Let's talk about Kickstarter/Crowdfunding...

[joepbnj]

Personally I would never do it, but I understand why it happens in this day and age.  I can tolerate it more when the people don't make teary eyed sappy videos asking for money.

I mostly get bummed because there are things in this world that are much more urgent and important than funding your bands new record.  But hey if you can pull it off then more power to ya.  There are still a few that I donated to.

What's everyone's thoughts on it?

[420bonerhitler]

I'm cool with it if the band is semi-well known but can't afford to make another record. I mean if they have fans who want to hear more music from their new favorite band then I'm all for it. I like to throw a band a few bucks when I go to a show if they're small enough where I know touring is a bitch that they're self funding.

I really dislike bands asking for crowd funding when they can afford to do it themselves. Certain bands have put out several records and have decent followings but can't throw together money to make another album? I just don't buy it. They're taking the easy way out and exploiting people.

[tetts]

I cant stand it. I've always had a hard time understanding why any of these bands think people owe them something?? Nobody owes me anything for playing guitar and singing in a band its something I love doing so its my responsibility to get that done. How do you have no following no history no nothing but think its totally fine to peddle people for money to fund your sweet new lp. How about you just work and save/pool your money. Youll have plenty money to record/buy a van/merch etc.

On the other hand for established bands its pretty awesome. It gives the artist complete autonomy if their big enough and you can make good money which im all for. I just wish it were somehow possible to regulate who gets to start one and who doesn't.

[creepybtmifan]

i did one for a rooftop garden at an art space i worked at. here's the link to the now-closed campaign

the reason i hate kickstarter and would never do another one is that if you're a smaller band/company/whatever, it makes you into a beggar for 30 days. because of their "fully funded or no funding" rules, you have to spend that whole month bugging every person you know for money. going on related facebook pages and begging for money. it makes you feel like shit, and it annoys the fuck out of your friends.

that said, i gave kill lincoln over $100 when their kickstarter was going on because i like them and their rewards were good and one of the packages made an awesome birthday gift for a pal.

[goldstein]

What really cracks me up is when private, one man entrepreneurial ventures go on and beg for their seeding round/startup cost money. For example, this kid we went to HS with, Mike Juliano, is attempting to raise $50,000 by the start of the New Year in order to fund vaguely and hazily-described research and development costs for his new Apple based device, the thinkyou or youware or something as obviously unnessecary and superfluous in our lives. He claims that if he does not meet his fundraising goal on the websites that do not rely on the "all or nothing" standard that HE PERSONALLY will refund all the donations and no one’s cards will be charged, which I guess is a way to structure your donation page. I also don't buy or believe it for one second. He also has stated in a few status updates that his project has jumped into the top 10 of “wearable technology” or whatever the fuck that category means. I take issue with this for a few reasons.

    1.) There should be a mandatory or possible “reward” bracket that includes a contractual obligation to give the donating party some sort of equity stake or ownership interest that vests once the company decides to go public (if that ever happens). Angel investors have this contractual obligation built into the seed money they provide for the companies they invest in. For example, Peter Theil owned 10% or however much of Facebook after his venture capital company seeded them during their first round of investment. From a legal point of view, everything done on kickstarter is kosher because its considered to be a donation, or a “gift” in the eyes of the law. However, in my opinion this shortchanges the donating party for being shortsighted enough to freely give money to some kid who wants to be the next Steve Jobs. I can guarantee you that this dude is not going to give a single fuck about people who have “helped him along the way” or aided him intellectually with his startup when his first year QuickBooks returns come in and he sees what he gets to take home after taxes.

    2.) There’s no telling where the money truly ends up. You are relying on the good faith of the person asking for money. I have seen this several times, and to me, the people who get big money donations seem to have lost their motivation to actually hold a position of responsibility after the cash clears in their checking account. It sounds mad cushy to bring in a cool 50k just in time for the new year. I see a lot of expensive dinners and vacation pictures uploaded to his instagram, amazingly RIGHT after his kickstarter campaigns end.

So basically, a public high school history teacher asking for 300$ to take his class to see “12 Years a Slave” is cool with me. Self-promoting entrepreneurs should fucking man up and put in the work to get real seed/startup funding. Not taking advantage of friends and family via crowdfunding.

MG

[aaron]

if your band is always blowing money on stupid shit like weed, booze, and hotel rooms, i'm not donating shit to your kickstarter. if you're the stingiest motherfucker i know, and you work all the time, and can still barely afford to pay your rent, let alone tour, then yeah, i'll donate what i can. i don't have a problem asking for donations, because i have destroyed four vehicles touring, blown so much of my own money on everything related to music and touring, and i go as cost-effectively as possible with just about everything, and can still barely pay my rent. i'm not expecting people in my same situation to donate. but if they can or want to, they're welcome to.

that said, i haven't ever used kickstarter, and the handful of kickstarters i've donated to never actually sent me my shit.

[godhead]

Almost always corny, even when it's your boys. Every time I see one I cringe a little more. Not naming names, but duh.

Though if it was like megaman legends 3 i would donate 100 bucks

[joepbnj]

Dec 22, 2014 23:49:03 GMT goldstein said:

So basically, a public high school history teacher asking for 300$ to take his class to see “12 Years a Slave” is cool with me. Self-promoting entrepreneurs should fucking man up and put in the work to get real seed/startup funding. Not taking advantage of friends and family via crowdfunding.

MG

I'm curious to see the percentage of companies that can manage to stay afloat for 5 years after getting funded. 

I feel like musicians try to play the pity card that they're in a "broken industry".  This is sort of true, but no one says you have to play by the rules of any industry.  This most likely means that you have bullshit standards of what the "music industry" is.  If you're starting out as a band and think for some reason you deserve a gas money, a van, trailer, and to sleep in a hotel every night then eat shit.  

Portlandia has a really great sketch on kickstarter I can't find it anywhere though