Making formerly free music paid

[Tricky-Loops]

Either way, a printed CD with a nice cover and an interesting booklet is much better than a digital MP3 download - because it has some value, you can grab it with your hands, put it on your table or donate it to your sister.

We are getting lost in da interwebz!

[jancivil]

Well, people have paid for the thing, making it free now will be pissing on those people.

I think he's talking about switching from it being free to now charging people.

And my post follows yours where you are switching to [90%] free.

[RunBeerRun]

I wouldn't agree with the-justifying future music expenses with that, I mean if you're not trying to make a real career out of it, it's not like anyone makes money off every hobby, like I'm watching tv tonight for 30 minutes, pay me as my eyes are gold!

[Sendy]

I wouldn't agree with the-justifying future music expenses with that, I mean if you're not trying to make a real career out of it, it's not like anyone makes money off every hobby, like I'm watching tv tonight for 30 minutes, pay me as my eyes are gold!

But when I look at this in the inverse, I DO agree with it. When I hear a no-name artist I really like, I pick up one of their albums, because I want them to continue to make music. I suppose there's part of me that's hoping that this also creates good karma for when I release my album in a few weeks, as well

I was seriously thinking of giving it away, but all the music lover friends of mine were like "are you mad? you should be able to sell it". I guess time will tell. I think "pay what you like" might be a good compromise.

[RunBeerRun]

True, but why shoot for the middle of life? If a person wants to be recognized, they could make a more full effort and then see what can happen. I personally wouldn't charge on a really small scale.

[ntom]

Well, people have paid for the thing, making it free now will be pissing on those people.

I think he's talking about switching from it being free to now charging people.

And my post follows yours where you are switching to [90%] free.

I wasn't sure if it was directed at me or him.
I should clarify I walled off most of my music with intentions of -"one day"- selling it, but never did. So I made that stuff free. The songs that I actually am selling are still going to cost. And even still I can count all my sales on a single hand, so I don't think I'm really pissing on them.

[an-electric-heart]

As a band "An Electric Heart", we at least try to "present" ourselves as professionals, everything we've done so far has been free (5 EP's), but now we're going to start rewarding fans (all three of them ) by making records free for a week then go up to itunes pricing after that, just to kind of encourage people to follow and support us.
But like I said, I try not to do anything that's not polished and "professional looking"...

Our website... :

http://anelectricheart.com/

Video... :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1mkgsKDKHM

And so on... I do it all myself though, I've got a background in design and film.

[ghettosynth]

I suppose if it's free, it is seen as valueless.

I'm afraid it's just that recorded music has no value at all these days. Bandcamp pay what you want option, with a minimum value set is what emotionally works for me. It has no economical sense anyhow, but knowing that someone cared enough to shell out a dollar makes you feel better, and after a couple of years, you can get a free six pack.

My overall goal isn't to make money. But I feel like a lot of the beauty in music is that, as individual as it is, it's also able to connect to other people. So if people see it as valueless, and artificially creating a sense of value by using money works, then it's something probably worth doing.

The value of music comes in part from the surrounding context for a lot of people. You have to create the context in which people assign value to your music. Playing live is one way to connect to people so that they see enough value in you to pay for your music. You have to get people to care about you in some way that they value your music, or, you have to create music that's compelling enough to enough people that they care about it independently of how they feel about you. I'm not convinced, though, that these ideas can be disconnected completely.

Another way to create a context in which people are willing to pay for your music is to make the music useful in that context. DJs buy music that serves a purpose, but so do people looking for music for advertising or music on hold. I'm not suggesting that you do any of those things, I'm just pointing out that not everyone buys music just because they are personally connected to the artist or even the music. I often buy house records that have some interesting sonority or that I think will serve a purpose in a mix, and I don't even really play out anymore.

My point is, that charging for your music isn't going to get people to care about you or create a context in which your music is automatically useful. Of course, giving it way doesn't either, but at least when you give it away, people listen to it. Don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting that you give your music away, but if you want people to care about your music without requiring them to care about you, then you have to get people to listen to your music somehow. In other words, it's probably not the case that the reason that you aren't reaching people is because you're giving your music away, it's more likely that you just aren't reaching the audience that either cares about your music or cares about you. Charge for you music, don't charge, but think about how to reach, and connect with, that audience.

[SampleScience]

A couple of years ago my music was free. Now, I'm selling it. Nothing is free anymore. To my surprise I've sold a couple of albums since. I'm happy with that and I think it's worth the try. Of course, you won't get rich, but 50$-60$ is better than nothing. Plus, you have the felling that some people out there really liked what you've done and feel that your work is worth money. It can't be a bad thing!