In my previous blog posts I have narrowed my field site, planned my approach and discussed my background research and ethics. This comes together to form my topic, which is Australian indie music, specifically where and how people discover music within the genre.

Digital Artefact:

My digital artefact will feature content posted to TikTok, with supporting content on Spotify. I will be making TikToks that feature Australian indie bands and artists and my music recommendations. I’ve found lots of new indie music on Tiktok recently but it is predominantly American and British. This means there is already a demand for music content on the app, and an opportunity to introduce more Australian artists. I will then accompany my TikToks with Spotify playlists including the featured artists and additional music.

I chose these two platforms as I believe they are two of the most accessible platforms right now to discover new music, and have both been ways I’ve recently found lots of new music. I also think creating content through these platforms will help me immerse myself even deeper into the community and inspire me to find unconventional ways of discovering new music to feature in my content.

Questions:

There are a few particular questions I’m looking to answer through my auto-ethnographic study. These include:

• Where and how do listeners of Australian indie music discover new music within the genre?

• What are the most unique ways people have discovered some of their favourite bands and artists?

• What kind of stories come with discovering different artists? Are there similarities between fans of the same artists?

• Does the way you discover an artist impact on the engagement you have with them? (eg. are you more likely to become a big fan of a band by listening to them on Spotify or in a live setting first?)