The New Economy

64,795 plays on Spotify = my royalty check today for $26.35. Meanwhile, in giving away my album Where are the Arms on bandcamp, a handful of listeners (seven) have chosen to pay a few dollars a piece, resulting in $41. Discuss.

I should state, in the interest of transparency: I am incredibly lucky to make a living playing and writing music. My ability to do so has a lot to do with the fact that I receive commissions from institutions with whom I have great relationships, and for that I am extraordinarily grateful. Even with that support, though, I will not be able to afford to continue to record my music if royalty rates / low sales persist — making albums isn’t exactly cheap, and while I do make a living, I’m not exactly rolling in dough, and as some of you know, I am also in debt (related to the staged version of The Ambassador) — but perhaps most important: I bring up this issue on behalf of all the amazingly talented musicians who don’t have another income stream and are being inexorably squeezed by the so-called “economy” of streaming music. Something’s gotta give.