About this project
About Me: My name is Shelby Earl. I am a Seattle-based, independent musician with a deep commitment to simple, beautiful songs, sung from the heart. I previously fronted Seattle band, The Hope, which garnered a dedicated following and substantial major-label interest before disbanding in 2007. Since that time, I have been busy re-imagining my musical path and working on new material. In the fall of 2009, I took a HUGE leap and profoundly changed up my life in order to focus solely on music-making. It was then that I began work on my first full-length solo album.
About the Project: I am now about 6 months into recording 11 original songs, and it has been an amazing journey thus far. I have grown immensely as an artist and have never felt so nourished by the creative process. I've been thrilled and humbled by the number of supremely talented musicians, producers, and engineers who have rallied around me to help make the music not just good, but GREAT. To date, collaborators on the album include members of the Long Winters, the Maldives, SHIM, Telekinesis, former members of Fleet Foxes, and many other talented folks (see the video above to meet these beautiful people and to hear a rough mix of one of the songs...please forgive the somewhat garbled audio/video quality)! The most recent, game-changing turn of events has been the addition of the brilliant John Roderick (frontman for The Long Winters), coming on board as producer. The sounds we’re making together are spectacular, the album as a whole is exceeding my wildest hopes and expectations, and I'm happy to report that WE'RE ALMOST THERE!!!
Why Kickstarter: I started this project with a modest, but helpful, little nest egg, which enabled me to get things off the ground. But making a record is an all-consuming and expensive process! To date, I have invested upwards of $8,500 in studio time, musicians’ stipends and food, equipment & instrument rentals/purchases, and so on and so forth. It is a lot of money, but relative to the kind of budgets spent making commercially released studio albums, I am doing this on a shoestring! That said, I now find myself incredibly close to finishing, but with a severely depleted nest egg. I SO deeply believe in the quality of the collective work at this stage, that I am fully committed to giving it a proper completion and release. This is where YOU come in!
It Takes a Village: I've heard it said that it "takes a village to raise an artist," well I now know it also takes a village to make a record! So I come to you, my friends, family and fans, and ask you to summon your inner “Patron of the Arts,” to help me see this project through to fruition. The fabulous folks at Kickstarter have created this amazing and easy new platform, which allows artists and music-appreciators to work TOGETHER to make art happen. What a concept! YOU get to decide if you believe in a project enough to help in its CREATION. Think of yourselves as the Medici to my Michelangelo! This new portal for collaboration is especially important in a time where people have gotten SO used to consuming music for free that they have lost touch with what it cost the artist to produce and distribute (see below for more resources on this!).
What is needed: I am now about ¾ of the way through the entire recording process. What remains to be done are some final vocals, over-dubs (the “bells and whistles,” so to speak), mixing, mastering, artwork (design and printing) and CD duplication. If I am strategic, I believe I can get most of that done on the relatively modest budget of $5,000. Anything you are able to give will help in getting me closer to that goal, and closer to finally SHARING this music!
Help Spread the Word: As you’ll read on the Kickstarter site, a project budget is only delivered to the artist if the FULL amount is raised within the specified timeframe. The point is to make it a true COMMUNITY effort. So, in order to receive your own pledge rewards, you’ll have to help the project reach it's final goal! You can do so by sending this project page out to your email lists, and by posting it to your Facebook, Myspace, Twitter and blog pages. I’m confident we can do this TOGETHER!
My Sincerest Thanks: As you'll see to the right, I’ve created some fun rewards in exchange for your various levels of support. But more importantly, I want to simply THANK YOU for believing in me and in this project enough to share your hard-earned dollars. It means more than you will ever know.
I have poured my heart into these songs and cannot WAIT to share them with you. Thank you in advance for your tremendous outpouring of love and support.
Sincerely,
Shelby
**Featured song written by Katie Freeze and Shelby Earl. **Photo by Steven Dewall.
Additional resources:
*Here is a very enlightening, informative exchange between a songwriter and a fan, on the topic of why Kickstarter is an important new portal for artists getting their music made: http://blogs.myspace.com/daynakurtz . (I couldn’t have put it better myself!)
*A New York Times article on the state of the music industry and the topic of music funding:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/04/business/04digi.html...
**Some recent local support in the fabulous City Arts Magazine: http://www.cityartsmagazine.com/issues/seattle/2010/03/just-add-red-lips
FAQ
Have a question? If the info above doesn't help, you can ask the project creator directly.
92
Backers
$6,065
pledged of $5,000 goal
0
seconds to go
Funding Successful
This project successfully raised its funding goal on August 6, 2010.
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CONGRATS! You are now OFFICIALLY a "Patron of the Arts!"
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WALL OF FAME: We're in it together! And you, the newly minted "Patron of the Arts," will have your name inscribed on the shelbyearl.com “Wall of Fame” from here until, well, who knows…FOREVER?!
Pledge $10 or more Pledge $10 or more
DIGI MUSIC: Digital Download of The Hope: In the Deep, featuring Shelby Earl on vocals, along with your name on the Wall of Fame!
Pledge $15 or more Pledge $15 or more
MORE MUSIC: Signed copy of The Hope: In the Deep, featuring Shelby Earl, plus your name on the Wall of Fame!
