Photo: Charlotte Patmore
PledgeMusic, the online direct-to-fan music platform who have worked with the likes of Bring Me The Horizon, The Libertines and Sikth, have opened the third and final round of applications for the Emerging Artists Fund.
PledgeMusic & Help Musicians UK launched the £50,000 development fund in May to identify and support a diverse range or emerging artists who have the talent, a burgeoning fan base and the 'DIY' drive to build a long-term career.
Consisting of rounds, those selected go on to run their own PledgeMusic campaign where fans participate in the music making process, and can pre-order before it’s complete . In addition they receive a top-up grant of between £2,000 and £5,000 from Help Musicians UK once they reach their target. The fund is aimed at acts who aren’t currently receiving significant backing from a label or publishing but they’re an act who are on the cusp of breaking into the mainstream.
On the first round, Telegram are a good example of a band who made the cut. They have built a strong following and a reputation as one of the best live bands in London and have even toured Japan. Since they opted not to sign to a label, the fund has kept them on track to release their album independently and accrue the majority of the revenue from the album sales themselves rather than taking a small cut. Staying independent also means they’ve been allowed to maintain independence and artistic control of the release, due out in February next year.
Elsewhere, the hotly tipped indie-pop quartet The Lottery Winners were among those chosen on the second round of funding and their debut EP is subsequently on course for release. The publicity the band have gained from the campaign has already had an impact as they appeared on Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch earlier this month. With the added help the band don’t have to make the compromises on recording quality that they would have had to shelling it from their pockets alone.
Click here for the round three application form.
