What Does Social Media Mean to Me?

Almost 8 years ago, I got together with some fellow fans of music in my early months at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and started a little website. A site for a community of music lovers for an “underground” comedy/horror rap group Insane Clown Posse.

What started as AIP Juggalos grew to Western PA Juggalos (since most who started to become involved stretched from Pittsburgh to Erie, and in between in my own old stomping grounds.) Over the years, the people who helped with the site in it’s early years became the best of friends. We made moves for artist awareness, videos about the Juggalos in their natural environment, co-planned CD release parties, comedy shows, and our hand in PittsburghJuggalos.net’s Juggalo Day at Kennywood that we still keep going long after those guys have moved on. The friends I have made over the years have been invaluable. And the friendships and meetings I’ve witnessed from our sites and social outings have been remarkable to watch.

A couple years ago, I started to spin off form the whole ”Juggalo thing” and started to apply my passion for professional wrestling when I started the Wrestling Mayhem Show with a few friends. This led to Podcamps, Twitter friends, and who knows how many Blogfests, Geek Nights, and TweetUps, opening the doors to a whole new, and most varied I have seen, group of friends from all over Pittsburgh (and some beyond)

In either case, whether it’s 200 people filling the AIP halls for Podcamp, or 150 kids with Juggalo shirts at Kennywood, I love watching these groups come together and seeing new faces welcomed with open arms.

Using all of these tools at our disposal means putting enough of yourself out there to be accessible to people and fostering those relationships.

This was a response to the Podcamp Pittsburgh 4 Blitz Days, where participants are asked to write about social media to promote awareness of the upcoming event. If you’re going to Podcamp Pittsburgh 4, October 10-11, don’t forget to register and get your badge for your website or blog page.