New Business Models--and Good Music, Too!

I've been following Christine Kane's music for a few years now, ever since I ran across her CDs in the library (I was looking for Christian Kane, but that's an entirely different story). She's a singer-songwriter with a folkey bent--I'd compare her to Patty Griffin in style and vocal quality. And she's really good.

She's also an independent artist trying out a new business model with her upcoming CD. On Be My Record Label, she's asking for pre-orders from fans to finance the release (packages include everything from just the CD itself to a package that includes a private concert and a song written just for you). In return, she's offering a fascinating look into her creative process, discussing all the steps of how a song comes together, and even vetting early draft versions of the songs to be included in the album, so those who have pre-ordered and are financing the album can comment on them as they come together.

I've been dropping by her site for a while (and yes, I have pre-ordered my album), and I'm finding it fascinating, both from the perspective of her creative process and her business model. At the same time, I've been thinking about how this might apply to publishing. The Internet has completely changed all the ways we can get our work out there, and the ways we can interact with readers. More and more creative folks are taking advantage of this to find a path outside the traditional big publisher/author relationship (or big record label/musician relationship--I find it interesting that more musicians than writers seem to be experimenting with all these exciting possibilities).

So drop by Christine's blog and her Record Label site. She's got free music for download so you can check out her stuff. If you like what you hear, buy a CD or two, and think about pre-ordering the new CD. Because I, for one, want to hear it--and many, many more in the future.