🪩 OFF THE RECORD

The fourth iteration of A Very Laufey Day – which takes place this weekend – is a very global affair, spanning 25 countries, including Bangkok, Singapore, Jakarta, and Manila. Curated by Laufey, Gen Z’s favorite singer-songwriter, it’s a celebration of the arts that encompasses symphony orchestras, ballet, jazz, opera and museums. According to Laufey, the goal is to help younger listeners connect with ‘high culture’, although there are less intimidating entry points like bookstores and coffee shops. She started the fan event in 2023 as a way to inspire Lauvers to get outside by sharing her ideal one-day itinerary, soundtracked by her upcoming second album. It’s expanded every year since.

Laufey isn’t the only artist meeting fans somewhere other than the music. Dua Lipa has a book club. The Weeknd streams video games and champions indie studios. Later this year, Korea’s SM Entertainment will stage a 10k race followed by live performances from idols. Taken together, they reveal new points of connection between artists and fans. For brands trying to reach the same fans, that’s important.

💡 OUR TAKE

A side hustle used to mean a fragrance deal or a co-designed fashion label. Now, what artists do when they’re not making music is becoming more than a support act – it’s a way to build community with fans around interests that extend beyond the music. There’s interest in this type of crossover: a 2026 Eventbrite study found that 69% of 18-to-35s in the US and UK want more events that combine different interests, like crafting and cocktails or culture and movement.

The Weeknd sought out the makers of indie games he loved, spent hours with them talking about design and posted about it. Vietnamese rapper Binz eschewed a traditional listening party and instead celebrated the launch of his debut album with a painting workshop for fans and collaborators. Or consider secondhand fashion marketplace Depop, who partnered with Spotify to give music lovers access to the wardrobes of six up-and-coming artists. That gave fans a way to buy into the  taste or style of an artist, important in an age when subcultures provide fewer ready-made identity codes.

Artists’ community building efforts might not be lucrative, but crossover fandoms can result in surprising benefits. Diplo’s run clubs, which first launched in 2024 (5k, followed by a 90-minute live DJ set), expanded to 10 US locations this year. Despite attracting 10,000 to 15,000 people to each event, profitability isn’t guaranteed – the logistics are expensive. But the run clubs did help the DJ/producer become a global ambassador for Whoop and appear in an ad campaign with Cristiano ­Ronaldo. 

Plenty of brands are chasing the same thing: a loyal community that gathers and stays. It comes more easily to Laufey and co., because the interest is real and not reverse-engineered from a growth target. When BINI’s Aiah hosted the group’s second BINI Run in 2025, she called running her ‘safe space’ and hoped Blooms would feel the same benefits from exercise. That kind of genuine interest is hard for a brand to manufacture, making artists both a useful partner and a potential competitor. So where does that leave a brand that wants in? 

Brands can fund artist-led run clubs and book clubs and there is genuine demand here, with young people seeking in-person events. Thoughtful and relevant sponsorship has a place, and the wellness brands that handed out products at some of Diplo’s events are one example of that. But the community belongs to the artist, so it’s the artist’s crowd that decides if a brand is ‘worth’ letting in. The brands that earn entry will offer something the fandom couldn’t easily access (Laufey gave fans a route into art galleries and symphony halls, for example). Access, a venue, an experience, or a tool: the question isn’t which artist to book, it’s what your brand contributes to the community. 

For those of you born before 1997, ‘fax, no printer‘ is Gen Z speak for ‘undeniable facts I agree with’

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