MUMBAI: From launching Happy New Year trailer on Whatsapp to releasing Mary Kom pictures on social media, the industry is getting innovative with its marketing and promotional strategies and moving more towards the digital space. Yo Yo Honey Singh has also taken a digital leap.

The latest album of the famous singer/rapper has been launched on the Hungama, a first of its kind initiative. “The main objective behind launching the album on an app was to distribute it to 20-25 million people at the same time who subscribe to the app,” said Hungama Digital Media CEO and MD Neeraj Roy.

Launched by the press of a button on a smartphone, Desi Kalakaar is the first album of Yo Yo Honey Singh with a romantic angle. The album consists of eight songs. While the video of the title track was released on 26 August starring Sonakshi Sinha with the rapper, the videos of the other songs will be released over time. Shot like short movies with a basic storyline, all the videos will feature foreign locations.

The album was released exclusively on all digital platforms across Hungama on 26 August, while it will be launched very soon on iTunes, YouTube and other platforms.

Talking about the marketing strategy for the album, the MD said, “We are looking at a lot of famous forums to launch the album as it contains both music as well as rap songs. We are looking at taking the album to the international Honey Singh fan base through the app.”

Excited about the launch, Hungama Digital Media COO (Consumer Business & Allied Services) Siddharth Roy said that he is confident that the album will succeed due to the Honey Singh magic and also because the artist has been extensively pushed and promoted by T-series.

While the COO did not comment on the marketing and distribution cost, he added, “We will distribute the album to telecom giants like Vodafone live, Airtel music etc. We are expecting revenue by the audiences subscribing to the song through hello tunes and caller tunes. We are also looking to launch the album on the DTH platform through a campaign with Tata Sky. While the streaming is free for the audiences, the ads that come during the video will help us generate revenue.”

The Hungama team may also add gaming element to the album by the second or third video release.

While Honey Singh, Bhushan Kumar, Neeraj Roy and Siddharth roy were present at the launch, Sonakshi Sinha could not come due to prior engagements.

Hungama exclusively sources content from 300 providers and distributes it in 60 countries over 500 networks.