I realise that this may be a partly pointless exercise as many of those this article is aimed at are probably not going to read it. But, in the latest edition (Ed. 118) of Trust The Doc, the monthly journal-blog produced by myself and fellow FOTN moderator Sherry, I wrote an article entitled Lose The Entitlement, referencing a growing and worrying tendency many of us who are involved in supporting and promoting grassroots music have noticed among some artists; away from mutual love and support and towards displaying a misplaced and misguided sense of self-importance that will impress exactly no-one in the current industry or media.

Among the issues I commented on was the tendency of artists to serially (and therefore not coincidentally) ignore notifications, not even mustering up so much as a ‘like’ (which might take a split second out of their precious lives) in relation to receiving a loving review that someone like me or one of my friends who write for blogs and journals (Tony, Del etc.) have bothered to publish or to being listed for airplay on a show like mine or Del’s or any of the others who are faithfully supporting the grassroots sector. Lo and behold, after posting on Instagram, Facebook and X (the latter requiring about six linked posts), tagging everyone we could find and letting them know they were featured in the latest edition of TTD, less than half have so far even given us a like and most of those have stopped short of posting a comment. At least the like is a form of acknowledgement but, if the boot was on the other foot, we would try a little harder and, if you don’t believe me, check out all the social media pages (apart from TikTok where we can only post videos) for [The] Music Of Sound, the band Sherry and I are both members of, and see how constantly we post thanking every show we discover is playing our new single and every journal or blog that has given us a review or interview.

One of the things that interests me is the assumption among certain artists that they can dismiss a journal like Trust The Doc as being too unimportant to merit any form of acknowledgement but then I see them fawning over other journals and blogs whose readership is mowhere near as high! I have a little chuckle to myself because it is not for me to kick off a ‘mine’s bigger than yours’ argument over who has the most readers or the most listeners to a radio show. If only they knew what a rotten call they have made in their entitled state!

Of course, it is not just an issue of artists failing to acknowledge people who have made the effort to write about them or play their music. It is also the lack of mutual support with other artists. Some are on what an old trade union workmate used to call ‘broadcast only’. This is where it is all about them and they want everyone to gather and praise them when they have new music to share but they can’t be bothered to return the favour when others have new releases out. The worst offenders are those who jump on others’ message threads and try to make them all about themselves. Occasionally, that even includes artists who, in the middle of my live radio show, think it’s okay to start posting their videos on our live thread. It’s not okay and I should really reply telling them where to stick their videos! Maybe next time I will! People see through this kind of behaviour though and no-one loves a narcissist so if that kind of conduct describes you, I strongly suggest you seek guidance on how to be a better member of the community!!

Then there are the same old excuse makers. Whenever, for example, Del posts something about lack of mutual support in relation to some artists or I do or someone else does, it is always the same people who rush to defend this behaviour. Guilty conscience? Well, only they would know the answer to that but the same old excuses never sound any more credible than the last time or the time before that or the time before the time before and so on!

Fresh on the Net is currently on its summer hiatus, something some of the great entitled also seem quite put out about. I mean, who do us unpaid volunteers think we are, imagining we have the right to take a break from ploughing through 150 tracks a week in our spare time! Ah but yes, some artists still fantasise that we are part of BBC 6 Music and, when our readers vote them into the faves, instead of thanking the readers, they declare that BBC 6 Music has ‘chosen’ their music! Trust me, they really haven’t!

When we reopen in September, this could be an opportunity for a renewed effort to build the numbers engaging with the platform to a new level. We have been trying and making some progress in recent times. Del and Sherry have both done some sterling work in shining the light on our activities through clever use of social media. One of the ways artits can play a part is by finding 30 – 40 minutes every weekend (between Friday lunchtime and Sunday at 6PM) to browse the 25 tracks in the Listening Post and pick five to vote for. You don’t have to listen to every track all the way through. Not only will you be contributing to a platform set up to maximise exposure and support for grassroots artists but you will also keeping your name on the radars of others which will not do your own ambitions any harm.

People can also spread the word. Share our posts, don’t just ‘like’ them. Encourage new people to come and get involved as fans and not just as artists. When the legendary Tom Robinson established the platform back in 2012, his intention was that there would be a popular and well-run platform where artists could reach significant new audiences without having to spend any money. 14 years later, that is as much the case as it ever was. There isn’t anything else like it so come on people. Recognise it’s a win-win for everyone if we support one another and bring more fans of [predominantly] non-mainstream music to a place where they can have a say in the tracks that get reviewed. You could do a lot worse than take a leaf out of the books of artists like The Happy Somethings, Nick Woodgate (aka The Jojo Man Band) and many others who go out of their way to post positively about their fellow artists and about the media that supports grassroots music. Not least see how much love they get back both because they are clearly so talented and also because they are such loveable people.

One of Del’s great achievements since Tom handed him the reins has been the appointment of the most diverse moderating team we have ever had; diverse in terms of ethnicity, age (youngest mod being just 17 and the eldest being over 70), gender and background. That diversity has been reflected in the breadth of genres and cultures represented at the Listening Post over the past few years. Now we want an audience that also reflects that diversity and open mindedness. We are getting there. So we are hugely grateful to our regular readers who turn up week in, week out. But we are also excited to see a lot of new names voting. The more the merrier (just so long as they are there for the right reasons and not to try to hype a mate’s track into the faves!).

That brings me to another important point. I know there are quite a few artists who have stopped engaging with Fresh on the Net because it is no longer seen as a potential route onto what used to be Tom’s BBC Introducing Mixtape Show on 6 Music. Again though, this is flawed logic. Quite apart from massively over-estimating the impact of spot plays on national radio in building fanbases or generating sales, it ignores the fact that our FOTN team includes people with roles in festival stage curation, live events promotion, independent labels, journals and blogs, radio shows, streaming playlists and social media platforms supporting new music. When you send a track to the team, we all listen to it. So it is not uncommon for an artist whose track did not make the Listening Post or who did but then did not get voted into the faves to find themselves being offered gigs, played on shows, written about in blogs or journals and recommended by social media influencers in the new music space. Just as it is foolish to imagine a journal like Trust The Doc has a lower readership than something less widely read because it doesn’t fit your idea of what such a publication should look like, so it is a mistake to think Tom Robinson was ever the only reason to engage with Fresh on the Net. And by the way, Tom still regularly comes and votes at the Listening Post so if your music is there, he is still going to hear it and may play it if he is presenting a show on Amazing Radio or some other channel in the near future.

It is also a mistake to equate the numbers of people who vote at the Listening Post with the readership of Fresh on the Net itself. Our articles have far higher engagement and a review, whether because you have made the faves, been selected by one of the team for our Alt Picks feature or featured in one of the other ways we support the scene such as Del’s Tea & Biscuits interviews, my live reviews and other such content, the articles are often being read by thousands, not tens, of people.

So come on artists. We are not arguing, like some irresponsible so-called influencers, that you need to spend hours on TikTok creating an endless stream of engaging content every day; what has become branded as brute force marketing. We are just asking you to be bothered to acknowledge people who make the effort to give you support and exposure, support your fellow artists, encourage people to gather and support platforms set up to support them and lose the sense of entitlement when it comes to recognising the work of everyone in our community. You will never lose out in your career ambition by being kind, supportive and making an effort. But, you never know, it could be the making of you too.