Stan
'Where music, technology and standom intersect’
When I first started Stan as a blog I sought to deeper understand the unique bidirectional relationships between artists and their fans. Through community focused case studies, interpretations of lyrics and analyses of real time events, I was able to greatly increase my knowledge and perspectives on fandom. An unexpected outcome of writing Stan was connecting and interacting with all the amazing individuals that read, shared and discussed my work. From artists, record label executives, management teams and venture investors from all over the world; the Stan community has the range.
Earlier this year I left my job at Silicon Valley Bank to focus on building a startup at the intersection of music, fandom and technology of the same name. Stan is focused on creating audience engagement infrastructure for the fan experiences of the future. We are launching a SaaS platform designed to help artists understand their audience at a micro (individual fans) and macro level, so they can segment their audiences and provide them with better experiences.
A large part of Stan is education around fan engagement and this includes our inaugural fandom conference, StanCon, happening in New York City on October 5. In addition to StanCon; we are dedicated to bringing you all things in Stan content with participation from Stan’s themselves - from artist deep dives and case studies to articles and virtual conversations.
With that I would like to welcome Stan’s newest editor, Mayuyuka Kaunda. In addition to pieces published by me; Mayuyuka will be writing and editing guest pieces for Stan. We are looking forward to this new direction of Stan and as always you can contact me at d@stan.fan.
A Note From The Editor
As a writer, playlister and music curator; I’ve spent my career championing creations that I am a fan of. Having contributed to outlets such as OkayAfrica, GQ South Africa and Red Bull Amaphiko, my focus has revolved around content creation and the engagement with it by extension.
From music, fashion and entrepreneurship; the golden thread between these disciplines remains establishing a strong sense of community. My journey now culminates in an editorial role at Stan where we provide a platform for such, by supporting artists focused on taking a fan-focused approach to growing their careers. This is where culture, technology and audience engagement intersect with the aim of building mutually beneficial communities around art.
You can expect carefully curated content from the team ranging from artist and manager case studies, fireside chats with industry leaders, well researched instructives and timely observations around pop culture trends.
Seeking to provide value to various stakeholders; our engagement with fandom education is anchored around pillars such as software adoption, industry insights, best practices and creating authentic fan interaction. We’re excited to grow our own community too and invite artists, students and professionals to help us shape the future of fan engagement.
This is an exciting reminder of where it all began for me: being a fan. On that note, our first ever fandom conference, StanCon, is a space for celebrating fandom while assessing the various facets of it - from the fan to consumer journey, fandom in the metaverse and optimizing technology for the perfect fan experiences. We’re keen to delve into the insights and experiences of various industry players over the course of the event. You can share in our passion and gain access to early bird passes for just $99 by registering and becoming a valued subscriber before September 9th.
From your newest fellow fan -
Mayuyuka Kaunda
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