Funding your own music project can be a taxing endeavor. Renting out a studio can set you back up to $3,000 per day, and that’s not to mention the cost of hiring musicians, producers, engineers, and mixers. It’s expensive to be an artist in this day and age, but fortunately there are resources out there to help. More and more artists are taking matters into their own hands and raising their own funds to finance upcoming projects.
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A Kickstarter Success Story
Alexz Johnson is an singer/songwriter/actress who is best known for her role as the lead of Jude Harrison in the CTV series, “Instant Star,” a Canadian television show about an adolescent music competition winner’s trials and tribulations in the recording industry. After starring on the series from 2004 to 2007, Johnson acted in a variety of roles, including a spot in Final Destination 3 before deciding to focus her efforts on her main passion, music.
The actress/singer signed a contract with Epic Records in February of 2008 and began working on her debut album. In 2009, Epic underwent structural changes and Johnson was dropped from the label. The album was never released, however, Johnson took the opportunity to work on new material and independently released “Voodoo” in March 2010. Determined to further her music career without the help of a major label, Johnson continued working on new material. She released an EP titled “Skipping Stone” in August 2011, however, realized that it was time to bring her live show to her fans.
Johnson decided to take matters into her own hands by raising money to fund a tour through the help of Kickstarter.
I realized that I’ve been signed twice. I’ve done major label albums. I’ve never really had the chance to go on the road and do what I love. I’ve always been waiting and invested in but nothing happened because everyone was so afraid of losing their job so I thought, ‘I’m just going to raise it myself and just do it,” says Johnson.
Johnson kicked off her Kickstarter campaign with a lively video in which she asked fans to help her raise $30,000 to tour across the United States and set the month long campaign to launch on January 24, 2013.
“It was nerve-wracking launching my Kickstarter campaign as I didn't know what amount was appropriate to ask for. I knew I needed to tour as so many fans were asking when I would, so I calculated an exact tour budget and threw caution to the wind,” she explains.
In support of her campaign, Johnson made “Stepping Stone” available to stream online. She then rewarded Kickstarter supporters with a physical or downloadable version available for anyone who made a pledge in support of her campaign. In addition, Johnson came up with a variety of prizes including: signed hard copies of the new EP, limited edition “Skipping Stone” t-shirts, a mention on Twitter, 20 minute personal phone calls, live video chats with supporters, a personalized video in which she sang whatever her fans requested, tickets and meet and greet passes to her shows, and actual clothes she wore on set of “Instant Star.” For her top tier supporters, the singer offered extra special prizes such as the chance to accompany her for dinner and a Broadway show in New York City, as well as a private living room concert and the chance to be thanked personally in her album’s liner notes.
“I feel like an artist’s active audience wants to be apart of the experience more than ever now… house concerts, Skype calls, VIP tickets.. I created my packages based on gaining insight from my fans,” says Johnson of her decision behind the rewards she offered for her financial backers. The next step was to spread the word about the campaign. The actress/singer took to Twitter, Facebook, and her webpage to post the link to her Kickstarter page. She spread the news via emails, texts, and phone calls and mentioned her project in interviews with media outlets.
The day after Johnson launched her Kickstarter, she logged in to find that she had met her entire goal of $30,000 in one day!
“I couldn't believe I reached my goal in one day!” she tells GRAMMY Pro. “I decided on $30k as it was the exact amount I needed to tour the US with a full band and a 15 passenger van. “
After having met her goal, Johnson decided to use the opportunity to generate additional funding to expand her project to cover costs of future demos and recordings. She kept the campaign running and continued to spread word of her Kickstarter goals. In addition, she teamed up with StageIt.com to broadcast a Los Angeles coffee shop performance around the world. During the gig, fans had the chance to log in to watch the live show and make a donation in support of her Kickstarter campaign. As promised, Johnson thanked her backers live on the air. The show racked in an additional $3,000 worth of donations.
By the end of her Kickstarter run, Johnson raised a whopping $67,140! She used her funds to tour across the United States, create merch, and kick off her next recording project. She followed through with all of her pledge rewards, including a private concert for a Rochester, New York based fan that gave a generous $5,000 donation.
“My band and I hit the location during my tour and we played an acoustic set. It was a really new experience. They had family and friends over and fed us all, which was a bonus!”
The Kickstarter Trend
Like Johnson, many up and coming, as well as established artists are turning to the help of online pledge systems to raise funding for their projects. Since it’s 2009 inception, Kickstarter has helped to raise over $450 million, has been pledge by over 3 million people, and has funded more than 35,000 creative projects. The system works for musicians, artists, and creative types who are looking to fund an array of projects – raising funds for music videos, tours, merch, new albums, etc.
Kelly McGrath recently used the site to generate funds to support a US tour to promote her single “One Foot in Front of The Other” from her album, Heartstrings. McGrath asked for $5,000 in 60 days but raised $6,200. She offered backers creative rewards such as handwritten lyrics to their favorite Kelly McGrath song, Ernie Ball “Heartstrings” guitar picks, and copies of her new album. McGrath even co-wrote a song to appear on her next album with a fan that donated $1,500 to her cause. “My favorite part of the Kickstarter campaign experience was that 75% of the money raised was funded by people I didn't know from all over the world, who had simply come across my campaign page on Kickstarter, watched my campaign video, listened to my music and liked it enough to make a pledge and buy my music. Connecting with new fans on Kickstarter was amazing, humbling and the best feeling of support and validation! What I love the most about Kickstarter is that I wasn't asking people to just donate their money to support my tour, I was essentially asking them to buy my music and share the experience with me, which was the most gratifying and inspiring experience,” says McGrath of her experience.
