I started recording music right after I finished college (many of you were there, even then). I've made 5 releases without a record label over the years and toured all over the world. The process was pretty simple. I wrote songs and sang them for my audience. If a song connected with the audience it was a keeper and I recorded it so the audience could take the song with them.
Over the years there have been a lot of ups an downs chasing this dream. Most of you have been riding along for just about all of them. Which brings us to this point - right here, right now. Last year, I started a recording project with the Bay Area's best music producer Jamie Hawkins. The tracks that came out of those sessions are by far my strongest work to date. Unfortunately, the funding for that project fell through (another one of those downs I was talking about) and the songs have still never been released. Not that long ago, my close friend Rob Della Santina suggested that I try a Kickstarter campaign to fund the rest of the songs and the release of the EP. His thought was "Give the people that love you a chance to do this with you. There is no harm in asking." So this whole thing is pretty much his fault.
I want to make this EP with you guys. No labels, no A&R guys, just me and you. It sounds brave and bold and even cool to cut out the record label "middle man", but it presents one major challenge. In exchange for the control that the label demands, they offer the cash needed to produce the recording. If I take back control, I lose their cash. That's where Kickstarter comes in. Kickstarter has created a format that will allow you to chime in one at a time, giving Jamie and I the control and the funding needing to produce a new record. Essentially the way it works is, you peruse all the awesome pledge packages up there on the right and pick the one you like. Kickstarter is 'all or nothing' - if we meet the pledge goal, we all get to make this record. If not, no harm no foul, your credit cards were never charged or anything - its all good.
Let's do this! Every little bit helps. This is a little scary and really humbling. Please share this project with as many folks as you can. I literally can't do this without you all and I love each and every one of you for even considering helping out.
Shawn
My past work and more info can be found at www.shawnbrownmusic.com.
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Funding period
- (35 days)