The Great Social Media Reckoning
Why Arts Marketing Must Evolve Beyond the Algorithm
Thankfully, the tide may finally be turning against globalised social media, and not a moment too soon if you ask anyone who's tried to build a genuine artistic career in the last decade.
In 2025, while TikTok still boasted 1.58 billion monthly active users and remains the most engaging platform with a 2.5% engagement rate, the cracks in the social media empire are becoming impossible to ignore. Australia has taken the decisive step of passing world-first legislation banning major social media platforms for those under sixteen, with 77% public (adult) support, following overwhelming evidence of detrimental effects on adolescent mental health.
For musicians, at least, I sincerely hope we've passed the point where social media drives arts marketing. The relentless pursuit of viral moments, inflated follower counts, and algorithmic approval has proven to be not just unreliable, but actively harmful for sustaining artistic careers.
The arts - particularly independent music - must look toward alternative means of connecting with audiences and fostering genuine community engagement. Because let's be honest, if your career depends on whether TikTok's algorithm likes you this week, you're not building a career - you're gambling with your artistic soul. It’s bloody depressing.
Let me break down why social media as an arts marketing panacea has been one of the biggest cons of the digital age. For years, we've been told that platforms are the primary gateway for independent musicians to build audiences. But here's what they don't mention in those shiny "democratisation" pitches:
Facebook's organic reach for business pages has plummeted to a pathetic 0.07% of followers per post. That's right - if you have 1,000 followers, about 7 people will see your post organically. Cheers Zuck. It's like shouting into a void, except the void asks you to pay for the privilege of being heard, and then mines your data.
Instagram's algorithm obviously prioritises paid promotions over organic engagement, leaving independent artists scrambling for visibility unless they shell out for ads they can't afford.
TikTok, despite launching some careers, remains a highly volatile platform where artists are at the mercy of opaque, ever-changing algorithms that could make you famous on Tuesday and invisible by Friday.
But the real story isn't just about which asshat billionaire makes the biggest bucks - it's about how entire demographic groups are walking away from these platforms in disgust. The numbers are pretty staggering when you dig into them. 54% of Americans now have an unfavourable view of Elon Musk. Meanwhile, two-thirds of Americans view Mark Zuckerberg unfavourably, with broader rejection across party lines. And that’s just Amercians…
Daniel Ek's €600 million investment in military AI start-up Helsing has sparked its own exodus, with high-profile artists like Deerhoof pulling their entire catalogues from Spotify, stating "We don't want our music killing people" and calling Spotify "an already widely hated data-mining scam masquerading as a 'music company'".
Graphics attribution: Leaf & Core
What's fascinating is how this backlash is playing out across different generations. Gen Z and millennials - the generations that grew up with these platforms - are leading the charge away from social media, with 57% of Gen Z having taken a social media detox in 2023 and 63% in 2024. Oxford University Press captured the zeitgeist by naming "brain rot" its 2024 Word of the Year, describing the cognitive decay from excessive doomscrolling. These digital natives are embracing what's being called the digital minimalism movement - deleting accounts, adopting flip phones, picking up analogue hobbies, with being offline now "perceived as a luxury in a world where everyone is perpetually plugged in".
Fundamentally, across generational divides, we finally are starting to understand the mental health costs of social media. A 2023 study by the Australian Psychological Society found that 67% of musicians reported heightened anxiety and self-esteem issues linked to maintaining an online presence. We're literally making artists sick with the pressure to perform for algorithms that don't give a damn about artistic merit.
The fact that the digital natives are moving away from social media is a damning indictment. These are the people who understand best how these systems work. As one creator put it: "Gen Z is not rejecting technology. They are rejecting vapid interactions and companies that are profiting from our misery". When the first generation to grow up online starts consciously choosing to step back, armed with insider knowledge of how these platforms manipulate them, that's not just a trend - that's a reckoning.
Instead of chasing inflated online metrics that mean nothing, artists need to find new ways of connecting with their communities, fostering strong, real-world relationships with fans, venues, and local businesses. Live music scenes, independent radio, and grassroots initiatives could be prioritised over fleeting digital trends that disappear faster than your motivation to post Instagram stories.
