Patronism: A New Music Revolution?
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I had the opportunity to shoot promo pics for a new Austin startup called Patronism (www.patronism.com).
Their business model is a very interesting one, and if it takes off, could change the music industry. From their web site: “Patronism is a tool for musicians to augment or replace dwindling CD sales with sustaining subscriptions. Our platform allows people who love music to connect with and support the music they love. Patronage is the oldest way to fund the arts and Patronism is the newest way to do it.”
The idea behind it is that people will support things they love and want to see succeed, such as music. Radiohead’s last album “In Rainbows” is a good case study that this system can work. Radiohead released this album on the honor system. They gave it away for free and asked people to contribute what they felt the album was worth. A risky move to be sure, but plenty of people donated and it was a win for Radiohead.
The website www.kickstarter.com uses a similar business model of “crowdfunding” to help small companies get initial startup money.With Patronism, by becoming a patron of an artist, you then get access to anything they post on the site: all their tracks, behind the scenes stuff, etc.
My feeling is that the key for this to work is to get a lot of people bought off on contributing a little bit. If so, this thing could take off as being a major source of income for artists who are struggling to make ends meet following their passion. I also can see this site taking off as it’s own community, a way to discover new artists, and a better way for artists to interact with their fans.
All the best to Patronism and I sure hope their idea takes off.
One of my photos from this shoot was also published on wired.com. Check out the article: http://www.wired.com/underwire/2011/05/patronism.
The photos were taken at Speakeasy in downtown Austin. Initially, the client wanted to get shot with them and a band setting up in the background to really drive home the music vibe. Unfortunately, the band canceled that day so we improvised, shooting just in front of the stage with the decorative guitars visible as a cue to the tie with the music industry. I actually prefer this anyway as it is less distracting and still serves to tie them in with the music industry. I’m a big fan of simplicity in my photography, so removing any distracting elements is a big plus in my book.
About The Author
Ryan Miller
The Founder and Creative Director of Ryan Miller Photography, an Austin based photography and design studio, established in 2006.
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