WINDHAM, N.H. — Yellow Brick Road Entertainment LLC announces the launch of www.BandDigs.com 1.0, a first-of-its-kind interactive music web community that revolutionizes the way bands and fans communicate. Bands utilize BandDigs to video chat with their fans (large numbers of people at once) and to stream live video broadcasts from back stage at venues, their rehearsal spaces, recording studios and even clubs. By joining BandDigs, subscribers increase their potential audience to millions of people around the world.
According to Yellow Brick Road Entertainment Founder & CEO Garry Wheeler, “Our goal was to provide bands with interactive technology once only afforded by large corporations that would enable them to take their careers to the next level. We wanted to take the concept of an online social community to a new level. Literally within minutes of subscribing to BandDigs, a band can be broadcasting live around the world like they own a TV station, or they can be interacting with their audience face-to-face.”
Joe Fletcher (President of Joe Fletcher Presents www.joefletcherpresents.com and Fletcher Management) had this to offer about the site; “BandDigs levels the playing field for artists of all sizes and genres. It also allows music related businesses to reach customers in a new and meaningful way.”
Keith Denehy from the well traveled and successful band Angry Hill (www.angryhill.com), stated “BandDigs gives us the chance to talk live with our fans, share videos, broadcast all our live shows and the best thing is you can see us from anywhere and at anytime. I think this is gonna be killer and the fans are gonna love it!”
Musician-Tested, Fan-Friendly
For the last several months, Wheeler, a veteran chief information officer from the high-tech industry has guided BandDigs through an extensive test marketing process. This included granting full access to the site to nearly 50 recording artists and music businesses putting the site through its paces. The result is a web-based platform that offers the benefits of technology and community access to musicians. BandDigs already has artists on the site who are signed to labels such as Virgin Records, RCA, Motown, Columbia, Nonesuch, Vagrant, Fueled by Raman and Immortal.
Music businesses including record labels, management companies, gear manufacturers, venues, promoters, and producers currently use expensive web conferencing services for communicating and delivering training, consulting services and product demonstrations. BandDigs Business Develop Manager Tracy Vail explains, “BandDigs replaces these conferencing tools for about half the cost and also provides additional features such as the large interactive video chat space and live video broadcasts. These features can be cool options if a company wants to showcase its product or services or better yet, interact face-to-face with their customers.”
According to Wheeler the new technology has the potential to change how bands evolve and market themselves. “This creates an unequaled opportunity for bands to interact with fans from a one-on-one to a global basis and get immediate feedback as they create, test and change their material, image and branding in real time with the fans around the globe,” Wheeler concluded.
Fans Gain Unprecedented Access
What makes BandDigs different for fans is that they actually get to talk to their favorite recording artists using their webcam face-to-face. They don’t just receive “be my friend” requests and text updates. Fans get to provide the band real-time feedback about songs, shows, videos, CD artwork, etc. Fans can record all video chats and live video broadcasts and make them available for download on BandDigs so they can keep a copy for themselves on their computer, i-Pod and even on some cell phones.
Fans can easily participate in group chat rooms with their favorite performers and watch free live video broadcasts. They can also earn prizes by promoting bands to others. All they need to do is create a free account on BandDigs and then become a fan of the bands they like. Fans get their own pages on the site and their own video BLOG space designed to help them tell others about the bands that they support. Fans can also purchase premium services such as one-on-one recorded video chats with their favorite bands.
Ben Consoli, lead singer for the very popular Boston based band Violet Nine www.violetnine.com, offered “Our favorite thing about BandDigs is the video chats. All we need is a webcam and all our fan needs is a computer and we can talk.”
About Yellow Brick Road Entertainment LLC:
The Software Association of New Hampshire and Governor John Lynch presented Yellow Brick Road Entertainment with the “2006 Rookie of the Year” award for the BandDigs.com product. The award is given to companies who demonstrate “cutting edge technology, a coolness factor and the potential for explosive growth.”
Yellow Brick Road Entertainment is a privately funded New Hampshire based company dedicated to creating and applying technology solutions that revolutionize the relationship between recording artists and their fan base worldwide.
[tags]Yellow Brick Road Entertainment, BandDigs music portal, interactive music web community, music video chat[/tags]