And we need to challenge the biggest joke of all. The illusion that metrics equal success. A viral video or high follower count doesn't necessarily translate to sustainable income or long-term fan engagement. Recent research found that 90% of artists with over 100,000 Spotify streams earned less than $5,000 annually from streaming. So you can go viral, have millions of views, and still not afford rent. These statistics highlight an uncomfortable truth: social media engagement benefits the platforms far more than the artists relying on them (duh). We've been working for free to make billionaires richer while convincing ourselves it's "building our brand."
As social media loosens its stranglehold on arts marketing (and thank the goddess for that), it’s time to return to localised, community-driven engagement. Platforms like The Pack Music Cooperative are pioneering exactly this approach. The Pack is developing a member-owned streaming model that supports musicians through direct creator-consumer relationships, in complete contrast to Spotify's pro-rata model that rewards only globally successful artists. When your success depends on genuine fan support rather than algorithmic lottery tickets, you can actually build sustainable careers.
Music lovers are craving more meaningful connections with artists - not just passive scrolling experiences that leave everyone feeling empty and slightly nauseous. Platforms like Bandcamp have demonstrated this by enabling fans to directly purchase music and merchandise, generating over $1 billion in artist revenue since inception. Imagine that - a platform that actually helps artists make money instead of just harvesting their data for advertising revenue.
However, a major barrier for artists to shifting away from social media is its disproportionate weight in arts funding applications. Many grants still require social media statistics as a key determinant of an artist's "success" or "reach," which is like judging a chef's skill based on how many people liked their Instagram photos instead of how their food tastes.
This approach disregards artistic merit completely. Artistic innovation, risk-taking, and cultural impact are rarely reflected in social media numbers. The avant-garde, niche, and experimental works that actually shape cultural progress are at a disadvantage in this backwards system that prioritises visibility over excellence. It also rewards those who game the system through paid promotions, bot followers, and engagement pods. Independent artists, older artists and marginalised artists who don't have the resources or inclination to play these manipulative games get unfairly penalised for having integrity.
Instead, funding bodies should prioritise artistic value, community engagement, and innovation over digital popularity contests. How about evaluating localised impact - how does the artist contribute to their local scene? Have they engaged with underserved communities or pioneered new live experiences? What about creative courage - has the artist taken risks in their work, experimented with new forms, or challenged conventions? And sustainability - does the artist have a long-term vision beyond the next viral moment, or have they contributed to the Australian music scene for a significant period of time?
“Countries like Canada are leading the way here. The Canada Council for the Arts has introduced funding streams specifically for artist-led projects that prioritise community impact and innovation over audience size. Revolutionary concept: funding art based on artistic merit rather than social media metrics. Hey WA, Heeeey!?”
If we accept that the social media era is declining (and evidence suggests it is), the future of arts marketing must embrace more intentional, local, and sustainable strategies. Arts organisations, festivals, and funding bodies must work together to dismantle the outdated reliance on digital metrics.
Funding bodies in particular must revise their criteria, replacing social media engagement as a primary metric with measures of artistic value, community impact, and sustainability. They must stop rewarding people for being good at social media and start rewarding them for being good at art. A fun suggestion… they might even need to get out from behind the desk and go to a gig sometime.
The current moment offers an opportunity to reclaim control over how the arts are funded, promoted, and sustained. The era of algorithm-driven, engagement-obsessed marketing is fading faster than a TikTok trend, and frankly, good riddance.
The Pack Music Cooperative stands as an example of how a new, localised, and artist-driven model can thrive outside the crumbling empire of social media manipulation. When artists own their distribution platforms, when communities control their cultural algorithms, when success is measured by genuine fan engagement rather than viral moments, we get something revolutionary: a music industry that actually serves music.
The great social media reckoning is here. Are we brave enough to build something better, or will we keep feeding the machine that's been eating artists alive for the past decade?
I know which future I'm choosing. Will you choose it with us? Donate to The Pack’s crowdfunding campaign today. We need just $45K to launch this project in 2026. It’s up to you.