In July, I plan to launch a Kickstarter for a new album pin. The primary goal is to support and promote the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast. However, I have secondary goal which might even be more important to Celtic musicians around the world.

But first, I am Marc Gunn. I’m a Celtic musician and Podcaster out of Atlanta, Georgia. The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast is a four-time award-winning podcast promoting Celtic musicians and bands from around the globe. It started in 2005. Every week, you hear music from some of the best indie Celtic bands online.

This isn’t an insiders guide to the most-popular Celtic bands out there. Rather, it’s for regular people, like you and me. It highlights the amazing artists who live in your community from Boston to Seattle, California to Colorado, Nova Scotia to Northern Ireland, Australia to Germany, South Africa to South America, Mexico to throughout Canada, France, Scotland, Spain, Cornwall, Italy, England and yes, even the Republic of Ireland.

The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast is a global phenomena that is still going after 18 years, all because of the generosity of people just like you.

This show is not funded by some giant corporation. It owes no allegiance to any country, religious organization or political campaign. It is entirely for the listener.

Our goal is simply to celebrate Celtic culture through music.

Because of your kindness, it achieves that through patronage… and now through this Kickstarter.

To that end, we are launching a brand new album pin.

An album pin is an Enamel pin with a design that relates to a specific album, but that also promotes the podcast.

It is music that you can wear on your sleeve to show your love of the music.

ARE CDs GONE FOREVER?

In 2003, we released a compilation CD called The Secret World of Celtic Rock. This hit CD captured the incredible fusion of traditional Celtic music with contemporary Celtic Rock. It blew the minds of Celtic music fans when it was first released. But it is no longer available on CD, only on streaming.

That’s because CDs are no longer as popular as they once were before digital downloads and streaming music. Now they are primarily used to archive digital music. Less than half of my own fans listen to CDs.

ENTER THE ALBUM PIN

The album pin is a new way to enjoy the music once found on a CD, but to also to help you promote the music you love.

Each album pin is designed with a compelling picture and/or phrase linked to a specific album. This effectively lets you wear your album on your sleeve.

It’s a great conversation starter to find other Celtic music and culture fans.

It’s a fashion statement that says I love the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast.

But it’s also something more, that could save the music industry.

HOW TO SAVE THE MUSIC INDUSTRY

The simple fact is that in the streaming era, we don’t need a physical item to play music.

Yes. CDs and vinyl records offer a great tactile experience when you are listening. Vinyl records in particular outsold CDs last year. But most of the time, all we need is a phone or our computer to enjoy the music we love.

And yet musicians need merchandise in order to make a living creating music.

Streaming music pays virtually nothing. Regular gigging musicians are making the exact same pay and that they were 30 years ago at venues… despite inflation. If it wasn’t for patronage, I could not still be a Musician and podcaster today. This is where the secondary goal of this campaign comes in the play.

My secondary goal is to create a proof of concepts that other musicians can follow.

Instead of creating a physical CD made from plastic, that is not recyclable, we can sell a piece of art that will brighten up our clothing and inspire conversations. A piece of art that lives with and beyond the music.

The enamel pen is just a lapel pin. It could be a beautiful piece of art. It could be a statement. But it is connected to the music that we create.

Each time you look at it, you can hear a song or an album in your head.

It changes the way we hear Celtic music or music in general.

And because it is a visual representation of the music, we wear it to start a conversation about music and the value it brings to our lives.

Music has the power to change lives. It deserves to be treated with the same love and respect that it provides to us.

DOES IT WORK?

I started selling album pins last year. They doubled my sales income. Because music fans want to support the things they love. They know that if they don’t, they will disappear. Never to be heard from again.

It’s the same with the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast. For 18 years, I’ve been promoting independent, Celtic musicians, helping them to be heard by a worldwide audience.

I started it because there weren’t enough outlets to hear great Celtic music. Not great Celtic music from Ireland or Scotland. But great Celtic music!

I knew I could make a difference. And a have. I’ve seen Celtic musicians, who were okay at their instruments, turn into worldwide phenomenal musicians in the industry. And they’re not just from Ireland or Scotland.

They deserve respect and have gained it overtime. But I was there supporting them from the beginning because I believe in Celtic music I love Celtic music and culture. And I want to see it thrive.

Get notified when the campaign goes live!

A REQUEST… DO ME A FAVOR

Again, the goal of this Kickstarter is only partly to fund an album pin that promotes the podcast. It’s  also to spark in musicians an idea to find other ways to keep our livelihood thriving.

So could you please do me a favor and share this Kickstarter?

Share it if you want to help out the podcast.

Or share it if you want to help out a musician.

Just share it!

I also wrote an e-book called Celtic Musicians Guide to Digital Music. I sell it on Amazon. But I gave it away for free through the podcast because it also has information on how to submit music to get played on the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast.

I will share it with everyone who makes a pledge to support this campaign. So get notified when it goes out.