Amanda “Fucking” Palmer raises over a million dollars on Kickstarter prompting her to scrawl the fact across her naked torso. There are her boobs for all to see. Oh, you rebel. Oh, you cutting edge, avant garde-ist, you. And golly wow, you’re really pushing that envelope. There were gasps from here to Williamsburg, from Lexington to Concord, and from PayPal to pocket.
But we’re not here to condemn Amanda — no, no, we just wanted to be a bit (more) snarky about this whole Kickstarter thing.
Kickstarter is the way to raise money for your project. Whether you’re building a pool table, recording an album, or simply have a great idea that the world-at-large can get behind, the world will open their arms (and their wallets) to you! How cool?
Speaking for the music side of things (really, the only area I’m qualified to speak on …), Kickstarter has become a sort of post-modern, meta exercise for musicians looking to grow. Â Yes obviously it’s about raising money, but it’s becoming a discovery tool for who’s cool, who’s creative, and who’s got their shit together.
Amanda Palmer gets it: Â slick as shit video, great funding rewards/levels, and she’s made things fun and exciting for all who participate. Â As someone who’s been performing and touring successfully for a while, it’s likely that she really doesn’t need us to finance her next recording. Â She’s also got a successful husband who could just as easily write the check. Â But let’s not dwell on that for fear of hearing about “it’s not the man’s job ….” type arguments. Â That’s not the point here.
Imagine the Kickstarter campaign as a microcosm of your entire career. Â It’s got an arc, it’s a display and performance, it’s all about fan engagement, production values, and deliverables. Â You’re going to need an audience to share the campaign with — Kickstarter is merely a conduit for ideas, not the solution alone. Â When you’re raising million(s) of dollars on their platform, it behooves them to help promote you. Â But odds are, you’re not Amanda Palmer, and your goals while ambitious aren’t quite the same. Â And you didn’t have Roadrunner establishing you for a few years.
As it’s been said on countless other blogs and forums, Amanda is a MASTER at continually building and engaging her fanbase. Â She motivates them to help her, and it return she excites them. Â It’s hard to argue who’s benefitting more: Â her fans (new music, part of the process, total slavish devotee excitement) or her (a million bucks).
But for all the lame marketers and impoverished musicians who say “well, shit … I’m gonna go get some cash from Kickstarter,” think again. Â It’s tempting, and yes, it’s possible, but it’s hardly a guarantee. Â Polish all the pieces necessary for success. Â If they don’t all look nice ‘n’ purdy, then that million bucks is a long way (and maybe 10,000 hours) off.
I’m glad you wrote that Scott. I’m pretty sceptical about fan funded ventures and I really feel Amanda may be a bit of a one off with her success here.
I can just see there’s gonna be loads of really small time bands and musicians setting up fan funded ventures believing it’s the missing ingredient to their success only to find no one cares enough about them yet.
Chris – Yes! Exactly! I used to get calls from artists that “wanted social media.” When I explained the concept, and they learned they’d have to DO stuff, they got a lot less interested. Same case here. Too many artists are going to expect instant financial gratification. When it doesn’t come, they’ll blame Kickstarter and not their own lack of understanding and investment.