How to Support Your Favorite Bands and Musicians
The world you have Bottom line: It would be a much better place if you listened to the songs and attended the performances of your favorite lesser-known indie band.
Whether you found that favorite music act on a curated Spotify playlist or were thrilled when you were accidentally placed near their stage at a music festival, you’ll want to share those golden hooks and sweet vocals with the world . These are your jams. you are a fan
But as the music industry has been turned on its head in recent decades by the rise of MP3s and streaming, the Pandemic shutdown of tour and live Music and now a future that could include AI generated tunes, many musicians are struggling to make a living. The revenue they earn from streaming services, combined with ticket revenue from live performances, merchandise sales, and possible special offers, may barely be enough to cover expenses.
This is where the fandom comes in. Those who genuinely want the acts they love to thrive have many ways to show support and ensure the music keeps going and those who create it get paid. Here’s how you can be a better fan.
How to support musicians personally
The most obvious way to help musicians is to buy their music, buy tickets to their shows and pay for official merchandise.
But there are some nuances in spending those dollars. For example, if you’re looking to buy posters, t-shirts, and vinyl albums for a musician, your best bet is to do so directly at a live show, where the artists can potentially pocket up to 100 percent of the merchandise at table sales.
This is preferable to buying from Amazon, for example, or even the band’s own website, where shipping and other fees may apply, or printing and production costs may diminish the end result (for them and for you). The cost of buying at a show may be higher, but those dollars are far more likely to go to the musician rather than the retailers and mail order companies.
And of course, if you buy a t-shirt or hoodie, wearing it in public can increase the musician’s attention; It’s free publicity for the artist.
Artists make a lot less money from music sales than they used to, but buying vinyl albums or CDs at a show still makes a difference. You can stream your favorite artist as often as you like (we’ll talk about that in a moment), but buying physical media is a great way to put money in your pocket.
Some bands may also have a donation or tip jar on their website, or offer crowdfunding campaigns for new albums or tours.
How to support artists online
David Lowe performing as LUCKYKAThas a great list of possibilities Fans can help musicians, sometimes for free. His suggestions include following artists on social media, watching live streams on Twitch or other video services, signing up for their mailing lists, fan clubs or newsletters, and sharing and commenting on their songs and posts. The latter measures can help to raise awareness of the artist and increasingly encourage algorithmic social networks to show their content to other users.
Streaming an act’s songs through services like Spotify and Apple Music might only generate a fraction of a dime, but those streams add up. It can only be a few hundred dollars for an act with an active fan base, but that’s not nothing. Even if you own your vinyl album and play it regularly, you should still use the digital streams, especially when you’re on the go. Write reviews or post positive comments where you can, such as YouTube or SoundCloud.
