Every March, the streets of Austin, TX are flooded with over 2,200 musicians from all over the globe for South by Southwest – the largest music festival of its kind in the world. Each year, covering their own travel and lodging, independent performers make the expensive journey for the chance of exposure to a much wider audience.
Tired of seeing their city unfairly represented by the bands with the deepest pockets, a handful of organizations from Wisconsin are attempting to ease the financial burden of its local musicians by crowdsourcing a stage in Texas to showcase Milwaukee’s brightest.
The MILWAUKEEHOME STAGE is a collaboration between Festival City, Milwaukee Home, Flye Gang, and The Hotel Foster.
The group has turned to crowdfunding site Indiegogo to raise money with 100% of the pledges going towards the stage and travel expenses of the musicians. With two and half weeks left, the campaign has raised almost $1,500 of its $20,000 goal. Unlike Kickstarter, however, Indiegogo allows for “flexible funding” which doesn’t require the goal to be met in order for the funds to be received.
Any and all donations will help the cause, and to sweeten the deal, the campaign has partnered with some great local businesses to offer a variety of gift certificates as perks. If you’re not in the Milwaukee area and still want to give, there are a handful of physical rewards as well including t-shirts, totes bags, and even a SXSW neon sign.
Check out the campaign here and spread the word. “One day. One stage. One city. All Milwaukee.”