How To Do Crowd Funding In The Music Industry

Cleveland, OH (Top40 Charts/ David Ullman Official Website) Localsinger/songwriter David Ullman has spent the last 10 months - along with all his cash and credit - recording a new album; and, like many independent artists of late, Ullman is looking to his audience for help financing his project through "Crowdfunding."

"It's been a long and winding road," Ullman says in the pitch-video you can watch at www.davidullman.net. "Unfortunately, I've run out of gas, and this is where you come in. We need to raise $5,000 in (60 days) to finish and release this record."

Ullman is inviting his supporters to take their patronage to the next level and have a real impact on the future of his new album. Rather than asking them to purchase his latest release after it's completed, Ullman is working through Rockethub.com to securely offer unique reward packages in exchange for financial contributions.

Rockethub, and similar sites such as Kickstarter and Indie Go Go, provide entrepreneurs with a respectable platform through which to move beyond the world of PayPal "donate" links into a whole new realm of the growing creative economy.

"Crowdfunding is a new way to support creative people," writes RocketHub.com co-founder Jed Cohen on RocketHub.org--the organization's sister site, which is dedicated to educating and empowering what he terms "the rising Creative Class."

Cohen compares this new "micro-patronage" model to the days of Mozart & Beethoven, when "wealthy patrons would commission works ofart or symphonies from the recognizable artists and musicians of the day. Crowdfunding is exactly the same thing, but rather than looking for a single wealthy patron, (artists and musicians are) looking for small contributions from lots of people."

He also contends that Crowdfunding changes the conversation from "this is what I need," to "this is what I am offering you."

Through the end of January, when his Crowdfunding campaign ends, Ullman is offering his audience everything from his all of his previous CDs and an advanced copy of the forthcoming LP to private performances, custom-written songs and even a green ukulele outfitted to match his signature green Doc Martens.

Ullman is also organizing off-line events to supplement his online efforts. On December 23rd, he staged a Fundraising concert at Akron's Musica, which attracted more than 150 people and brought in over $1,300. His final push will be a Cleveland-based fundraising show at Cleveland's Beachland Tavern (15711 Waterloo Rd.) with The Giggitys on January 25th at 8PM (doors at 7PM, $6 ticket).


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