LAUNDROMAT EP RELEASE

I'm Ray Duncan, nice to meet you! I'm an independent woman artist living in Nashville, Tennessee and I'm raising money to put out my EP!

"Laundromat" is a 5 song EP that I recorded with my band at Starbird Sound. This collection of songs explores themes of self sabotage, general existentialism, and the struggles of working in the service industry. I'm so proud of how this project turned out and now it's time for me to do justice to this work and the people who helped me make it by putting everything I can behind the release. 

And putting out music takes serious money! The music industry has become less and less sustainable for independent artists. Spotify and Live Nation have created monopolies over both live and recorded music, making it nearly impossible to go into this business and make a living. We are living in a world where we are going to get what we pay for, and if we don't pay for and support independent art, it is going to disappear.  People like me are getting priced out of not just making a living from art, but from making art at all. And the problem disproportionately impacts women artists. According to a report collecting data from Billboard's Hot 100 chart between the years 2012 and 2018, women still made up only 21.7% of artists, 12.3% of songwriters, and 2.1% of producers. Even now in 2024, while these numbers have improved slightly with 24% of Grammy nominations going to women, we also can see that there's still a long way to go. This is why I chose IFundWomen as my campaign platform, because I want to be a part of their overall mission of gender equity to benefit all women and gender expansive people.

As a one woman operation, I am my own manager, booking agent, and marketing strategist. In making this project, from the saxophonist to the graphic designer to the consultant helping me run this campaign, I have employed over 10 people. With the support of my community I put my heart and soul into this project, and I want to give it a fighting chance when it's released into the world. These costs are very inaccessible to an artist at my level to pay for out of pocket, which is where you all come in. The money I raise this month is going to be put towards a PR Campaign (&/or social media strategist), at least 1 music video, marketing images/photos, album artwork and other graphic design elements. With this help I can release the project in early 2025 the RIGHT way!

Asking for money is vulnerable. It feels weird every time! The only reason I really feel at peace with doing it, is because I have my community reminding me that this is bigger than me, and is bigger than this project. This is a call to support and pay for not just mine, but any indie artist's music you would like to continue to hear. I launch this campaign even as I am keenly aware of other causes that urgently cry for our attention and our dollars, and I do not wish to distract or take away from the numerous humanitarian crises that we are fighting constantly. That being said, and I had to say it, I think we can live in a world of both/and. I believe we can support each other's artistic endeavors in our own communities, while we continue to vote, protest, boycott, and use our art and platforms to fight against corruption and injustice throughout the world.

Thank you very much for your time if you read this far. Since I played my first gig at 13 years old this has been a dream of mine and I don't take your time and support for granted. Every dollar and every share truly adds up. 

My sincerest thanks. RAY