#btm radio promo

[sunshineandlyrics]

Yay! Bigger Than Me played on American radio (23 October 2022) x

[elceeu2morrow]

Louis Tomlinson Talks Faith In The Future, Zayn Malik, His Son Freddie & He Calls Out Zach

Louis Tomlinson came by to talk about his song Bigger Than Me and upcoming album Faith in the Future, his relationship with Zayn Malik, Freddie seeing him perform together for the first time and he calls out Zach about one of his tweets! [Zach Sang Show, 9.27.22]

[lhrry]

x

[faithinlouisfuture]

BTM promo at Radio Deejay (x)

[pop-punklouis]

why do you think OOMS isn’t doing better than BTM? i’m surprised honestly

oh i’m not. BTM was curated for a more mainstream crowd as his lead single and it’s more radio-friendly from a pop standpoint. he also did a ton of big promo for BTM as the lead single with late night shows, bigger interviews and spreads, and GMA. you also have to remember we hadn’t gotten new music from louis in two and a half years up until BTM so there is going to be more attention, regardless, when there’s an announcement of new material. OOMS just isn’t the type of song to have a broader appeal due to its specific sound. a sound that i love and many others do as well (including louis) but it’s more underground and would work best on alt radio which is such a bitch of even getting rotation on if you have a preconceived name like louis tomlinson. which sucks right now but what can ya do. i never expected OOMS to outshine BTM numbers wise, but i haven’t judged success or talent by numbers in years bc that shit….. really does not matter in the long run *big shrug* of course i want louis to be uber successful and for his music to reach as many people as possible but i know, as well as he, the type of music he wants to make and is making isn’t going to satisfy mainstream listeners and have a broader appeal which is fine. that’s not what he’s chasing. he’s made it clear time and time again that this album is for him and for finally having control over the type of music he wants to create and the type of scene he wants to be part of. that sound and that scene isn’t as commercial and i wouldn’t expect it to be just because louis is creating from that arena right now of an alt-indie influence (i’d love for him to target more alternative media and sources for promo). tbh i think we have to shift our mindset away from how fandom judges success with charts and numbers etc. because if not, there’s going to be many people expecting a more commercial approach than what louis even wants for his own solo career going forward. his album is going to do very, very well and his songs are going to be stellar. don’t let numbers or comparisons trick you into thinking otherwise.

[alarrytale]

Liam's new single didn't chart on the UK Top 100 😥 Same thing happened to Zayn's last single and to all Louis' singles since Two of Us. Seems like the British public are only interested in Harry and Niall these days 😥

Hi, anon!

I wasn't expecting Teardrops to chart. No matter how good the song may or may not be. Liam's reputation isn't great overall. People haven't forgiven him for what he's done over the years. So he can't afford to drop a picsart album cover like he did and treat his fans like they're 14 years old with the targeted promo. He is endlessly mocked. His current image is all over the place, the way he uses his fake relationship as PR is off putting and i don't think he has recovered enough from his addiction issues to be ready to throw himself back into the grind again. He just can't get people hyped and on his side. I feel sorry for him, because no matter what he does he can't get it right. I want him to do well, but i keep observing him do things and going "Oh no, Liam".

The thing with Zayn is that he just drops a song and vanishes. No promo, appearances or performances. I think he's doing well despite the little effort he puts into it. The last song wasn't good in my opinion. I have more faith in the song coming next friday and his coming album. He needs to make an effort to promote it though if he wants it to chart. Going on tour would also help.

Louis can't pick singles for shit. That's all on him. He's also chosen to move away from pure pop. Mr. I hate tiktok didn’t take advantage of the hype around waoyf. Bar BTM, his music videos are also low effort and, pardon the language, bad. He's also got the fakest lad image known to man and treats his fans like shit. Apart from also being sabotaged by radio stations and getting no radio play, i think all of this explains his no charting pretty well.

I think Niall is doing well because he's making easy listening pop music, is not problematic, is drama free and he's got a good reputation. He's authentically himself and pretty happy- go-lucky. He's able to draw in directioners and solo h/l/l and z stans. He's a safe haven with little ambition, but that also means he's not able to break the internet. He's got more monthly listeners than Louis, but i don't think he's got a bigger fanbase. I think they're on par when it comes to tour size and sold tickets. Did his latest singles chart in the UK (or just Ireland?).

Harry is Sony's golden goose and he gets everything he points at. So...

