How you as a musician can jump on board the current Clubhouse hype

A new and potentially very additive app is getting popular among frequent social media users. If you use Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and co. regularly, you won’t want to miss out on the new trend: Clubhouse. That’s the name of the app which is currently trending like no other app before it. What is behind it, what are the advantages and disadvantages and how can you as a musician use the medium? We have summarised all of this for you.

What is Clubhouse?

If you research the popular app, you come across a wide range of descriptions: “It’s like [German chat app] Knuddels, but with speaking”, “spoken Twitter” or “party conversations” – all of which are true to an extent. The bottom line is there are several rooms for users to log in to. These rooms can be found using the subjects in the titles or the people participating. So if you follow a person who is taking part in a chat, this room will be suggested to you on your home page. When you enter the room, you can either just listen or take part in the conversation through a message from the moderator(s). If you then participate in the conversation everyone who is currently in the same room can listen to you.

At the moment the app is in its infancy, not least because access to the app is still very exclusive right now: it’s only available on iOS, so you must be an iPhone user. On top of that, not everyone can register; you must be invited by someone who is already in the Clubhouse. Each new user only gets two invitation codes, so it isn’t always easy to join. And yet you can’t argue that the app is very popular: there is currently no official number of users however, Philipp Kloeckner, one of the most important search experts in Germany, estimates the number of active users in the German market to be in the high five-digit range (as of 20/01/2021). This assumption is based on close observations of the development of the largest Clubhouse accounts and shows one thing above all: it may well be that the hype has only just begun.

How do I get the best out of Clubhouse?

Being on a platform like Clubhouse from the beginning can be a huge advantage. This is because the number of users at the beginning is small, making it is easier to make a name for yourself because not everyone has an account and is joining in yet. For you as a musician this provides a very special opportunity: you could be one of the first people to contact their fans in a completely new way.

A relationship with fans has always been and continues to be very important. Instagram isn’t popular without reason – it has given fans the chance to get a bit closer to their favourite musicians for the first time. Clubhouse doesn’t just offer the possibility of being approachable; it also opens up a new way of communication: talking to each other. It is based on two-way-communication; content doesn’t just flow in one direction, but an interactive exchange between the parties is the foundation of how the app works.

Push it, baby!

Your followers can set push notifications for when you participate in a discussion in a room. This basically means that they are immediately made aware if you are active in the Clubhouse. This immediacy is quite handy for making sure you remain on your followers’ minds.

Moreover you then benefit from your extended network: if one of your followers enters the conversation, or you open your own room to talk to your fans, each of their followers will also get a push notification. This is very handy for reaching people who are connected within your target group. It may also be useful to engage in so-called “Celebrity Talks” in order to take advantage of their reach. Are you friends with and/or connected with other musicians? Super! Clubhouse is the app where you can take advantage of this: bring your audiences together and use the best and simplest form of crossover promotion.

There are no limits: from backstage talk about technical details to life on tour and music nerd knowledge – there is an audience for every subject. The fact that the audience can ask questions immediately allows many conversations to develop organically. And the advantage in comparison to podcasting is also clear: interaction makes the conversations taking place currently even more topical and thus more specific and relevant for the audience.

The bottom line? Let’s go!

Of course, as a general rule, every social media platform has advantages and disadvantages. To put yourself under pressure because there is a lot of hype around a new platform right now, is never the right thing to do. Something which also should never be ignored is data protection. Before you use any app, find out as much as you can about the necessary access privileges and possible ways to protect your data. If you want to embark on the Clubhouse adventure we want to take this opportunity to say that it can definitely be worthwhile. The opportunities on offer in the beginning are almost limitless and the high level of responsiveness and the fact that it is designed for communicating with each other can be a milestone when it comes to communicating with your target group.