S02 E21: On Family & Creativity with Christopher Craft

Author: Daniel Lamb & Anna Rosa Parker/ Chris Craft
Published: Mon 08 Nov 2021
Episode Link: None

“I studied electrical engineering knowing I didn’t want to be an engineer — I wanted to be an artist, but still approaching art like an engineer.”

—Chris Craft

If you’re putting effort into your art, you want it to be seen. So how do you make sure that your creative projects reach the right audience?

In this episode of Artist Inclusive, we’re diving into the business side of creativity.

Chris Craft is a lo-fi hip-hop artist who produces music under the name CRFT. He’s also a record label owner, copywriter, and co-founder and Chief Content Officer of NeoLuxe Marketing, an agency with a diverse team that prides themselves on being “extra.” Though many creatives find SEO and marketing complicated or intimidating, Chris believes that they should embrace its potential to promote their art.

“I think it’s really helpful to have that love for the business side too,” Chris says. “Because at the end of the day, I’d love to be able to be profitable with this start-up, and have our earnings be reinvested back into making more and more music.”

This conversation covers left brain and right brain topics, including finding collaborators remotely in the post-Covid digital age, why artists need to seek control when it comes to digital platforms, and why Chris gets so excited about royalty calculations.

In‌ ‌this‌ ‌episode of the podcast,‌ ‌you’ll discover:‌

Simple steps for marketing your creative projects online
Free resources and techniques to help you nail your keywords
Why Chris approaches art and creativity with an engineer’s mindset—and how that shows up in his creative process

Highlights:‌

02:26 Meet Chris Craft

03:44 BeatCurve & music

04:43 Writing as a family

06:37 Writing for commercials

08:07 Power of story & encouragement

10:34 Race & story

12:05 How parenthood changed him

13:25 Before We Begin

14:51 Lo-fi music & creativity

20:20 Left-brain or right-brain

23:35 Artists marketing themselves