A Modern Music Business Model That Works

We had an awesome response yesterday to our list 17 Things I’d Love to Pay Musicians For. One of our friends on twitter, Graeme Sacks, caught my attention when he shared a link to Artistshare with me. This is a business I was not aware of, but the idea seems like a good one - Graeme was kind enough to do a writeup to share with all of you - Check it out!

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Reading Andrew’s post 17 Things I’d Love to Pay Musicians For reminded me of a site I had visited some time ago called Artistshare. I decided to see if it was still going, and was pleasantly surprised: Not only is the site still up and running, but it is thriving!

In a nutshell Artistshare offers fans the opportunity to connect with musicians by funding their recordings. In return fans receive (depending on the option they choose) “… access to the creative process, LTD Edition recordings, VIP access to recording sessions and even credit listing on the CD”.

The company has been around since 2003 and in that time contributing artists have clocked up an impressive list of awards including a number of Grammy winners and nominations. In fact, Artistshare’s very first project, Maria Schneider’s  ”Concert in the Garden” became the first album ever to win a Grammy without being available in retail stores!

Something I find rather interesting is that at a time when there is so much free content (both legal and illegal) available, instead of trying to compete  by offering low prices, Artistshare prices are rather high. The incentives for exclusive content and the opportunity for fans to directly connect with & help to keep “the music” alive are worth the fees.

Artistshare also allows musicians the creative freedom to record what they want to, without being dictated to by record companies.

Some quotes from CEO & Founder of the company, Brian Camelio:

“Artistshare is a business model that allows artists to fund their projects directly through their fanbase”

“We’re part record label, part social networking site, part new media marketing and promotion & part business consultation”

“Our true mission is to allow artists and fans to connect on a deep level”

“…the value is in the creative process, not the end product”

If you are interested, watch the full interview.

Artistshare offers some well known and upcoming jazz (and related styles) artists including Jim Hall, Maria Schneider, Bob Brookmeyer, Billy Childs and many others. I’m pretty sure this model could work fantastically for many genres of music. Let’s hope Artistshare will continue to thrive and grow!

Graeme Sacks

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Bio:

Graeme Sacks is based in Johannesburg, South Africa and is a freelance guitarist, composer & producer of children’s music, pop songs, commercials and other odds and ends.

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