New York City is a haven of rich culture, thought-provoking ideas, millions of options, and a constant stream of noise and excess. The only way to win out in the city is to play big and play hard. Musicians know this better than anyone else. All the biggest artists in the world started peddling their records on the street and building a network to launch their career. They did not get together from a Craigslist ad and send a demo track to Warner Bros. It took time, and it took a conscious effort to build a following.
The digital age has revamped this in many ways. But, the value of conscious buzz building from the ground floor is not lost. Allow the print shop in NYC NY to create printed material for street-level promotion. CD’s are not nearly as popular as they were even a few years ago. There is still a demand for CD’s and the ownership of physical albums. Many bands can attest to the fact that few people want to stream a song from a Soundcloud link. It seems disingenuous, insincere, and frankly, intangible. A CD insert has a certain craft to it that people appreciate. They can stick the album in. They feel guilty just throwing it away.
There is no pretending that some people receiving the album will toss it away. Artists need to determine whether they want to charge for their presses at gigs or give them out on the street, or both. Regardless, physical CD inserts from a Print Shop in NYC NY have that tangible touch-and-feel nature to them. No one feels guilty clicking back on a song they do not want to listen to. They do feel guilty tossing a fully pressed CD. Fans still buy CDs at the street-level. They want to support the artist. Give them that chance by making physical copies in small numbers and building that local buzz that can eventually be used to take on the mainstream. Lady Gaga started out performing in NYC bars. Fans can certainly buy her album now, and they could have bought her EP back in 2007 at the NYC café