[skepticalarrie]

Hello!! Sorry I really don't understand anything about music, does woayf becoming a single mean it will have a music video? or that has nothing to do with it? I don't think i understand the difference between a normal song and a single 😓😓

A single is a song that is released separately - and have its own promo - in order to promote the artist/album. Usually, artists turn the singles into music videos but it's not necessarily like that. Louis' singles so far in this era were BTM, OOMS and Silver Tongues. And apparently is going to happen with WAOYF but there's still no official confirmation from Louis or his team, although some radios around the world seem like they're going to have the song in rotation pretty soon. I'd love a music video, I hope it happens but there are endless discussions and pieces of information all over the place whether what kind of single is going to be, so if it's a regular single or a "promotional single" like some people have said... So, I have no fucking idea.

[faith--in-the-future]

It's so sad since OOMS and ST received zero promotion. The entire FITF promo seemed rushed actually- it was too condensed into a short period of time. Why not take advantage and make it a slow burn, in the best way possible. BTM didn't really receive much promo either, it was all so quick. Am I wrong? I know he injured himself but the album was announced then bam 2 months later it was here with 3 singles already. Louis needs to slow down and focus on individual projects and give his work the attention it deserves.

exactly exactly! especially ST it was literally just a waste of money to make it a single like that, 2 days before the album, no promo or radio play, it was so dumb

it's sad bc it's such a good album and he's so Proud of it but :/ sigh

same for aotv like 4 years of work and not even a day of promo...

[finexbright]

I also don't think his team is doing any sort of sabotage. I just don't think they're good at promoting his work. Everything seems to be done in a hurry and at the last minute. Just look at the MVs… It doesn't engage the fan base at all. Not to mention the fact that they are always relying on their fans to buy banners and upload hashtags to promote anything. This should be something organic and not expected.

i partially agree with you, that the promo should not be dependant on fans at all but it's a pretty known fact that given his previous contracts with 1d, louis is pretty much blacklisted from radio play and other stuff, so given those restrictions i do think louis' team did a pretty good job especially after louis broke his arm and couldn't really do promo right after the album came out. the mvs were pretty fucking sick tbh and i loved them all (still don't know what the fuck was going on in btm but louis looked like a farmer whose crops didn't harvest and yeah good for him).

[sunshineandlyrics]

🇫🇷

Louis is in Paris now! (17 October 2022) x

[elceeu2morrow]

ZS: You are alternative, you are rock n roll. It exists in you but also in your shows and your music. Here in America the alternative radio format has gone to such shit. That it’s mostly a goal driven format. Meaning they play a great deal of old music that goes really far back in catalog so when you look at hour by hour breakdown of new songs to old songs, because they’ve destroyed the format as a whole, they have to play fucking Weezer’s Blue Sweater or whatever the fuck for literally the millionth time. So it is perception but also radio here has gone to total shit. But you are alternative. You create fucking music that is, again I don’t want to put anything into boxes, but like when I look at your records, they don’t scream pop. But also in the same breath, pop is not a genre. It’s a collection of different songs from all formats that funnels into pop music. 

LT: I agree with that. I do think sometimes, and maybe it’s the wrong kind of description, but sometimes you’re right in what you said about "popular". But I have to hear those words ‘cause instinctively, it almost just means safe to me. That’s how I interpret it in my head. You’re right in what you say. But instinctively kind of on the surface when I’m thinking about something that is pop, um, even if I’m thinking in a context of a film, if it’s too pop, I don’t mean it’s too popular, I just mean it’s too safe. (ZS: Too vanilla, too cookie cutter.) Yeah exactly. (ZS Asst: Maybe you just have to pick up a guitar and play guitar on stage for people to say oh nah he’s a rock star.) Yeah well honestly, sometimes, this industry kinda is funny like that. It might be all it takes.”

