Meet Missy Higgins. If you don’t live in Australia, you’ve likely never heard of the 22 year-old singer, but her record label, EMI, is betting that’s about to change. The Aussie’s 2004 debut album, The Sound of White has sold 4 million copies, and Higgins’ meteoric rise up the charts has EMI hoping it’s only a matter of time before she overtakes the international charts (Read: US) like she has dominated airplay Down Under. While young performers exploding on the music scene is nothing new, the methods that EMI used in building pre-release interest for The Sound of White are. EMI created a buzz online for Higgins’ release through the use of message boards and chat rooms. “By the time we released the album the level of word-of-mouth was really high,” says Gareth Isaac, head of business development and support at EMI. The successful promotion of The Sound of White is being used as a blueprint for EMI as they look to expand their viral marketing efforts. Working with their media agenct, Carat, EMI has created 8-person panels of “influencers” which preview music from artists EMI is considering releasing. The influencers will then take samples of the music to their friends, and report back to EMI to give them an idea of the reaction to the artist. Also, EMI is beginning to incorporate adpersons, DJs, and film producers in their panels, to assess the multimedia possibilities of the talents. Another step in the marketing effort are ’street teams’ of 16 year-olds which go to concerts and distribute flyers, and also blog online to generate buzz. These efforts will likely be a win-win situation, benefitting both the label, as well as the artists. The record label can use viral marketing to reach teens and twentysomethings more effectively, and for less than more expensive methods of marketing. And the low cost of using the influencers to test the market’s reaction to new acts means that many promising artists will get exposure to the public that they likely otherwise would never see. Which means they’ll get the one thing every aspiring musician wants: The chance to be heard. Let’s just hope Ralph Nader doesn’t find out about it.