5 Ways to Build Your Own Drummer Fan Club

Some drummers are content to stay at home and play along with favorite tracks, or to drum amongst friends, creating rhythms for personal reasons. Then there are drummers who seek adoration and acclaim, waiting for the right moment to spring their ultimate groove upon the world of music. These men and women have watched as other drummers and musicians have been vaulted into the spotlight through fandom, and feel their skills are going unnoticed. Therefore, we present some “tricks of the trade” in building your own “Drummer Fan Club.”

• Get Online: The world is your proverbial oyster on the Internet. You have video and audio sharing websites, social networking, social media, offline networking groups who are looking for new music. Think of the Internet as the audience in front of your stage, and act/think/dress appropriately for your music and/or your “brand” to help build your drummer fan club.
• Get Your Print On: ‘Zines and Flyers still work. Old school, “pounding the pavement” tactics are still relevant, even in the digital age. You never know who will fall in love with your unique drumming style laid out on a glossy page or stuck on the bumper of a friend’s car.
• Get Real with Your Audience: Fans LOVE recognition! There is no drummer fan club without the fans, and the best way to get a buzz going about your drumming is to talk to the people who are your “word of mouth” advertisers. Let your audience know more about you than the beats you hit, and be respectful, thankful and gracious... and give something back to your fans! Relate to the crowd, whether on stage, online or in a radio interview and you’ll have a fan club for life.
• Quitters Never Win: Nobody likes a quitter. Just because you haven’t taken off in the first year of playing your drums, you don’t have to throw away your dreams. Your drummer fan club takes time to grow, just like your drumming skills and style. The energy you put into perfecting your groove is the same kind of energy needed to encourage a drumming following.
• Lastly, You Better Drum: There is no drummer fan club without talent and determination. Nobody is going to talk, blog or get your buzz going if you aren’t really good at drumming, and if they can’t see or hear your beats. As an artist and devotee of the rolls, fills, backbeats and grooves of music, if you don’t put it out there, nobody’s going to know what you’ve got on the throne.

There are plenty of ways to become a drumming superstar, and if that is your goal, then it is time to get busy building your drummer fan club. When you are ready to take that next step, to communicate through the beat and reach that next level of rhythmic awesomeness, then be sure to fully commit to the adventure of stardom. Bring on the paparazzi, the fangirls and fanboys, and keep the tradition of rocking those drums alive.