In 2015, Josh Garrels tried something new. He offered his new album, Home, as a free download for the first week only. As an indie artist, he wanted to find new ways to stand out to his target audience, and it looks like it paid off. 45,000 people downloaded the album, and when his album did come out, he sold more copies than all of his other records. Since then, more and more artists have adopted a similar approach.
The Power of Try Before You Buy
In 2024, more music was released in a single day than in the year of 1989. Bands are releasing more singles than they were ten years ago as well. The concept of try-before-you-buy is evident in other sectors too. In theatre, you can get a free trial of Digital Theatre+, and services like Audible also offer free trials, so you can listen to different podcasts without committing to buy. In iGaming, we are seeing free spins and other related promotions become more common. Some have even combined promotions with gamification, like using a spinning wheel to award spins or rewards based on the result.
By adopting this approach, people can use free spins to try out different titles, with the option to pay per spin if they are enjoying the experience. When you consider this, it’s not hard to see why indie artists are following a similar approach. Interestingly, we are also seeing bigger artists embrace the power of giving their music away, too.
Trent Reznor from Nine Inch Nails offered fans the chance to download specific songs for free, or the option of downloading four digital albums for $5. Fans could also buy pricier packages with content, video, slide shows, and more, which started at $75. Even though the free songs got fans in the door and interested in the packages, many went on to buy the music anyway, showing what a powerful gateway offering free music can be.
Stems and Music Mixes
Bands aren’t just releasing free songs as a way to try and get their fan’s attention either. Some artists are taking things one step further by offering their multitracks for free. Sites like Produce Like a Pro offer 50 multitracks for free if you sign up for their mailing list.
Most of the time, these are from indie artists who have agreed to have the raw, unmixed, unmastered tracks shared. By doing this, fans are not only able to enjoy listening to music, but they also have the chance to sit in the producer’s chair and mix it themselves, which helps to provide a much more immersive experience. It also allows the fans to delve into the music on a much deeper level.
Even though the tracks may be given away for free, indie artists can then offer competitions to see who can mix it the best. An example of a modern indie artist who has given away their multitracks includes Zelmar, who allowed fans to download the multitracks to Into You. We Were Astronauts also allowed fans to mix the tracks for Golden by launching it on Produce like a Pro.
Examples like this show how powerful giving away music can be, and for indie artists, it’s often a gateway for more fans, higher engagement, and out-of-the-box thinking.
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