Annie Moscow on Kickstarter
Annie recently decided to embark on quest to raise money for her next album through the Kickstarter fundraising platform. Like many music artists, Annie has decided to try crowd-funding to help support her creativity.
So far, she has received more than $5000 in contributions and has never been so close to her funding goals. With the backing of top music industry talent, she has the right team behind her to make this a rewarding project for all involved.
Collaborating with Grammy-nominated music producer, John Jennings, Annie will be making her 5th album, that will be an all-acoustic CD. Dave Mattacks (Elton John, Paul McCartney, Jethro Tull) will also play the drums.
For the first time Annie will be able to fund her new album with the support of donors from across America, and thanks to her loyal supporters she has had a great start to her campaign.
Discover more about Annie's musical career and what she plans to do once her album is financed. Check out her Kickstarter page for more information.
Interview with Annie Moscow
Iain: How have you managed to grow your fan base for your music?
Annie: Almost exclusively through live performances. My fan base is small, but wonderful. I know most of my fans personally. But the downside is that because I haven’t ventured much beyond my comfort zone, my music has had only very limited exposure, which is not helping right now!
Iain : What do you have planned for the photography and cover design of the album?
Annie: I’m considering a self-portrait I did when I was 20. I used to be a painter and never threw anything away. I did shove a lot of things into back closets though. Then about a year ago when I was getting ready to move and packing everything up, I came across that self portrait and realized I was right back there again, today.
The portrait is, of course, a younger me; wide-eyed, the mood is a little dark and very reflective. I’m not as dark anymore, but I have been feeling incredibly reflective lately. I also like the “younger me” part of it, because there have been so many recent, major changes in my life, and now that I’m just starting out again, starting over with everything new, I'm feeling very young again.
Iain: How did you get the support of other musicians including Grammy-nominated producer, John Jennings?
Annie: I attended the International Folk Alliance conference last February, where I ran into Kari Estrin, a music management consultant, whom I’ve known casually for about 6 years. This time when we talked she said, “When do you want to start working together?” and I said “Now.”
Kari’s the one who recommended John Jennings as a producer. She knew him and thought he’d be a great match for my music. When I was finally able to get through to John and we were able to meet, he thought so too.
Oh, and the drummer, Dave Mattacks (Jethro Tull, Roseanne Cash, Paul McCartney, Elton John), works a lot with John Jennings.
Iain: Can you envisage doing a music video for one of your songs?
Annie: Yes! Coming from a visual background as a painter, I can see the whole movies of my songs before they become the words and music, so yes - I would love to the see the video come to life of each and every one of them. But if I get the budget, the first one will most likely be “Little Bird Outside the Cage”.
I see you little bird outside the cage
Don’t look behind don’t even question why
I know you little bird outside the cage
Betcha didn’t even know that you could fly
Iain: Are there any particular singers you admire who have inspired your creativity and musical style?
Annie: So many. My earliest influences were Billy Joel and Joni Mitchell. Tori Amos’s song “Silent All These Years” was seminal in me first stepping out on stage as a singer/songwriter 12 years ago. Other major influences and favorites include: Laura Nyro, Tom Waits, Stevie Wonder, Steely Dan, k.d. Lang, Phoebe Snow and Annie Lennox. And some days, I just want to be Bill Evans.
Iain: If your project gets funded in time (fingers crossed!) what will be the first step?
Annie: Recording. The date is already set for the end of this month. My fingers are crossed too!
Annie describes the process she went through to raise funds via Kickstarter in more detail on her personal blog.
