Music fans are typically limited when it comes to connecting with their favorite artists. They can listen to their music, go to a live show, buy merch or follow them on social media. And now, they can hire them to write custom songs.
That's the premise of a service called Downwrite. The online platform lets fans commission songs from a diverse roster of Grammy winners, multiplatinum-selling bands, session musicians and independent artists in a variety of genres for a fee.
"This is quite possibly the future of a way for artists to create music and earn money doing so," said Justin Warfield, the LA-based lead singer for the darkwave duo She Wants Revenge and vice president of artist services for Downwrite, where he is also available for hire.
Like so many artists who make fractions of a penny each time a song is played on Spotify and who have been unable to play live shows because of COVID-19, Warfield has spent the better part of the last two years figuring out ways to connect with fans. He also was in search of a new stage to inhabit since physical spaces in the real world are largely inaccessible.
"We're able to get the artists we get because they say you're respecting what we do," said Warfield, who has been drawing upon his 32 years in the industry as a producer, music director and artist to recruit musicians for the platform. "It's hard as an artist to see you've been streamed 20 million times and you're wondering what your record company made off that because you see the fractions and decimal points in your royalty statements."
Downwrite is the brainchild of Chicago-based musicians Mark Rose and Bob Nanna, who were trying to figure out ways for songwriters to have successful, rewarding careers when so much music was available for free online. The platform now has hundreds of participating artists, running the gamut from relative unknowns to big names like Art Alexakis of the rock band Everclear, many of them based in LA.
The Downwrite website lets customers browse artists by genre, instrument or occasion they're hoping to commemorate musically, such as anniversary or birthday. Each artist has a dedicated page listing the types of music they create, the bands they're in, the instruments they play and their bio, along with music samples and the types of projects they'll create for a price.
Once an artist is commissioned, the commissioning customer can then communicate with them directly, sharing a personal experience or an idea with the artist, who then transforms it into a song.
"Usually I get requests like this from fans," said Asdru Sierra, triple Grammy winner as the lead vocalist, trumpet player and keyboardist for the LA Latin band Ozomatli. He signed up with Downwrite two weeks ago and has so far had one commission from a man who hired him to write a 25-year wedding anniversary song for his wife, whom he met at an Ozomatli show.
"This guy obviously loves his wife. He wrote down the whole story of how they met. It's cool because all I've got to do is write this song, record it and send it as his anniversary gift," said Sierra, who will make $500 for writing the song, singing it and playing piano.
Through Downwrite, Sierra charges $400 for a short song with a single vocal; $600 for a song with a vocal, single instrument and minimal production; and $5,000 for a deluxe song with multiple instruments and vocal tracks that give it more of a full band sound.
Artists on the platform set their pricing based on the level of production, amount of time a song requires, and, to some extent, their fame. Prices range from $150 for a short, simple humorous song from Panic! at the Disco's Jon Walker to $6,000 for a custom FILTER song from the band's frontman Richard Patrick.
The artist gets 80% of what the commissioner pays, with Downwrite taking a 20% cut. If Downwrite places a commissioned song in a television show, movie or commercial, the artist is paid 75% and the person who commissions it makes 5% off the sale.
Sierra said he has never been the type of musician who likes to be put on a pedestal. "That's just not me," said Sierra, who ends his Ozomatli shows by joining the crowd. "If I start thinking, 'I'm a Grammy-winning artist. Why do this for a regular Joe?' Regular Joes buy our records. When they come to a show, they pay $20 or $25. They buy a T-shirt. I'm getting more from this."
Downwrite, Sierra said, is "going back to basics. I know I'm the product. I write the music and people see me play live and that's the experience of it. The way we used to make money isn't what it used to be anymore, so this is just a sign of something really cool and interesting and artistic to be creative for people that really like our music, which is an honor."