Artist/Fan Relationships
This is the single most important relationship in the equation. For a regional country music market to thrive, there has to be demand for it. And only the fans can create the demand. It can’t be faked or manufactured. It has to be real. There has to be a commitment from the artists to stay true to themselves and their music. And there has to be a commitment from the fans to go to the shows, buy the music, and help promote the artist. See, that’s what so many musicians forget. The only difference between an artist and his fans is which side of the microphone they are standing on. The sooner we all realize that, the better off we’ll be. Fans don’t want some phony ass wanna be up there. They want someone real. Someone who will be true to the music, true to himself, and true to them. If they want an arrogant jackass to feed them bullshit, they can get that from plenty of major label egomaniacs. They don’t need us.

So I guess Van Zant’s got it right. If you want to build a regional music market, damnit, help somebody if you can. Oh, and a little sip now and then don’t hurt either.