Recently Joel Zimmerman aka Deadmau5 announced that he was going to start a private/subscription based music service. He didn't delve into any specifics, but inquiring minds needed to know....something!
So, he indulged us with a few tidbits about the upcoming model:
Q: Why should i sign up for this shit?
A: Well, first and foremost… music. Lots of music. its what i do. and ill be doing it live from the studio, as frequently as possible, and you can join in on the process.
Q: That’s it? just music?
A: no. pictures of my cat too.
Q: So whats wrong with twitter and soundcloud then?
A: Nothing really, i just find it too “noisy”. Having been to the bottom of the internet and back a few times, i feel less and less connected to my fans, and more connected to hating on shit i have nothing to do with. It’s quite unfair really, especially for the fans and supporters. Nobody wins.
Q: How much is this shit going to cost me?
A: As of right now, i have no idea… we did have some talk about a ’3 tier system’ that grant users a certain level of access… like one for just photos and ‘tweets’…. another for those + music downloads, and a top tier for all that + live streams. BUT THEN…. i jumped up on the boardroom table grabbed my manager by his fat head and said “NO! FUCK YOU! THAT’S A STUPID IDEA” then round housed him all the way back to geocities.
nah, i wish. Anyway, i think it might be better to just meet it somewhere in the middle and be all like… all access for everyone… and i don’t know 1 or 2 bucks a month? All i really need to do is run some more figures on how much this shit is going to cost me and then just offset it…. but really, i can promise you it’ll be less than 4 or 5 bucks max.
Q: So what about the music then?
A: Well, ill try my best to upload my ENTIRE catalogue… which is pushing the 400 tracks mark… i have so much unreleased shit, it scares me.
but heres the thing… SoundCloud is free… so the publishers (for now) don’t really care too much about the DRM … but when you say “hey im gunna launch a subscription site where people can just pay to have access to…. they flip a shit. (seriously, my phone blew the fuck up) BUT… that’s just a deal ill have to make with my publishers… ill figure something out thats non-rapey and fair for both parties.
the moral of the story is, i’ve had this idea forever… most publishers and labels are, still, completely overlooking the value of an artist created / driven subscription model. I guess it’s sink or swim for me.
Q: Will the “app” be available for my insert phone here
A: I sure hope so. Going to be working very hard to get this rolled out on windows phones, iphones, android and via HTTP as well.
Q: When are you going to deploy?
A: When it’s ready. I’ve been looking at a few companies who actually do have existing infrastructures that are ‘nearly’ ready to be rolled out if i can make a decent deal… but the big fight is, for instance: “hey joel, we would love to host you a profile on a site / service we’ve already built for other artists.” No thanks. i dont need another social media site to join… just a single point / proprietary app.
So… bear with me… because this is all very new “news” but ill make something happen sooner than later, even if i have to outsource the app development myself.
I also plan on allowing user profiles, as in… when you create an account… you can choose to create a public profile for yourself to connect to other members of the horde in a simple simple “inbox / msgsing”, or receive personal replys and or kudos from yours truly.
One other thing: im not taking any bullshit sponsor money for this. this will be our little baby. NO ADS / Spam or bullshit. ever. it will be a CLOSED SYSTEM. horray!
