Instagram Influencer Spotlight On: Tom Read @tom_read

1) Tell us a little about yourself. What are you doing now and where do you come from?

My name is Tom Read, and I am an international singer-songwriter, based in Oxford, UK. I spent a large part of my youth in Hong Kong, and have written and collaborated with many western and asian artists, as well as performing and releasing my own music.

In 2013, my solo album Compass reached #1 on the iTunes album charts in Hong Kong, and stayed in the Top 20 for 2 weeks. The album also charted in both the UK and US iTunes Top 100 albums.

I have also co-written both for and with established and emerging artists alike. Most notably, in 2013 my song ‘From Ashes To Beauty’ was cut by Asian pop star Sammi Cheng on her multi-platinum selling album, Love is Love.

In 2016 I started to release new music under the name CHARIOTS, with the debut single ‘Dreaming As We Go’ receiving radio airplay across the UK including on BBC Introducing. In September 2016, the CHARIOTS EP was nominated for ‘Best Album / EP of the Year’ at the Unsigned Music Awards 2016, selected out of over 3000 entries by a panel of 80 music industry experts including presenters, producers, and editors from BBC, MTV, PRS, The Guardian, Sony Music and others.

2) What are your topics of interest? What do you post on Instagram the most?

Music is my main topic of interest. I post a lot about songwriting, music production, recording, touring, and performing. I also post about music instruments and recording gear and new music that I like.
Aside from music, I am also interested in fashion, particularly shoes, but any kind of men’s style, and I will post up new items in men’s fashion that I have bought. Basically I love trying out new stuff, and usually post about it!
Since I travel a quite a bit for music I also like to post about places that I’m visiting, architecture, points of interest etc. I also love travel accessories and love finding ways to make travelling easier!

3) How did your Instagram name come about?

It’s just my name. Pretty boring. Ha! Unfortunately there is another Tom Read out there who seems to have snapped up all the usernames that I want, but doesn’t use them. There should be some kind of internet rule about that… use it or lose it!

4) What are some apps you use to edit your photos? Share with us your photo-editing routine!

I like to use a lot of the built in instagram editing features. Aside from that I use VSCO and Snapseed, and occasionally Afterlight.

My process is usually to select the right photo. This is often the most undervalued part of the process, but probably the most important. It’s difficult to make a bad photo look good with only filters. Good framing and lighting at the beginning means the editing part is much easier. I’ll usually play around with a few filters and then see if I need to edit the shadows or add a slight vignette.

5) Any Instagrammers whom you really like? Which Instagrammer inspires you the most?

The instagrammer that inspires me the most is @pharrell. He is the perfect mix of music and fashion, and someone I aspire to be like.

Some of my other favourite accounts are:
@palladium_boots
@jeremystanley
@fluxeffects

6) If there’s one thing your fellow Instagrammers just gotta try now, what’s it gonna be?

I’ve enjoyed using the Afterlight app recently. It’s got some great filters in it that offer something different to the usual IG ones. It also has a great light leak feature that can really help to make a bad photo look good, but important to make sure you don’t over do it.

7) What’s your favorite part about being an influencer?

I love discovering new things, especially things that make my day to day life better. Whether that’s a new piece of gear or a plug-in to help with music, or a new pair of shoes that both look good and are comfortable (the vital combo), I genuinely enjoy sharing things that I love with other people. I’d like to think that people can trust my judgement. I never say I like anything that I don’t. I think honesty is important.

8) What are some of your top tips to brands for running campaigns? How do you maintain authenticity?

I’d say generally people these days are fairly sceptical about advertising. Honesty and integrity are so important. My advice to brands would be to find people who already genuinely love what you do, and help them to tell others about it. There’s nothing more authentic than that!

9) What would your advice be on the importance of quality and original content?

Quality is key. Your photo is just one in hundreds that people scroll past everyday. It’s got to stand out. It’s got to make people want to stop and look. Often people don’t even know why they like the look of something, they just know that it’s appealing to their eyes. My goal is to make every post appealing to the eye. I do it for my own satisfaction mainly. In terms of originality, that’s a slightly harder one. I think it’s important to have your own voice and style. It’s ok to be inspired by others, but don’t let inspiration become imitation.

10) What do you like best about partnering with brands?

I enjoy partnering with brands that are doing something that I love. That makes it all so much easier. They don’t have to convince me that their product is good. I already know it. I tend to promote stuff I love anyway, even if I’m not partnered with the brand. It’s just how I roll.

Topics:

• Architecture
• Design
• Fashion
• Film, Music & Books
• Technology
• Travel

Country:

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland