Matthew Ebel runs a subscription site for his super fans that he says provides him 26% of his income - all from just 40 fans! His packages range from $5/month to $15/month, but he has annual options that go for as much as $499, and that one's sold out.
So what do you get as a subscriber?
* Members-only parties
* VIP seating at shows
* Access to new music as soon as he creates it
* New live concert recordings every month
* Sessions with individual tracks for remixing
* Behind-the-scene sketches, drafts, and ideas, and more.
Now 40 fans isn't a huge number, and 26% of his income may or may not amount to much, but I think that just the fact that Matthew was willing to try subscription validates that this model is viable even for an artist without a huge amount of national attention. Most artist's would normally be afraid of subscription because you really need dedicated fans to make it work, and it takes a lot of work to make the subscription worthwhile to keep the fans happy.
Good work, Matthew. You're a great example of what can happen for an artist in Music 3.0.
You can view Matthew's site here and view his subscription page here.
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