Today, everything is pay to this, pay to that, just pay pay pay. You as an artist, should you pay to perform or pay to be in a playlist that you feel is a perfect fit for your music?

Do you truly need to follow a trend musically to blow up or does it only happen when the music is good? In today's age, people are looking for the next hit song or the dance trend. Do you really have to follow that in order to hit a certain level?

How soon should an artist perform? Do you wait to build enough fans then perform? Do you bite the bullet and perform first then worry about building a fan base? I always see people talk about performing, but for me personally, I'm more focused on building a fan base first before anything. What do you all think?

As an artist, we always look at what we enjoy making and what we love to write about/create. Sometimes you make songs and everybody love it. Everybody know every word, the flow, the sound, and everything. But, you as an artist don't want to make that same type of song anymore. You make something different and those same fans start to pull back. My question for you guys is, how much fan input should you listen to vs your own? Should there be balance of what fans want and what you want?

In today's time, is it better for an artist to release singles or a full body of work? Or does it depend on the type of artist you are and the type of fan base they have?