A&E

Tech-savvy musicians get with Stageit.com

by Dominick Cross

StageIt.com allows performers to present live concerts on the Internet rather inexpensively, and this concept also applies to fans of the musicians who can get the show streamed to their computer for as little as $4.

With technology on their side, musicians are finding inventive ways to reach their audience and last week Marc Broussard and Roddie Romero did just that with a concert on an online concert site called StageIt.com.

StageIt.com allows performers to present live concerts on the Internet rather inexpensively, and this concept also applies to fans of the musicians who can get the show streamed to their computer for as little as $4.

According to reports, Broussard says the June 20 performance was also a launch of his Kickstarter campaign for his new album and he wants to include fans as part of "the creative process," he says. "I want this to be their record."

Performers access the Stageit.com site to set up a concert. Performers make 85 percent of all tickets and tips after expenses; StageIt takes a 15 percent distribution fee. (A portion of  the proceeds is used to cover direct expenses like bandwidth, composition licensing, and credit card transaction costs.)

StageIt.com site reports that: "We want to make sure that as much of the proceeds as possible goes to our artists so we are working hard to keep expenses down. But under no circumstances will expenses associated with shows ever exceed 25 percent of the total proceeds from any performance. In other words, we will cover all direct expenses over 25 percent of total proceeds and if expenses dip below that amount then we will pass that on to you, the artist. There is no charge to use Stageit as we front all of the costs."

Broussard plans to release an EP later this summer, with a follow-up album on Vanguard Records next year. He also plans on utilizing StageIt.com. The concert was produced and hosted by Lafayette's Jones Communications.