Why Patreon

I'm an avid journaler. I've kept some sort of journal since I was in middle school, and I almost always have it on me. I love journals because they document the whole process. Not just the actual songwriting, but the brainstorming, the doodles, the big ideas, the dreams, the failures, the weird thoughts, and the intentions. It's a process of figuring things out, usually in an ugly or raw way, until the way finally leads to something more beautiful. And this love of the process is the same thing that finally attracted me to Patreon.

Patreon is best known for what it is – a platform that allows creators to make money from monthly support given by their audience. Lot's of different kinds of creators use it. It's basically like having a subscription service to a specific creator. This means that independent artists like myself can hopefully grow to the point of making a living from their art totally independently.

I'm already an independent artist, which means I have total creative freedom of the things I make, I have a do-it-yourself approach to creation. My philosophy as an independent artist has always been personal. I love having all kinds of listeners, but I don't practice a mentality of wanting anyone and everyone to know me. I don't play bar gigs, I don't busk, and I even have a bit of resistance to using social media because I care more about meaningful direct connection. In the domain of algorithms and influence, sometimes a number of views can be perceived as higher in value than a meaningful connection. But meaningful connection is what matters most to me.

I appreciate the competitive world of publicly-shared creativity. But I started a Patreon in 2021 because I wanted to create something like a journal space that gave people more of a full picture of what I do. The stages it goes through, the different interests I have – the long process rather than just the final product.

Patreon is a kind of home for the people who are the most interested in what I make. I operate just like any other small business. As weird as it may feel sometimes, I have to think about the finances. The music business is different than having a storefront that people can come to. So I wanted to offer that same brick-and-mortar experience for the people who appreciate what I'm making.

It's no secret that the creative economy is saturated with brands, creatives, and products. Almost every business has an Instagram, a TikTok, a Facebook, a website, a podcast, and a YouTube channel. So in addition to these pieces, I wanted a place where I could share with those who want to help me get to where I'm going. Unlike the social media platforms, Patreon gives me a reliable direct line to those who are curious. They hear the songs first in their rawest and simplest form. They get secret updates. They get a first look. They even hear the ones I never release publicly. They see more than the final output. They witness the building process..

THE ECONOMICS OF MUSIC

• As of recent estimates, around 100,000 songs are uploaded to Spotify every day

• On average, Spotify pays artists between $0.003 and $0.005 per stream

• An artist generally needs between 200 and 334 streams on Spotify to make $1

• The cheapest option for putting a song on Spotify costs $9.95 per single

• It takes approximately 2,000–3,333 streams for one song to break even after distribution to Spotify

• This does not account for the cost of recording, mixing, mastering, copyrighting, & marketing

To put it simply and honestly, the economics of music have gotten pretty silly. People with large budgets promoting their music have the ability to use streaming, touring, and other sources of revenue to make money from their creative productions (sorta). But it is very hard to make a living. And that's okay. It's hard to make a living doing anything daring. It's so affordable to make music these days, it's understandable that making money from it is tricky. But lots of artists are paying more money to make music than they're making from the music. To me, it makes sense to seek out opportunities for support.

Direct support on Patreon provides stability. This is why I started a Patreon – to build a supportive community around my music, to create a space where each creation can be shared directly, to give my biggest supporters something special, and to give myself another avenue of working toward making music full-time.

A monthly commitment is something the average person reserves for Hulu, Netflix, or Spotify, which is how we have found ourselves here. Our pay-per-product system has slowly lost it's influence with the advent of streaming platforms. And that is why something like Patreon makes so much sense. Small amounts of monthly support create an environment for ongoing creation. Crowd-sourcing is also great, but I prefer Patreon because as it grows, it will allow me to create projects pretty much all the time, rather than every so often.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM MY PATREON

• Full videos of concert footage

• Your name listed as a sponsor of my podcast and my music videos

• Early access to everything I make (including uncut podcasts)

• Exclusive content like my "Open Journal" post series

• Discounted & Free merchandise

• FULL LPs (+ the stuff I don't release on Spotify)

• THE VAULT (huge digital catalog of early & unreleased material)

  
  

  +AND+

• You'll help me work toward my goal of working full-time as an artist

My first landmark goal is to reach 300 Patreon members. That number of supporters would be a huge step toward making music and creative content full-time.

If you're interested in supporting my path toward stable independent artistry, and if you're passionate about the things I release, I encourage you to try out my Patreon. If it isn't for you, you can cancel anytime. For a small amount of monthly support ($3, $5, $10), you can gain access to the perks and be notified when I release something new. You can also access my full library of music, including my exclusive new releases. When I released my DEVIL album a few years ago, I released 3 songs on Spotify, but I released 6 songs on the LP exclusively through Patreon and my website. Soon I will be putting more of my LPs behind the Patreon paywall. If this sounds like something you want to be a part of, follow this link.

-Tyler Nail