The Asteroids Galaxy Tour

Someone asked me the other day about the “new paradigm” for songwriters and musicians. I mentioned that increasingly, entertainment will be sponsored. This puts the transfer of money before the consumption rather than during or after. Then I caught the new Heineken ad, and was struck by the singer. Turns out, the new ad was shot around the promo clip of the Asteroids Galaxy Tour‘s new single called “Golden Age”. So the ad is a short version of the clip, or vice versa. Given the huge amounts of sponsorship already in music (notably Lady Gaga’s super-productions) I don’t really have a problem with that.

Who are the Asteroid Galaxy Tour?
So who the Smurf are The Asteroids Galaxy Tour? The group was formed in Denmark in 2006. They are no newbies in terms of corporate sponsorship, as Steve Jobs chose their single “Around the Bend” for an ad for the iPad Touch and they now have the Heineken gig (note to self: hook up with their publisher!). They also opened for Amy Winehouse in Denmark and Katy Perry at the legendary Olympia in Paris.

Increasingly, if you want to get broad exposure in major media, some variation of this route will have to be followed. You can get by without it, of course. But there is no escaping the attention these sorts of campaigns bring. If your publisher is on the ball, there are also large amounts of money to be made in performance royalties – but that’s a different article.

It’s encouraging that major brands are willing to work with lesser-known acts rather than throwing insane money at the usual suspects. So good luck to both the group and the brand.