Bandcamp’s COVID-19 day sees fans drop $4.3m to support artists

Bandcamp’s decision to waive its fees last Friday paid big dividends.

In an attempt to support the acts using its service, Bandcamp announced that all music and merchandise purchased on March 19 would go directly to artists.

Fans responded in kind, dropping a whopping $4.3 million across the day.

In a statement thanking its community and fans, Bandcamp revealed that fans were purchasing 11 items every second across the 24 hour period.

On a typical Friday, the platform sees around 47,000 items purchased. But last Friday that doubled by more than 15 times to 800,000 purchases.

Many artists released new or exclusive merch on the day, while there were a stack of digital exclusives and surprise releases for fans.

Others discounted releases or changed their music to ‘Name Your Price’.

Several music labels got behind the cause as well, donating all revenue from purchases on the day direct to artists, including Melbourne record label Poison City. A list of those labels is available here.

“We don’t yet know the long-term impact of Covid-19, but we know that we all need music—to uplift and inspire us, to heal us, and to give us hope,” said Bandcamp CEO Ethan Diamond.

“We’ll continue working to make Bandcamp the best place for fans and artists to come together and sustain each other in the challenging times ahead. Thank you again, and we wish you all good health!”