I'd never really thought about it until [adult swim] bought it to my attention-- Weird Al Yankovich was still making songs a good 10 years after his hay day in the 90's and the great MJ (the now late Michael Jackson) had apparently run his course and was absent from the public eye as far as music was concerned--keep in mind this was before his "This is It" tour was announced. The implications of such a simple observation didn't register at first but now that I think about it, it makes perfect material for a blog post.
What I learned from Weird Al: All you need is a niche. Weird Al's music, for those of you who may not know, was based on parody--he would take popular songs and remix them with funny lyrics. Naturally this kind of music doesn't have the same built in audience that a boy band or blond pop idol enjoys, but that didn't matter. It still doesn't. He didn't need everyone to like his music and he understood that not everyone would. But, and this is a big but, he believed that at least someone, at the very least one person besides himself, would like it and would "invest"--spending money, becoming a fan, promoting his craft by word of mouth, ect. Its important to find people who "are buying what you're selling" and sell to them. Additionally, I learned if you're going to be "different" you should be prepared to be treated as such :)
What I learned from MJ: Staying power takes Hallmarks--plural. Most famous entities have a single thing they happen to be known for. Watching the Simpsons the other night I was reminded of this when Lisa traded away her pearls, I know its silly but she looked so naked without them that it was weird. The list extends further than that, Huckleberry Hound and that song, Donald Trump's hair, Jay Leno's chin--you're starting to see it now right? Well by now I'm sure you're saying "MJ had his glove" and you'd be right but he also had the Moon Walk, and how you could always see his socks for some reason, the Thriller music video and that huge repertoire of songs that became iconic in themselves. If you want to be known for something make it plural. The more good things people can associate your name with the longer they will remember you.
