Do you post or do you RELEASE?

In the old days people introduced new creative work with movie premieres, launch parties, tours, and opening nights. Picture searchlights waving in the night sky.

These days we… post. From our phones and laptops. From our beds and kitchen counters. From the bathroom. We post to every channel we can and hope we’re positively noticed.

A post is a box we fill on a social media platform. A tweet, an Instagram, a newsletter, a story. A chicken nugget of attention we put into the world. These stray thoughts are powerful, especially when they interact with the thoughts of others. 

Posting can be fun, entertaining, and even enlightening. But when we want to share a creative act we went deep into the void to create, we owe our work more than a post. We owe it a RELEASE.

A RELEASE is a richer and deeper expression of an idea. A release is not just the work, it’s anticipating the work. There’s an invitation to become part of it in some deeper way (buy it, sign up, attend). There’s a story and understanding about who made it and its context. A release is meant to endure.

Some key differences between a post and a release:

Access: Posts are open to all. Releases reward dedicated followers with exclusive or tiered access. 

Collaboration: We tend to post on our own. Releases often involve groups of people working and celebrating together.

Context: Posts are standalone. Releases create a broader world. 

Format: Posts are typically single-format (text, image, video). Releases are multi-dimensional and often span mediums. 

Interaction: Posts are consumed, seeking likes and shares. Releases are experienced and aim for meaningful participation.

Longevity: Posts are fleeting and ephemeral. Releases leave a legacy and lasting impact. 

Money: Posts are given away and typically free. Releases are often monetized. 

Preparation: Posts are spontaneous. Releases are orchestrated through planning and strategy. 

This is not to say that a release is better than a post. Like practices and cathedrals, posts and releases are more relational than oppositional. We need a mix of both.

When the filmmakers The Daniels announced Everything Everywhere All at Once, they posted it in a tweet that read: "We’re back on our bullshit. We’re making a new movie. It’s gonna be fucking wild. Stay tuned." A great post that turned out to be true.

When A24 released the movie there was much more: a teaser date, a trailer, a press junket, a theatrical opening, a hardcover book, a soundtrack, DVDs and streaming, an Oscar campaign, and of course the actual movie itself. An amazing release.

A24 sets a high bar, but in a noisy world the RELEASE treatment helps creative people. Even the Very Online, for whom posting comes more naturally, can benefit from a release mindset. It’s a way to honor our work, give it longevity beyond the moment we post, and generate money too.

We don’t need a big budget or a million side projects to do it. We just need a home for our work beyond social media that we can control and tell a deeper story. As we’ve been doing with our New Media drops, any work can be RELEASED by making it available in limited editions that offer a deeper, richer version for people that really connect with the piece, while still keeping the work itself free and open to all on the web, like a post.

Our goal is to make Metalabel the best place on the internet to release creative work. A space where creative people can release and elevate their work and invite people to go deeper. If you’d like to explore collaborating with us, reach out: hello@metalabel.com.