At the end of 2021, it really seemed like the folks at Bandcamp were planning on ceasing their Bandcamp Friday celebrations into 2022. For the past two years, the music distribution service has waived their fees and given 100% of proceeds to artists on the first friday of the month. It’s a huge boon to artists but not likely something that Bandcamp would continue forever. Fortunately, they have announced that it will at least continue in March, April, and May of this year. A pessimistic person may say that Bandcamp Friday is not 100% altruistic because it does bring a lot of awareness to Bandcamp but, in reality, it’s a very financially stable company willingly choosing to waive a large sum of income once a month for the benefit of artists. Pretty damn altruistic if you ask me.
With that in mind, please take advantage of Bandcamp Friday to support artists. Streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music, et al pay a pittance for individual streams. Even the “best” royalty rate for streaming is still fractions of a penny.
To help you support artists, we’ve got a handy list of some releases worth your while. We’re also tweeting about our findings if you want a bit more detail. If none of that feels sufficient, just find your own Nashville discovery and show your support!!