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Jack Conte is a musician and entrepreneur, and one-half of the group Pomplamoose
with Nataly Dawn. He and his partner have had millions of people watch
their videos on YouTube, and launched a successful career for their
stripped-down but layered covers. Jack and Nataly also both have
branched into solo work, and Jack recently launched a twist on
“conventional” crowdfunding with Patreon, an artist-supporting site.
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Show Notes
“Beat It” is one of Pomplamoose’s best-known YouTube covers; it’s had over 8 million views. Have you heard any of their music? Go listen!
Minimalist music, such as that by Steve Reich, layers or repeats a short melody to produce what seem like lush harmonies. Julia Nunes is one of the best-known YouTube musicians.
We’ve talked about compulsory licensing
before: any published audio recording can be recorded again and
released as a new audio track without permission; a payment set by
statute is required for each copy sold. Jack mentioned “synchronization” licenses,
which are required when you want to have both music and video that goes
with it. YouTube has deals for sync licenses, although it’s complicated; Pomplamoose releases songs on iTunes and in other audio forms under compulsory mechanical licenses.
Nataly had a Kickstarter campaign for her first album. Jack launched Patreon
to avoid the moon-shot nature of Kickstarter: giant projects that suck
all available time for extended periods. He releases stuff regularly.
We recorded a few weeks ago, and Jack and Nataly apparently have moved out of the countryside since based on his Twitter feed!
Anyone can start a Patreon campaign! If you produce something regularly, like a video, music, or a podcast, sign up and try it out.