- Alternative radio in America / Pop radio [Zach Sang Show, 9.27.22]

[statementlou]

To add to your independent post, Billboard considers Bad Bunny and Taylor Swift as Independent Artist because they are not under the Big 3. Bad Bunny is signed as a distribution deal with a Puerto Rican Label and releases in the US under a contract with Universal Latin and another company so it doesnt count as UMG and Taylor is with Republic Records. Billboard does an Independent Artist Chart each week www billboard com/charts/independent-albums/

thank you for this, very interesting!! (about this) I feel like this really shows how stupid this distinction has become, since obviously by any rational metric Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny (and Louis) have major league representation who operate in particular ways that are basically the same as the Big 3 and are playing on the same level. So it makes sense that despite technically being "independent" Louis considers himself a major label artist. He said that he considered going independent, which in the way he means would mean he (/his team) would have to handle promo, manufacturing, distro deals, wrangling with streaming platforms, everything, themselves, and without the infrastructure to just slot into that a big label have, a part of which is the handshake network of ins at radio stations and tv shows etc etc- but to get that he takes on the trade off of having a label who press for hits and for him to do certain things (both of which he mentioned in yesterday's interview wrt BMG who thought BTM was too alternative and that he should press for radio play, but it's worth noting that Louis got his way with BTM and didn't seem too bothered about going out to do the US thing, this isn't SYCO, it's just a little trade off). And the way Louis phrased it ("what I didn’t want to do is go out on my own and then be sat on me rocking chair when I’m 60, 70 going, maybe I should’ve had one more go with a major label") to me says that even though he had made the decision that his priority was to do what he wanted even if it meant not getting hits, he didn't want to cut off the possibility of having it all, the control and the hits. I love how grounded he seems about it all- like yeah wouldn't that be fun and I will try for it within what feels good for me but beyond that, no, and if it doesn't happen NBD. But yeah, he likes the numbers, he wants to fill stadiums, he's said it and I think he'd say it more if people could also believe that he's also good without it instead of latching onto that as unhappiness with anything less. Anyway IDK anything about the Billboard indie chart thing but I can't help but wonder if it used to actually be a chart for artists who were out there doing things small scale and DIY and because of the ridiculousness of this semantic issue is now just always topped by Bad Bunny or whatever. Honestly the definition should get fixed because there are still artists putting things out themselves or on small labels and not going through major distros or having access to major league promo and for them to share a category with these behemoths (Louis included) who are benefitting from corporate connections and handlers just doesn't make any sense. But since the (outdated and useless) definition does remain in place, I will point out that the fact that Louis can claim and play both sides works out quite nicely for him, and you know that's not just happenstance or luck, he's very clever about these things.

[releaseholiday]

I cant belive that Louis new MV still doesnt have 1million views and its been out for 3 days 😱BTM had 2 millions after 2-3days.what is happening?is his team aware of this?

Yeah it’s such a shame bc this song is sooo good, it deserves more attention:( And even tho the mv is ✨no thoughts, just vibes✨ I liked it, more than btm even.

I know numbers are just numbers bla bla bla, but it just shows that whatever they’re doing rn with the promo isn’t working, not only on gp but on fans as well. I saw someone recently say that his #oli30 tweet had more likes than the album announcement like….the way they completely let the social media engagement he had at the beginning of covid go to waste like that is so frustrating. All these radio interviews he’s done are nice for the fans who got to meet him but that’s it, they’re not doing anything for his career. LTHQ just don’t know what they’re doing. I mean they literally just booked him on some trashy tabloid gossip channel for an interview, they’re all over the place and nothing is working.

[berlinini]

okay I agree with your points, to me it seems like louis truly given up on the promo and commercial success and he’s like “whatever, at least I have a tour and a festival” plus your point about him being “serious artists shows not promoting himself, only his music” is veeeeeery on point and it’s so annoying ugh because it seems like he doesn’t get it that his fanbase is shrinking and he won’t be able to tour for many years (I’m praying he will sell out this tour tbh lol) without at least some right promo so yeah…also I didn’t like how zach said “you could sell huge venues forever” because that’s just not true! You have to be realistic sometimes honestly

also bmg organizing that radio tour in the usa and convincing louis to go to these cities it just embarrassing for them honestly. they have no strategy and it shows

1) Absolutely. I’m not following a lot of artists, but Arctic Monkeys is releasing an album in two weeks and I’ve been following that. That was a my point of comparison. They’re doing written interviews in serious publications, they released two singles with nice mvs, they played one song on Jimmy Fallon (no interview), toured a bit in the last few weeks and had a special, private, filmed show in New York. And it works for them because they have an established fanbase consisting mostly of casual fans. Their tour dates are selling like ghost cookies (this is an AM joke) but if you log on Twitter or Tumblr there is barely an active online fandom. It’s a more mature and diverse fanbase. They also have a respected place in the industry, which Louis will never get. But lots of people out there don’t care if a song is number one of Billboard. They want to consume good music and maybe learn about the artist as an artist. Now imagine you’re reading Alt Press and you’re curious about Louis so you check out Bigger than me. It’s a good song, but it’s the only current one. Then Spotify suggests his biggest hits, which are BTY and JHO. And Walls. He doesn’t sound like an indie boy with that. Hopefully it’s a transition period and he just needs time to establish himself properly as a serious indie solo artist. Time will tell!

