When is the last time you purchased a song? I've been around long enough to see the death and ongoing rebirth of vinyl, the death of cassettes, and the rise and fall of CDs. Today, streaming rules the world and artists must rely heavily on touring, word of mouth, and a fierce passion for what they do to make it in the music industry.
After discovering that Cindy Wilson is using the direct to fan platform PledgeMusic to help fund her solo effort, it made me wonder why more people don't support artists. For those unaware of who Cindy Wilson is, she is one of the two female singers from the band The B-52s, perhaps best known for their timeless hit ”Love Shack“. Wilson is the woman who utters the immortal “tin roof...rusted” line.
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With that in mind, there are a few valid reasons why you should consider not only streaming but also purchasing music by the musical acts you care about.
Royalties are garbage. TLC still has the highest selling album by a female group in history, yet they filed for bankruptcy despite the massive success. One of the reasons was royalties. The majority of today's newer musical acts get paid very little from royalties, especially if they depend on other people to help them write their tunes.
Art is worth supporting. You know how a certain song or a painting will make you feel a range of emotions or take you back to a certain time? That $1.29 or $9.99 for the album keeps the art flowing.
You're helping someone pay the bills. For many of today's singers and songwriters, this is what they do for a living. While they may not see it as a job, it may be one of their few sources of income. Remember, many of these artists see very little in terms of money earned for their hard work. Unless you're an established artist like Madonna who emerged when people still bought albums in the millions, it's not easy breaking even.
Put yourself in their place. Chances are you'd like to be fairly compensated for the work you do, especially if it's something you're passionate about. Should art be free? There is definitely a valid case to be made but realistically speaking, money is necessary to keep a roof over one's head.
The music business is ruthlessly unforgiving. For every successful Beyonce or Maroon 5, there are just as many musical acts both new and established that get dropped from their labels and have to start practically from scratch. Janet Jackson went from multimillion dollar record deals to taking an extended hiatus before independently releasing Unbreakable in 2015.
If you can afford to pay for that Starbucks latte, you can probably afford to pay for that song you really like. As to how much of that money the artist is going to see remains to be seen, but at least you have the satisfaction of knowing you're doing your part to help someone do what they love.
