Musicians nervously eye Epic Games' acquisition of Bandcamp

gamesradar.com:

Musicians are watching Epic Games’ acquisition of Bandcamp with a mixture of hope and concern.

In an era where music streaming services hold almost all the cards, Bandcamp has allowed musicians to earn bigger cuts from the sale of their music, while controlling the way their tracks and merch are presented and communicating simply with their most dedicated fans.

Speaking to GamesRadar+ over the day since the announcement, a number of musicians expressed hope that Epic’s ownership will mean extra reach and resources - but many were clearly worried that Bandcamp’s unique qualities could be eroded by new corporate interference.

"Epic is a forward-thinking company,” said Paul Kilduff-Taylor, who releases music as nervous_testpilot and runs the indie game publisher Mode 7. “My real hope here is that they can help independent musicians reach new audiences.

“It’s critical though that Bandcamp retains its identity. People use the platform as a way to retain control over their music collection in a way that streaming can never offer; they also use it to forge a more direct relationship with artists than is possible elsewhere. I can’t tell you the number of times people have ‘overpaid’ on Bandcamp to support my work or sent me amazing messages - that’s a very fragile and precious thing in cultural terms, and Epic have to ensure they protect it.”

The latter sentiment was echoed repeatedly by other musicians who use Bandcamp. With music fans increasingly aware that services like Spotify offer meagre remuneration for artists, Bandcamp has allowed them to go out of their way to pay for the music they love.

“Being a musician in most parts of the world is currently unsustainable with the abject dominance of streaming pricing models,”