Patronism gives willing fans patron status

The new service Patronism provides musicians and bands with a platform to share music and memorabilia with fans, in exchange for financial support.

The fun of Patronism lies more in sharing the memorabilia than sharing music (for which several platforms exist already). Veteran blues-rock guitarist Lance Keitner, for example, posted never seen footage of a poolside conversation with producer Andy Johnsm talking about going backstage with the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin.

Keitner thinks the world of this new platform: “This concept is a long time coming. It brings people in, makes them feel a part of the music and the creative process. They aren’t just consumers anymore,” he told Wired.

Crowdfunding sites have been around for some time now. Bands use these sites on a regular basis, for example to raise funds for recording a new album. The difference with Patronism is that regular crowd funding sites normally operate on the basis of concrete projects. Patronism, on the other hand, aims at enhancing the long term relationship between fans and artists so persuade the former to support the latter.

The concept behind Patronism dates back to classical times. As the father of one of the founders remarked when he was complaining that is was nearly impossible to make a living as a professional musician: “John, artists have never been able to earn their living, they have always had patrons.”

Patronism is not the first platform to explore the possibilities of voluntary payment. Radiohead made this concept mainstream by posting their album In Rainbows online with the message that fans could pay for it what they wanted. This blog wrote earlier about a photography site and a games publisher that use similar strategies. Services like Flattr also base themselves on the idea that social relations are an important force for providing support.

The beauty of Patronism and similar services lies in the idea that they democratise patronae. Patrons no longer need to be super rich and be able to support an entire artist on their own. Thanks to the reach of the online environment, a host of minipatrons help artists to produce art, culture and entertainment.