i mean, i am all for pre-orders so they have a decent idea of how many albums to print but i just feel like it's a HUGE rip off to pay an exorbitant amount of money to have one guitar-lesson-skype-sesh.
having friends in bands that have used these types of services (kickstarter, pledgemusic, etc) i want to tread lightly because i love them as people and artists and i understand that sometimes we all need a helping hand to cross that finish line. so i'm not saying that we should completely do away with using these types of available resources (shoot i have pre-ordered albums from these service providers to support bands i love) but i am saying that i think it can get out of hand.
if you're an artist thinking about using a fundraising site please consider the following....
1. why not just do a pre-order of the album and maybe a merch bundle or two for the same cost (or maybe even a couple bucks less *gasp*) that you would sell it for at the table? i know there is business involved in the music business and it's expensive and everything takes money (touring, promotion, salaries, etc). potentially more money than just album sales can cover but asking your fans to fork over $300 for signed drumsticks that you were planning on pitching seems a little slimey to me.
2. on that note, you are asking your fans to give you their hard earned money so make the price match the prize. maybe there's a kid who has been wanting to buy a guitar and has been saving for it and decides to buy the signed guitar you have up for grabs for $500 because he was planning on spending that much anyway. well that's perfect. but what about the girl who pays $200 for a phone call with the band and it ends up being a grand total of 5 minutes long. or worse yet, a voicemail because she was in class and didn't answer her phone. not even close to worth it and you know it.
3. if you are going to have an incentive where you hang out with some of your fans for a day (or some other pre-determined amount of time) you'd better be prepared for awkwardness. if your fan is spending the amount of money most bands put on these types of prizes (the prices some of you put on this you'd think your time was worth twice that of the non-musician human) they are probably a super fan and will either be painfully shy around you or will stick to you like glue and rattle on about all kinds of crap you don't care about. i just wanted you to know ahead of time. and stay off your phone unless you are taking a picture with said fan to post to twitter/instagram. your time now belongs to her (because let's be honest, it's most definitely a girl that paid to spend time with you).
4. do you really need to do it? i think one of my biggest pet peeves with this new-ish way of gaining band dollars is the bands that are doing it who have been around a long time and have had a whole lot of commercial success. the ones who are closing out the mainstage at festivals and actually getting airplay on radio. the ones whose fans have a collective name (ex: Beliebers). have a little faith that your fans are going to buy the album and come out to a show and drop $50 at the merch table. if you're that big of a deal that means your fans have shown up time and time again, they will this go-round too.
5. would you pay that much to your favorite band to probably not get that much in return? i am aware that most of the time when people give that much it's more to support the band than getting that coveted hand-written lyric sheet. i think it's great when people invest in people they believe in. but if i shelled out $5000 for something i'd better end up BFF with the band and i'd be stowing away under a van seat (because again, if your band has a bus stay the frick off kickstarter).
so if you're in a band and i don't seem excited when you tell me about your kickstarter campaign and all your sweet incentives this is why. i'm probably trying really hard to not visibly roll my eyes but know that i will most likely still support you and pre-order your album. so don't take my dislike personally, it's not you it's your $250 broken drumhead.
xo
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