I've been on Threads since its inception, more or less. And because I joined after already having years of internet and social media experience, I decided to curate my own experience. So I have intentionally built a Threads group almost entirely of musicians, with exceptions made for authors, photographers, and people I know personally.
It's been very satisfying. On Threads I have created a community of musicians who are right where I am, or have already gone where I hope to go. Luminaries such as Jason Isbel and Chris Barron (Spin Doctors) have responded to my posts and comments, but more importantly, I've made music with some of the folks I've met there.
The song “Come on Confidence” featured contributions from local rapper and friend D Glove, New Zealand songwriter and producer Brendan Upson, and production from North Carolina producer and recording artist The Sleeping Cliffs. This simply couldn't have happened without Threads.
(Photo by Toa Heftiba from Unsplash)
I'm currently working on projects with some of those same folks, and two other Threads musicians whose work I admire. This is a unique sort of collaboration I couldn't have managed if I hadn't first curated my Threads feed to find folks who were making music and looking for others who were doing the same.
I didn't have a word for what I was doing, I just know that I was creating an oasis in a chaotic world.
Today I got an email from my friend Brian David Hall who proposed building your own personal email inbox and feed. He christened it with the marvelous word “Friendternet.” What he said, precisely was
“I had this wild thought: What if I just subscribed to youtube, podcasts, and newsletters from people I know (or at least have met or talked to)? That would make for a very manageable feed. A not-neverending feed. So I'm trying it out, and so far finding some stuff I really want to watch (or listen to) that would've just been buried in the noise, or ignored by my restrictive content firewall.”
And to be honest, that's kind of what I have created on Threads. Sure, following the election I have gotten a lot more political stuff in my feed, likely directly linked to posts I liked or commented on. And the algorithm is always feeding me more stuff. But largely, my Threads feed is a place where I can ask questions and get answers from my peers, without a lot of the negative energy that can come from other feeds. And, more importantly, MY EMAIL DOESN'T HAVE TO LOOK LIKE MY FEED.
I'm logging on the the Friendternet.