The Tragedy of Small Numbers
Sometimes I chance upon music on Spotify that catches my attention. And I'll click into the artist's profile to see how many monthly listeners they have. If it's a big(?) number, I feel happy, and I feel like I've tapped into something special. If it's a small number (< 10,000), I feel a bit of a knockback. I start to question whether the content is really worth listening to or spending more time with.
I don't really like to admit this. It unsettles me a little bit. My appreciation for the material should be based on the material, not based on how many other people are enjoying it.
Why is this happening? I can think of possible reasons:
- I want to listen to music that other people know so I can relate to them. A small-number artist doesn't contribute to that.
- The small numbers make me think maybe something is wrong with this music. If other people don't like it, then maybe there's a reason why I also shouldn't. It isn't good enough to be more popular.
- Small numbers might indicate that this is a really small band or some random inexperienced person who's making this music. I want professional music (???).
I feel grimy saying these things. It doesn't feel like I should be allowing myself to have those thoughts. And yet I feel like I may need some external input to help me see past them.
Well, let me at least try to convince myself.
Reasons to ignore the above instincts and give these small-number artists a chance:
- I can form my own opinion. Can even feel like I'm taking the role of a music critic - it's up to me to judge the merit of the content.
- Even if not many people have consumed this content, it could still speak deeply to me. It's another human (hopefully) who is voicing something, expressing something. A small band could send me a message I need to hear, just as a big band could too (and the big band might not have the right message for me).
- If I were in person at some bar or venue where a small band was performing something, I would probably be excited to hear the small indie voice. Why not feel the same on the digital platform?
So, sure -- perhaps I will consider the above reasons as I move forward.
Ultimately, though, I think this is what it comes down to: I have limited time to consume things like music, so I want to optimize my time and expose myself to as much high quality content as possible.
Reversal
Funnily enough, pretty soon after writing the above, (and perhaps even influenced by my thoughts above, particularly the "reasons to ignore"), I came across some smaller artists and have been deeply enjoying them (2026 Music Standouts#Standouts Jan-April). Specifically Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground (5.5k monthly listeners on Spotify) and Dinosaur Feathers (2.5k monthly listeners). The music has such merit (to me at least) on its own that I don't need to question who else is listening to it.