How Hopeless Records Approaches Influencer and UGC Music Marketing

This week on the New Music Business podcast, Ari sits down with Nicole Abea, Director of Influencer & UGC Promotions at Hopeless Records. Over the last decade, Nicole has helped evolve Hopeless Records’ marketing strategy from traditional social media campaigns to modern influencer marketing, user-generated content (UGC), and TikTok-driven discovery. Starting as an intern and rising to lead influencer and UGC promotions, Nicole has worked with artists including Scene Queen, THXSoMCH, Neck Deep, Melrose Avenue, Autumn Kings, and more. Nicole pulls back the curtain on how music marketing actually works in 2026. They discuss influencer campaigns, fan accounts, micro-budget marketing strategies, TikTok trends, BookTok, DSP pitching, and how artists can build communities that translate into real fandom. Follow Nicole Abea:   / nicolethedesigner     / hopelessrecords   Check out Ari’s Take: https://aristake.com 03:57 Nicole Abea on Influencer & UGC Marketing at Hopeless Records 08:44 The Reality of TikTok Seeding, Fan Accounts & Music Promotion 15:20 How to Market a Song with a $2,000 Budget 18:25 BookTok, Online Communities & Finding Your Audience 23:29 What Spotify and DSPs Want from Artists 26:26 Why Record Labels Are Signing Influencers 33:21 Scene Over Genre: How Modern Fandom Has Changed 42:41 How All Time Low's “Dear Maria, Count Me In” Went Viral Again 45:22 Rage Bait, Algorithms & The Future of Music Marketing 51:00 Closing Thoughts Edited and mixed by Ruben Zarate Music by Brassroots District Produced by the team at Ari’s Take Order the THIRD EDITION of How to Make It in the New Music Business: https://book.aristake.com