Kicktone is shutting down

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > No Music Discussion > Musician's Lounge > Kicktone is shutting down

Rupert Buttermilk: Apr 15, 2007; 🚣RowboatMan: ❄️Freezing time🕰️ is an old P.I. 🥧trick...

Kicktone Staff posted:

After three years of great times and great music, we're very sorry to tell you that Kicktone is shutting down on December 31, 2015. In the meantime, we're switching the site to read-only mode, and in the coming week we'll release a tool that will allow you to download your uploads or purchases.

Kicktone began as a way for us to support the music industry and the people who really make it happen - the tens of millions of independent artists, bands, and musicians who want a voice and are looking for an audience. We envisioned a truly equal marketplace where anyone could launch an album and share it with the world without complex contracts or extortionate fees, where fans could engage and interact with the bands they love and discover new, independent music. It was a beautiful dream, but the reality is that despite all the hard work and goodwill in the world, we just couldn't make it happen.

Since our launch, more than 5,000 artists from 40 countries around the world have joined the Kicktone family, and we're so proud to have been able to provide a service to them. They embody everything that makes music such an important part of our lives, and we wish them all the best.

Thank you to everyone who supported us in this venture, particularly Philip, Jana, Brett, Stuart, Emmanuel, Nick, Con, Brad, Brooke, Jo, Erin, and all the mentors and advisers who lent us a friendly ear and left us better than they found us. A very special thank you to Ash and Jana, two incredibly patient and strong women who put up with our poo poo and kept us sane over the last three years.

Although this is the end of Kicktone, it isn't necessarily the end of the dream. We still have ideas and plans for how we might effect change in the music industry, and some day you might hear of us again. In the meantime, though, thanks for your support, thanks for your belief, and thanks for all the fish.

With love, all the way from sunny Adelaide,

Savvas, Josh, and Cameron.

I loved the site, it was far better than Tindeck (made by the same people), in that it allowed you to easily upload your albums, set a price, and even allowed people to stream it. poo poo, I had my stuff up there for free (maybe I was part of the problem?) and ended up making $5 from it. Gonna miss it.

I must ask, though... are there any other sites out there like KT? Ones that allow you to upload your albums, complete with cover art, and then set a price for people to pay (including free)? Some place that isn't bogged down by ads? I know Soundcloud allows music uploads, but can you organize it as albums and charge for it?

# ? Dec 4, 2015 15:09

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# ? Apr 25, 2024 16:54

h_double: Jul 27, 2001

I'm really happy with Bandcamp. Their model is that visitors can stream for free, the artist can set a minimum price to buy (which can be $0). Bandcamp takes 10% like such: you get 100% of the revunue for the first nine sales, then the tenth sale goes directly to them.

Cover art, downloads in whatever format you like, you have bonus content (extra tracks or art) only available to paying customers. It's a nicely designed service.

# ? Dec 4, 2015 15:40

Rupert Buttermilk: Apr 15, 2007; 🚣RowboatMan: ❄️Freezing time🕰️ is an old P.I. 🥧trick...

h_double posted:

I'm really happy with Bandcamp. Their model is that visitors can stream for free, the artist can set a minimum price to buy (which can be $0). Bandcamp takes 10% like such: you get 100% of the revunue for the first nine sales, then the tenth sale goes directly to them.

Cover art, downloads in whatever format you like, you have bonus content (extra tracks or art) only available to paying customers. It's a nicely designed service.

I completely forgot about Bandcamp, poo poo. I'm sold, thanks!

EDIT: Do you know if they handle multiple artist accounts? I mean, I don't actually have a 'label', which I assume would take care of that. I just have two names that I go under, with two different types of music. The Kicktone guys said they had been planning something like umbrella accounts, so one login = multiple artists, but never got around to it.

Rupert Buttermilk fucked around with this message at 15:50 on Dec 4, 2015

# ? Dec 4, 2015 15:45

Tokit: Dec 16, 2004; I was doing the composing.

Rupert Buttermilk posted:

I completely forgot about Bandcamp, poo poo. I'm sold, thanks!

EDIT: Do you know if they handle multiple artist accounts? I mean, I don't actually have a 'label', which I assume would take care of that. I just have two names that I go under, with two different types of music. The Kicktone guys said they had been planning something like umbrella accounts, so one login = multiple artists, but never got around to it.

Bandcamp has support for more than one account, its in a little drop down menu in the top menu bar when you're logged into either account.

# ? Dec 13, 2015 16:42

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > No Music Discussion > Musician's Lounge > Kicktone is shutting down