How musicians can master Instagram growth beyond likes
Image credit: Jakob Owens
Forget chasing likes; something else is proving a far more powerful way to expand your social media presence and gain huge Instagram reach.
For musicians, Instagram is a vital platform for connecting with fans, sharing behind-the-scenes glimpses, and promoting new music. It is a treasure trove of potential engagement. But the algorithm is constantly evolving, and that means new strategies to reach the biggest audience possible.
While chasing likes isn’t inherently wrong, you might find your page’s growth isn’t accelerating as quickly as you’d hoped. Likes are valuable, but there’s an even more impactful metric to focus on!
You could be channeling your energy into a strategy that’s proving to be the secret to spreading your content like wildfire among your existing fans and attracting brand new viewers.
The key to thriving on Instagram in 2025 isn’t about posting more, or even chasing trends. It’s about crafting content that truly resonates, sparks conversations, and gets passed around. We’re talking about shares.
From Likes to Shares: How to find success on Instagram
A study conducted by Instagram strategist Brock Johnson found the incredible power of shares on Instagram. They found that, while a like can generate an additional 50 views, a single share could lead to up to 400 additional views.
Whereas likes show engagement and help content get favoured by the algorithm, shares have a snowball effect. A single share can mean an entirely new audience finds your content, as well as helping the algorithm to recognize your content is making an impact for feed promotion.
For musicians, this powerful multiplier means that a single share of your songs can lead to hundreds of new potential fans. With each share, you increase the chance that any of those hundreds of new viewers will also share it.
For tips on getting your music onto Instagram for use in Reels and Stories, head here: How To Upload Music to Instagram
Crafting your Instagram content as a musician
As a musician, your content will likely fall into two main categories. Get to know them and then we can explore the balance of which ones to post and when.
Promotional Content: This includes posts announcing new releases, concert dates, merchandise sales, or calls to pre-save your next single. While essential for your career, these posts are primarily for converting your existing audience and rarely go “viral.”
Shareworthy Content: This is your growth engine. It’s content specifically designed to be easily shared, bringing new listeners into your musical world. Johnson sees this as “the way to reach this ideal audience, bring them into the classroom, sit them down, bring them to your account, bring them to your page, bring them to your business [as a musician].”
Shareworthy content can be meme-like posts, trend-starters, or anything that will get people laughing or thinking. Look at what content does well on Instagram and what makes you want to share it, or the sorts of content that gets shared with you. Why does it go beyond a simple watch and like, to become shareable?
Find a balance between the two content types. Shareworthy content can be a fantastic way to boost engagement and attract new followers when you aren’t in an active promotional period. You can then scale back the shareworthy content to focus on promotions that benefit from your new, larger audience when it comes time to promote new music or a tour.
Types of Shareworthy Content for Music Promotion
Johnson identifies five categories that consistently generate shares. We’re going to channel them into a more musical approach to suit the digital artist looking to build their audience on Instagram.
Motivational/Inspirational Content
Share quotes about perseverance in music, stories of overcoming creative blocks, or behind-the-scenes glimpses of your dedication. Connect it to the artist’s journey. Examples: “It took me five years of writing demos before I found my sound,” or “That one time I almost gave up on music, but then [inspiring story].” Show the human side of your artistic struggle and triumph.
Community/Call-to-Arms Content
Get your audience involved in a musical cause, a collaborative project, or an awareness campaign. Examples: A challenge to write a song in a specific genre, a call to support local venues, an awareness campaign for music education, or a charity initiative related to music therapy. Think of your fans as your bandmates for a cause.
Relatable Content
This is gold for memes, jokes, and humor that perfectly capture the musician’s experience. Specificity is your superpower here. Examples: “Me trying to explain my music genre to my grandma,” “When the sound guy says ‘one more time’ for the 10th time,” or “My face when I hear a perfect melody in my head but forget to record it.” These are moments other musicians and even dedicated fans will instantly connect with and share.
Controversial Content
This isn’t about being offensive but sharing “niche-related unpopular opinions” within the music industry. Challenge common myths or outdated advice. Examples: “Why I think music theory isn’t essential for every musician,” “My take on why streaming royalties need a complete overhaul,” or “The truth about ‘overnight success’ in music.” These posts spark discussion and show your authentic viewpoint.
Timely Content
React quickly to trending topics, cultural moments, or time-sensitive events and connect them back to your music or the music industry. This is where you show your agility. Examples: A musical reaction to a viral news story, a cover of a trending song (if it aligns with your style), an original piece inspired by a major cultural event (e.g., a TV show finale, a popular meme), or adapting your music to a trending audio format.
Tips for Creating Shareworthy Instagram Content
It’s all well and good knowing what sort of content does well, but what happens when inspiration isn’t striking? Here are some tips to help you search for ideas that you can use to charge up your ideas and take them your own way.
Look Outside Your Niche: Don’t just watch other musicians. What’s going viral in comedy, education, or even food? Can you adapt their content structures or storytelling techniques to your music?
Study Your Past Hits: Check your Instagram insights: which of your past posts generated the most shares or saves? Can you create variations of those concepts, or even repost them for new followers?
Use AI for Brainstorming: Feed your most successful lyrics, riffs, or creative processes into AI to generate new ideas for relatable content, motivational captions, or even controversial takes within the music world.
Choose the Right Content Format: While video (like Instagram Reels) often performs well, Johnson notes that images and carousels can also be incredibly shareable. His advice: “Why not both?” For every shareworthy idea (e.g., a relatable musician struggle), create multiple versions: a short spoken reel, a reel with text overlay, a still image with the quote, and a carousel exploring the idea further. This increases your chances of hitting different audience preferences.
Keep Your Captions Simple: For shareworthy content, the visual or audio message is king. Most people don’t read long captions. Keep it concise and engaging. A simple emoji, a short question, or a brief call to action like “share if you agree” is often all you need. Let your music or visual content do the talking.
How to Convert New Listeners into Lasting Fans
Great shareability means that you are reaching new viewers and promoting yourself as a brand. But the real key is turning those new audiences into fans. Make your efforts translate into longtime fans by trying these tips.
Stay relevant: While thinking outside the box can certainly help you reach new viewers, that reach won’t necessarily translate into loyal fans if the content has little to do with your core musical identity. Making great content that still somehow relates to your music or who you are as an artist is the best way to reel people in and ensure they stick around.
Balance your content: Embracing different kinds of content will help you to expand your reach but don’t forget about content that really matters to show who you are as an artist. Keep a healthy balance between promotional content about your music and shareable content.
By strategically focusing on shares and saves, musicians can unlock unprecedented growth on Instagram, transforming their profile from a simple presence into a powerful platform for genuine music discovery and community building. It’s time to fine-tune your approach and let your music echo across the Instagramverse!