Raleigh, North Carolina-based American Aquarium is another Kickstarter success story. The five-piece alt rock/country project used Kickstarter to generate the $20,000 they needed to help them create their latest album Burn.Flicker.Die,” offering fans everything from exclusive downloads to their original American Aquarium 2002 Dodge 15 passenger tour van for a pledge of $5,000. “Kickstarter was one of the best things that happened to us as a band. It let us make the record that we finally wanted to make, without worrying about the cost. For the first time in our career, we are able to not worry about the time and money, and just make the record that we wanted to make,” says the band’s vocalist/rhythm guitarist, BJ Barham.
In addition to Kickstarter, musicians are turning to similar services like Pledge Music – a company that works with bands and artists to design a tailored fundraising campaign to raise money behind an upcoming release or music project.
After having released 3 full-length albums and 2 EP’s, Los Angeles-based solo artist, Sierra Swan, is in the process of working with Pledge Music to raise money to record her 4th full-length album. “I'm using Pledge because it's a wonderful way to involve the people who love and support my music. I appreciate any avenue that keeps the artist in the loop with their fans. I chose Pledge because it seemed to be more involved in the music side of projects. I am hoping to raise $15,000 due to the fact that I am flying to Chicago to record this album and will need to pay for the engineer for several weeks and any unforeseen cost, which I'm sure there will be plenty,” explains Swan.
How to create a Kickstarter Campaign
If you’re in the market to raise funds for an upcoming music project, you can give Kickstarter a try by logging on to www.kickstarter.com and clicking the green “Start Your Project” button to create a campaign. You will then be walked through the steps to creating a full Kickstarter campaign profile: setting a monetary goal, describing the project, making a video overview, setting a campaign deadline, and coming up with rewards for financial backers. The next step is to put the word out to friends, family, and colleagues who may be able to support your project.
All or nothing funding:
Kickstarter is a pretty straightforward system. You create your campaign, spread the word to potential backers, and then wait for your pledges to roll in. The one thing that those considering using the system should be aware of, however, is that Kickstarter has an “all or nothing” funding policy. If you raise your goal amount of money within your campaign deadline, then all of your backers' credit cards are charged and you will receive your funds. If you fall short of your monetary goal, however, no one will be charged and your project will not be funded. According to the company, this system is in place for two reasons: 1) It’s less risk for everyone involved 2) It motivates campaign owners to push harder towards their goals which results in more people not only achieving their goals but, like in Johnson’s case, often exceeding them.
Beyond the basics of setting up your profile, there are some things to keep in mind when creating a campaign.
Tips for a successful Kickstarter campaign:
Introduce your project: Make sure you provide as much information about your project as possible. Use videos, visuals, and thorough text to provide demonstrations of what exactly you’ll be using your supporter’s money for.
Set a realistic monetary goal: Take some time to consider how much will be needed for the cost of the project. Ask yourself if your desired target is realistic, as you won’t receive your funding unless you hit your goal.
Come up with a deadline that works for you: Kickstarter allows you to designate how long you want your campaign to run. Campaigns can run anywhere between one and 60 days. Find a time frame that works best for you based on how you plan to go about marketing your campaign and when you will need the funds.
Get the word out: Mention your campaign in interviews, on forums, and promote via your social media outlets. Enlist the help of friends and colleagues to spread the word. The more people your campaign reaches, the more access you’ll have to finding donors. Draft a pitch letter and enlist the help of media outlets to support your cause.
Stay in touch throughout your campaign: Fans love to be involved and kept in the loop as far as what is going on with your project. Post updates on your site. Thank people for their help with your project. Encourage them to tell their friends to get involved.
Offer captivating prizes to donors: Give people a reason to support your project versus someone else’s. Tailor your rewards to correlate with your project. The more personal you make things the better. Make sure to create prizes that you can realistically follow through on. Don’t offer fans the chance to ride Space Mountain with you at Disney World, for example, if you are terrified of heights and don’t plan on setting foot on a roller coaster anytime soon. Also, make sure that your in person prizes make sense logistically.
Follow through at the end of your campaign: After your campaign wraps and you collect your funds, make sure to send out all of your rewards and distribute your prizes. Keep your backers happy and you’ll likely have their support as fans for years to come.
In a recent article, NPR touched on crowd funding for musicians, stating: “Crowd funding for musicians isn't the future; it's the present.” If you are stressing over financing an upcoming music project, take advantage of sites like Kickstarter and Pledge Music. Follow the tips above and you’ll be on track with your own successful campaign.
Check out these successful Kickstarter campaign links for great examples of how to run your campaign:
American Aquarium Generated $23, 968 over 60 days to cover costs associated with recording “Burn.Flicker.Die:” http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/americanaquarium/american-aquarium-the-making-of-burnflickerdie
Alexz Johnson raised $67,140 to support her US tour for “Skipping Stones:” http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/525963075/alexz-johnson-tour-2012
Kelly McGrath earned $6,010 to help fund a music video and 30 city US Radio tour: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/kellymcgrathmusic/kelly-mcgrath-music-video-and-30-city-radio-tour