Pledge $25 or more Pledge $25 or more
NEW MUSIC: Digital Download of the forthcoming Shelby Earl Solo Album before the release date, plus Digital Download of The Hope and a limited edition EARL button!
Pledge $30 or more Pledge $30 or more
EXCLUSIVE MUSIC: Everything above PLUS digital download of an exclusive Shelby Earl track not on the album!
Pledge $35 or more Pledge $35 or more
PRE-RELEASE CD: Signed and numbered Shelby Earl Solo Album in your hot little hands before the release date! Plus a limited edition EARL button and a BIG HUG!
Pledge $50 or more Pledge $50 or more
TRADING CARDS: Everything above, plus a pack of signed & numbered Shelby Earl Solo Album band member trading cards. Who will be on your cards?!!! Shelby herself? A Maldive? A SHIM? A Long Winter? Get more friends to pledge at this level and let the trading begin! ☺
Pledge $75 or more Pledge $75 or more
THE ULTIMATE SWAG BAG: Digital Download of The Hope - In The Deep, signed pre-release copy of the Shelby Earl Solo CD (+ exclusive track), the TRADING CARDS pack, an EARL button, AND a hip t-shirt featuring the official album art!
Pledge $125 or more Pledge $125 or more
SHOWS SHOWS SHOWS: A pair of tickets to any 2 shows of your choice (i.e. 4 tickets), plus the Ultimate Swag Bag!
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LINER NOTES: Get YOUR NAME not only on the web site Wall of Fame, but also in the “Thank you” section of the album liner notes (IN PRINT!), plus the Ultimate Swag Bag!
Pledge $350 or more Pledge $350 or more
SONG DEDICATION: You choose the song -- Shelby's or someone else's -- and she'll record an acoustic version of it, post it on YouTube, and send you an exclusive mp3! Plus the Ultimate Swag Bag!
Pledge $500 or more Pledge $500 or more
CD RELEASE PARTY VIP STATUS: You and 3 guests will be treated to VIP treatment at the official CD Release show (including drink tickets!), as well as receiving copies of the album signed by Shelby and the band members, EARL buttons, t-shirts and trading cards to go around! (CD Release show will take place in Seattle, WA – date TBD).
Pledge $1,000 or more Pledge $1,000 or more
CD LISTENING PARTY WITH THE PLAYERS: You and a guest will be invited along for the CD listening party on Shelby’s dad’s boat! We will cruise the Puget Sound while you are treated to delicious food and drink, an exclusive listen of the full album, hang time with the artist, and copies of the record & other swag, signed by Shelby AND all the band members in attendance! (Party will take place in Seattle, WA – date TBD).
Pledge $1,200 or more Pledge $1,200 or more
HOUSE CONCERT: Shelby will come to your house, play a show for you and your friends, and dedicate a song to you in front of all of them! The event will be filmed and video clips will go up on YouTube. Just imagine it: “Shelby Earl Live from (YOUR name here)’s House!” Plus signed records and a custom combo of the rewards above! (US residents only. At a mutually agreed upon time.) ***Feel free to get friends to chip in with you on this one!
Pledge $2,000 or more Pledge $2,000 or more
GUEST APPEARANCE ON THE ALBUM: Ever dreamed of having YOUR name listed as one of the players on a professionally produced CD? Well we’ll find a shaker for you to shake, an “oooh” or “ahhh” for you to sing, or a trusty hand-clap part for you SOMEWHERE on the album. You will go down in history for your contributions and will be credited in the liner notes. You’ll also be photographed in the studio with the artist and will receive a custom combo of other fabulous rewards listed above!
Pledge $10,000 or more Pledge $10,000 or more
RECORD EXEC: Let's face it, at this level you essentially own me. We'll figure out the details as we go.
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Shelby Earl is not a country singer, as her name suggests. She is a city girl with a “world-class voice” and a universe of stories to tell. Entrenched in the Seattle music scene for years, Earl worked in music-industry day jobs and headed up a multitude of grassroots endeavors. She booked, mentored, and promoted loads of bands, all the while keeping her own musical dreams safely on the shelf. Earl also spent many years fronting various bands of her own, one of which gained industry and major label interest, but none of which prompted her to take the big leap and live as a full-time musician.
It was in early 2008 that this all began to change; after the break-up of her last band, The Hope, Earl spent a year writing songs and playing small solo shows in Seattle and New York. Her audiences’ enthusiastic responses were sign enough that the new songs and the new format—girl with guitar—were worth pursuing. In late 2009 Earl took the plunge many artists only talk about. She quit her high-stakes corporate music industry job, took a job as a waitress, and began to make a record. As her step-dad so aptly put it, Earl had “pulled all the boats ashore and burned them” in order to live big.
Due to be released in early-2011, Burn the Boats, produced by John Roderick of The Long Winters, is an album made up of 10 indie-folk-pop songs with recurrent themes of reclaiming lost loves, reaching for the unattainable, and waking up one’s own life after a long slumber. Collaborators on the album include members of The Long Winters, SHIM, Telekinesis, (former) Fleet Foxes, the Maldives and many other great local artists. Earl “burned the boats” to make this record. The resulting musical effort is, in her words, “a true reflection of where I’ve been and of where I’m headed.”