2) Hated when Zach said that. You’re right, it’s not true. Every fandom needs fresh air from time to time. I’m sure Louis is aware of that but he really needs to stop thinking all his fans were there during the 1d days.

3) BMG is such a joke lol. Can’t believe their idea of promo was this ridiculous radio tour. Can’t believe they thought BTM was too alternative. Can’t believe no one around Louis seems to understand him and what he wants. Matt Vines is useless but I thought at least BMG knew what they were embarking on. What’s their end game with Louis? They’re a record label, they won’t be making money out of touring. They need the album to do well. They have much riding on Louis but the fact this is what they’re doing (or rather, not doing)….The way our friend Lisa dipped as soon as we were no longer happy about them. No wonder they’re looking to hire a marketing specialist now.

[alarrytale]

“they don’t promote at same time” and yet bmg said harry stole the rolling stone cover they were getting for louis LOL wake up they do promo all at same time

I'm awake, don't worry anon.

To clarify i meant label/pr driven album promo. That is costly and a huge investment which includes a whole intricate pr campaign with print, tv, radio interviews, signings, popup shops, and pr relationships etc.

Pretty sure no stealing of any sort was happening here. Harry and Louis have been together for 13 years now and i'm positive they talk to each other about their PR plans lol. I also believe all the 1D guys only wishes the best for each other and wants everyone to succeed. They don't sabotage each other.

Last "big" thing Harry promoted was DWD which came out in Sept 22. Louis album came out in November 22. Louis PR run for that album started in sept with btm, but then died down and only picked up again like 10 days before the album drop, and the singles came in such a quick sucession that the whole thing was over in December.

Will they have some promo overlap, sure! Harry is everywhere all the time now. He's a walking billboard. And he's overexposed rn in my opinion. But it's not like Harry, Louis or Niall dropped an album in the same month, which would be stupid knowing they have an overlapping fanbase.

In stead of worrying about 1D competition, if i were BMG, i would be alot more worried about keeping current fans than gaining knew ones. We all see the elephant in the room. Louis is trying to be everything to everyone all at once and that's turning people off, because it's not genuine. The way they promise things and not follow through, and the lack of transparent communication to us fans, fans who Louis says are special, is frankly hurting him in such a way that i think he needs to fire some people to keep the fans.

If i may suggest, start with firing Simon Jones and get someone who knows the fandom onboard his management team. Lisa from BMG sure does not. I'm also questioning if Louis does, or if he doesn’t care anymore. And i don't know which is sadder. All i see is someone who’s losing touch with his own fanbase.

[skepticalarrie]

All This Time need to be a single!! It could be a chart topping number 1. It's that good. I know Louis said he didbt make this album with that in mind but I'm sorry All This Time is as good as anything that's on the radio now.

So many songs could be a single on this album, oh my god! I'm still quite confused with their approach when it comes to the promo of the album, to be honest. I think Louis was so brave with this album, so part of me wishes he had been bolder in his singles choices as well.

I completely understand the decision of making Bigger Than Me the first single, because it's so "big" and reflects this moment of his career. And OOMS as the second because it really represents him musically. And I also understand not having big radio support is one big concern for him, although it's not entirely clear to us why it's still happening. But - and don't get me wrong I love both BTM and OOMS, they're on my top five of the album for sure - but I think he missed the opportunity of making Silver Tongues go absolutely viral (there's still a chance, but the song was kind of overshadowed by the other two and the album release on the same week) or All This Time having the same kind of relevance, like you said. This song feels so timeless, I see what you mean, I can totally see it playing on the radio as well. Or even Holding On To Heartache... this one also has massive single potential, not only because it's so good and catchy, but if Louis wants to milk his past experience in One Direction, he's going to make a lot of people interested.

I don't know, I don't know what to expect now that the album is out, I just hope there are still a lot more singles to come! Just keep them coming, the world needs to listen to Louis! @lthqofficial I hope you're taking notes 📝