority

This is the bit that might just save your soul a little. Give you something to work with.

Most people who follow your work won’t say a thing. They’ll listen, read, watch and nod - and move on.

Quietly. Lovingly. Invisibly.

These people are not dead fans. They’re non-demonstrative introverts with too many Chrome tabs open. We won’t know they’re there, until suddenly they are - when you bump into them IRL and they say ‘Oh, I love your music!’

Er, thanks - can you give me a like and a share, mate?

These people are out there. But social and online fandom has changed. People are now worried what others think - they curate their comments and likes. It’s moved from ‘like’ overdose of the early Facebook years to a hard-earned medal now - you’ll have to earn that share, sonny Jim. But they’re in the mix - haunting you, but nicely, and they might be naming their dog after your new single right now. Maybe.

5. Micro-fandoms & the rise of the intimate scene

Here’s the hope bit: fandom hasn’t died, it’s just gone niche.

Mass cult like followings? Rare. Only the stadium dwellers do that now.

But a deep, values-aligned mini crowd? Totally possible. In fact, that’s where you should be heading if you’re not blessed with a huge audience.

People are now choosing fandoms like they choose friendships:

• Are you aligned with how I see the world?

• Do you give me something real?

• Are you a bit weird, but in a way that makes me feel seen?

If yes, you’ve got a fan. Even if they only speak once every six months and then disappear again into the algorithmic fog.

So what now?

These are just my thoughts. I have no special magic to prove this to be true, and if I did, well, I’d have 50 million IG followers and be filling out Wembley. But, here’s a plan.

We need to - and stay with me here, marketing types - stop chasing visibility metrics like it’s 2012. We need to start nurturing resonance, weirdness, depth. New KPI’s.

As creatives, we need to walk the walk and start being fans of others - the odd, the different. Make a little more time in your life for them too.

Meanwhile, we need to focus on people who already get it - because it’s better to have 150 fans who do, than 15k who don’t. The latter will love you - albeit maybe quietly - and the former won’t care.

I, we, you should keep making beautiful, unusual things, and despite the radio static and silence, believe that it’s making a difference to someone’s day. It’s hard I know.

Because maybe someday - when social has changed from its current state, new platforms and IRL opportunities may arrive that shift the audience's nature back to a more deeper, less transient nature - and we’ll be ready with a mixtape and a moderately ironic merch line.

But what happens if it doesn’t? What happens if it continues down the current path? What are the strategies for fan growth if fandom is dead?

Well, I’m working on my version. And that’s a Substack for another day…(hint - hit subscribe!), and I promise - it’ll be dead good.

Graeme

(P.S Give us a like and a share, or just let me know you’re here!)