"Day had an online following before he started making music, which is part of the key to his success. Most to all bands start out having very little to no fans which by having some kind of audience is where he got the initial boost."
www.musicthinktank.com/blog/deconstructi...ex-days-success.html
From my point of view the pre-existing fans were not only "part of the key", but were the key to his success with music.