SC-127 · Expert

Building a Music Career Fans Can Emotionally Invest In

Guest: Jenna LoMonaco, Head of US Marketing at ONErpm

Summary

Jenna LoMonaco, head of US marketing at ONErpm, has worked in music marketing for over 20 years, on campaigns ranging from breaking Shawn Mendes to established acts like Elton John and Nick Jonas. She argues the essence of marketing an artist never changes: finding where fans live and building a real, long-term connection with them, even as the platforms for doing that have shifted from MySpace to TikTok and YouTube.

With Shawn Mendes, everything centered on his existing rabid fan base rather than a template that works for every artist, since most artists never build that kind of intensity. LoMonaco splits her work roughly fifty-fifty between proactive groundwork and reacting fast to a spark, such as when Mumford and Sons' cover of a Bob Dylan song at the Grammys outperformed the show's own nominees and her team moved immediately to convert the attention into sales and follows.

ONErpm structures deals around splits and licensing periods rather than a standard label contract, letting artists pick anything from full support to just DSP and advertising help. LoMonaco says branding and consistency across an era, in the way Taylor Swift reinvents herself release to release, matters as much as any single platform, and that fans stay loyal because they know what to expect from an artist they follow.

As of the episode's release on 26 August 2025.

Key takeaways

01LoMonaco splits her work roughly fifty-fifty between proactive planning and reacting fast when a real spark, like a viral moment or an unexpected sync placement, appears.
02With Shawn Mendes, the whole campaign was built around an already rabid fan base, which she says is not a repeatable template for every artist.
03YouTube remains an underrated platform for breaking artists, even though most current attention and short-form strategy centers on TikTok.
04A team is most valuable at the exact moment a song or artist starts to break, since knowing what to do with a lucky moment decides whether it becomes a lasting career.
05ONErpm structures its deals around splits and licensing periods instead of a standard label deal, so artists can pick anything from full-team support to just DSP and advertising help.
06Branding and consistency across an era, similar to how Taylor Swift reinvents herself for each album, gives fans a comfort and identity they keep returning to.

Guest

Jenna LoMonaco, Head of US Marketing at ONErpm

Questions this episode answers

How did Jenna LoMonaco help break Shawn Mendes?

She says his campaign worked because he already had a rabid fan base, so her team built everything around getting those fans involved rather than following a generic playbook, and she cautions this approach cannot be copied for an artist without that kind of existing fan intensity.

How proactive versus reactive is artist marketing?

LoMonaco says it comes out to roughly fifty-fifty: an artist needs a proactive plan and steady groundwork, but also needs to recognize a rare spark, like an organic celebrity co-sign or sync placement, and move fast, because these moments are rare and unrepeatable if missed.

Why is YouTube still valuable for artist marketing?

LoMonaco calls YouTube a wildly underrated platform, noting it is literally how Shawn Mendes broke through, and says people building marketing strategies today often forget how much success is still available there compared with newer short-form apps.

How does ONErpm's deal structure differ from a major label?

Services are offered on an a la carte or full-team basis, priced through splits and licensing periods rather than a standard label contract, so an artist can choose just DSP and advertising help or bring on the whole team depending on what they already handle themselves.

How does Jenna LoMonaco think artists should balance novelty and consistency?

She says the amount of novelty is up to the artist to decide for each phase of a career, since musicians can reinvent themselves release to release the way Taylor Swift does, while still keeping fans engaged through recognizable branding and consistent messaging within each era.

some big celebrity or influencer organically uses your music or you get a sync placement or whatever it is, you have to make sure that you're really using that to your fullest advantage.

Jenna LoMonaco

Episode notes

What does it really take to turn a viral moment into a lasting music career?

Head of US Marketing at 1RPM and a music industry veteran with over 20 years of experience has played pivotal roles in the rise of artists like Shawn Mendes, Elton John, and Nick Jonas, and she shares candidly what it really takes to build artist brands that last.

Jenna breaks down real-world case studies, including the marketing behind Shawn Mendes' early success, how to make the most of breakout moments, and why understanding the artist’s story—and the fan’s mindset—is essential in crafting campaigns that resonate.
The rise of TikTok, the power of YouTube, or why branding and consistency matter more than ever, Jenna’s insights are both strategic and deeply human.

For artists, managers, or anyone in the business of building music careers, this episode is packed with lessons in authenticity, adaptability, and the power of the team behind the artist.

Learn about ONErpm: https://onerpm.com/

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Produced by Amplitude Ventures Consulting: Partners in Early-Stage Venture Building - https://amplitude.ventures

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Transcript

Transcribed from the recording by the production team. Names and terms may be misspelled.

Read the full transcript