Crowdfunded Album Leaps Onto The Charts, Sells More Than Rihanna And Coldplay

from the but-it-can't-possibly-be-done dept

We keep hearing from the neo-luddites of the entertainment industry that new business models can't possibly work. In my recent debate with Jon Taplin, for example, he insisted that Kickstarter "doesn't work for most people" -- as if the old Hollywood system does. But as we've seen, the innovator's dilemma and the general march of progress are unstoppable. The trend lines keep moving in the right direction with crowdfunding. It seems that a guy named Ginger Wildheart got a massive response to his own crowdfunding campaign -- such that his crowdfunded album jumped up the UK charts, surpassing both Rihanna and Coldplay. Considering how much money the labels spend trying to convince the public to buy Rihanna's music, and the fact that Wildheart barely spent at all, that's quite a statement. As he notes, things in the industry are changing -- and changing for the better:

"This chart entry marks a historic change in the way bands and artists can release music direct to their fans, afford quality production values and actually make a living too.

"For too many years labels have been using musicians as fodder for developing their own marketing techniques, usually at the expense of the players themselves.

"If you have a modest fan base you no longer have to consider quitting a business so obsessed with youth and photogenicity and get down to the task at hand.

"The future of music is in the hands of the people and is finally the responsibility of the musicians.

"It's the most exciting time in decades, many musicians have earned this freedom."

It still amazes me that so many people still don't see what an amazing opportunity this is for musicians.

Filed Under: charts, crowdfunding, ginger wildheart, uk

Bonus Sunday Post: Help Dan Bull Get His New Freely Distributed Song On The Charts

from the help-him-out dept

Check it out: a rare bonus Sunday post. Dan Bull, the independent UK musician who we've written about quite frequently for his songs about topics near and dear to our hearts, has come out with another awesome new song, Sharing is Caring. However, there is one thing different this time around: he wants to see if he can get his freely available song on the music charts. To that end, he's using the Promo Bay, having The Pirate Bay promote his song to its millions of users, and also posting the fun videos (yes, multiple videos) of the song on YouTube.

Traditionally, the major labels tend to get their hits to chart by "buying" their way onto the list. In some cases, this was a literal situation, where labels would effectively scam the Soundscan system to get their albums/songs listed. That's become more difficult these days, but still a major label release will also include millions of dollars spent on marketing to get it on the charts. Dan, however, is wondering if support from the folks at The Pirate Bay might be enough to get his song to chart and to make a pretty powerful point:

The singles charts are worthless as an indicator of quality, and artists needn't strive for the validation of reaching them.

However, by taking a free song by an unsigned artist to the echelons normally reserved for the industry elite, I want to smash the glass ceiling and show that there is another way of doing things.

There are ten different versions of the song—one each focused on Facebook, Twitter and Google+, several remixes, and a selection of instrumental and acapella tracks for other musicians to build upon. You can download all ten from the Pirate Bay (of course, if you're in the Netherlands, too bad), and you can support Dan's shot at the charts as much or as little as you want by buying some or all of them individually from iTunes, Amazon or Play. There is a convenient list of direct store links on Dan's website.

So check out the video for the first version of Sharing is Caring here, and if you'd like to help show the old guard that it is possible to release music freely on sites like The Pirate Bay, and still have that music "sell" well, purchase the track at your favorite online retailer.

Filed Under: charts, dan bull, free, promo bay, sharing is caring
Companies: the pirate bay

Indie Rapper Tops Sales Charts By Connecting With Fans, Using Free Music

from the oh-look-at-that... dept

To hear some people tell the story, there's no way to become a super successful musician embracing the internet and what it allows, unless you give in and sign a deal with a major label. Of course, that seems silly. For years, we've pointed to tons of artists who would never have found success in the old "major label" system (or who bounced out of that system after not scoring the massive hit), but who are now able to make a very, very good living thanks to new business models and doing little things like connecting with fans. But still, some keep asking, where are the "chart topping" artists that come out of the internet, without a major label. Well, now there's one. Rapper Mac Miller recently debuted at the top of the Billboard charts with his debut album, despite not working with a major label. I don't think much of the Billboard charts, but if people want those kinds of traditional metrics, there you go.

Miller sold about 150,000 copies of his debut album last week and became the first indie artist to debut at the top of Billboard in well over a decade. And he did so without having a single playing on the radio (another thing that old-timers insist is a "must.") While he had some help from truly indie label Rostrum, he also worked with INgrooves and Fontana for distribution, and apparently it all worked well enough. But, of course, the real key was the internet. The NY Times points out that Miller is one of a generation of hip hop artists recognizing that "free music is an investment that pays off." Shocking. If only there had been sites arguing that for the better part of a decade... But I digress.

But the driving force behind Miller's success on the sales charts is that he's really connecting with fans. His Twitter feed has 1.2 million followers and his Facebook feed has 1.5 million fans. His YouTube channel apparently has something crazy like 176 million views. But it's not just about the numbers, but the connection. Miller has continued to tour and perform live as a way of building up his fanbase, but also interacts with them online in a variety of ways.

I'm sure, as with every artist success story we highlight around here, our usual critics will come up with all sorts of reasons why Miller is "an exception." But one by one, all of the "must haves" that the old guard insists are necessary are being shown to be total myths. Embracing the internet works. Treating the internet as a problem, doesn't.

Filed Under: charts, connect with fans, free, indie music, mac miller, music
Companies: rostrum

DailyDirt: Don't Just Give People Numbers... Draw Charts?

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

A number is often meaningless without a unit attached to it, but sometimes a unit is useless if it's an unfamiliar one. Given all the reporting on the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, a few helpful folks have created some charts to better explain what the radiation dosages mean. These graphs aren't perfect, but they attempt to put some uncommon figures into context. If you don't know what a sievert is, check out these charts.

• XKCD has a chart that illustrates radiation dosages to help folks understand what the sievert unit means. No stick figures were harmed in the production of this chart. (Also, feel free to copy and distribute it because it's public domain material.) [url]
• A slightly more colorful chart of what a sievert unit means is available for purchase -- with all the money going to help with the disaster relief effort. The logarithmic scale on this one is kind of easy to miss on this chart, though... [url]
• Here's a chart that's a bit more complicated to read, but it also incorporates exposure time. Unfortunately, Roy G Biv is apparently not helpful for determining the order of severity. [url]
• The New York Times published a nice table explaining how far the effects of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster have spread. For the radiation detected near British Columbia, "a person would have to drink 3 million glasses of water at one time to reach a problematic dose in the thyroid." [url]
• To find more stuff on research & research tools, check out what's currently floating around the StumbleUpon universe. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Filed Under: charts, fukushima daiichi, infographics, radiation, sievert, xkcd