Is Liking a Fan’s Social Media Page Really the Best Way Fans Can Interact with Their Idols?

If you remember the days when rock music was first starting out then, you likely remember (or maybe you don’t) the kind of crazy followings which popular bands would amass.

Fans all over the country would wait out the front of their local concert halls and ticket booths just for a chance to catch a glimpse or their favorite rock band! Let alone get a ticket to see them! These were the days where you could call your local radio station and win tickets!)

There were even hard-core groupies who would leave their jobs just so that they would travel with their favorite band. Many of these groupies were groups of girls who would hitchhike between towns as they followed the band around on tour.

Let’s bring us back to the real world, where buying a ticket to see your favorite artist is as easy as clicking on the Groupon Coupons page for StubHub and making your order. That’s it. Tickets to shows happening that very night are available and at a discounted price.

In this world, there is no such thing as a groupie. Instead, fans looking to follow artists around on tour simply press a button on their preferred social media page and instantly they feel they are connected.

But are they? Are they really talking to the artist they think they are? All they have to go is a screen name and, if they’re lucky, a blue tick for verification.

Back in the day, you knew that you were talking to Steven Tyler because you snuck backstage, waited in the bathroom for hours on end, hid behind music equipment, and risked being caught by the police, finding yourself actually in front of him, talking to him.

Now, you send a message or a tweet to a celebrity and, if you get a reply, you wonder if it’s simply from the social media team who are running the accounts on their behalf. Of course, there will be some posts and remarks by the genuine artist. However, they are unlikely to be in favorable portion to the rest of the publications.

So, Yes. The answer to the question in the title is, Yes. Liking a brand’s social media page truly has become the best way for fans to interact with their idols.

But while it can be easy to dismiss these fans as non-die-hard, it’s important to consider the level of celebrity access currently available. After all, there isn’t a chance of you sneaking backstage anymore. Artists no longer go to the public after parties or clubs, with the majority either going to their mansions or attending private functions where their fans have no chance of accessing.

Taking this into account, it asks the question (for another article), has artists disconnected themselves from their fans by using social media. Sure, social media makes fans feel like they are connected with their famed artist, but is this connection simply a consolation?