INTERVIEW: CHINA MUSIC PROMOTER REGGIE BAPE TALKS TO ASN ON BRANDS AND SPONSORSHIP

Kickstarting S.T.D, which stands for Sonically Transmitted Disease six years ago, Reggie Bape and his team, have grown from a modest fortnightly party promoter to becoming one of the biggest players in China’s fledgling electronic dance music scene.

Besides, promoting musical acts and being a talented DJ and producer, the soft-spoken Aussie-Burmese partyprenuer has also been instrumental in amping up Shanghai’s nightlife scene with Arkham, one of the largest underground clubs in the nation. From all this experience, Bape has developed a finely-tuned instinct of brands and sponsorship in the Chinese music scene.

ASN: How important were brands and sponsorship in S.T.D.’s emergence in the China’s music scene?

RB: When we first started out in Shanghai in 2008, the indie ‘live’ music and DJ scene was very fragmented. Nothing much was happening and we figured out we could tap on this opportunity to connect the dots between live and DJ music worlds to develop a vibrant scene with like-minded Chinese youth.

In our first year, it was absolutely phenomenal because we were selling out most of our shows and this gave us confidence to do bigger things. Soon, brands could see how we were growing in the city and realised the potential of music to connect at the grassroots level. This was our cue to form a creative agency department within S.T.D. to work with brands and sponsorship. It’s a pretty much a long-term winning partnership for both the brands and us. Besides, bringing in more internationally acclaimed indie acts to China, we have also invested in nurturing a conducive environment for local bands and DJs.

ASN:  Most independent creative agencies based in China have lamented on how local brands are backward in harnessing the potential of branded content/entertainment; does that sentiment resonate with you?

RB: It’s something I can certainly identify with because Chinese brands haven’t caught up to the sophisticated level of their international counterparts yet. This is one of the main reasons why we haven’t worked much with local brands. Having worked with a gamut of international brands such as Converse, Paul Frank, Adidas, CK, Prada (1913.HK), Dior and Burberry, regardless of whether they are street or high-end labels, they can see the power and pervasive influence that music can bring to their respective brands.

ASN: Do you think the outdated approaches by Chinese brands will change?

RB: Slowly, it will change; most local brands are observing how their international counterparts are integrating branded entertainment into their marketing strategies. Recently, we have been working closely with independent local fashion designers from Shanghai and Beijing, and it has been mutually fulfilling because they are generally more aware on how to use music, culture and the arts to promote their products. It’s still a niche but hopefully it will trickle down to the mainstream brands, which are still stuck with rather strange advertising and marketing approaches.

ASN: Could you elaborate more on a typical S.T.D. branded content project?

RB: Our ongoing music curation project with H&M on a dedicated mini-website is an example of the standard branded content work we tend to get into. The brand would then use the content to share on their various social media platforms like WeChat, Sina Weibo and Tencent Weibo, to connect with their audience.

ASN: China’s youth culture is something you are familiar with, any future trends?

RB: Independent local fashion designers and niche boutiques are going to be the next big things in China because the young are beginning to embrace and express their individuality. But these brands have to be on their ‘A’ game and understand how savvy and globally attuned their young target audience is. It’s no longer about creating a generic product or brand and then making sure it flies off the shelves in the market; it was a winning formula for their parents’ generation but this new breed of youthful consumers are all about highly personalised brand experiences. So it would seem that if Chinese brands want to stand out in the landscape, they have to first understand the changing dynamics of youth and engage with their aspirations by creating meaningful content for their daily lives.