Funding & online promotion for unsigned bands....look no further than Slicethepie
These days there are so many websites around for unsigned bands to use as a vehicle for some online promotion. More recently, a new strain of sites provide a platform to emerging artists via funding from advertisers and various other sources. Sites such as We7 and Bandstocks, as well as numerous unsigned contests and competitions offer bands the chance to compete for the funds to propel their career to the next level.
Slicethepie has one key difference. Unsigned bands and artists are funded by the fans themselves. This means the bands in question know that the interest, and ultimately finance, invested into them is genuine. So, not only will fortunate acts receive money to move their careers forward, they can also bank on expanding their fanbase in the process!
was launched in June 2007 and has gradually built up a roster of bands and artists registered to the site who have actively seen results from the fan-funding process. If you think your music is up to scratch then why not take a punt on getting some cash in your pocket through Slicethepie. We had a chat with Grace Hammond to get the full lowdown…
 So what is the idea behind Slicethepie?
Slicethepie is a filter and financing engine for new music. Music fans get to be a part of discovering the best new music, and then the best artists get to move forward to raise finance to record an album! The idea came from our CEO who realised there was a wealth of unknown artists that were sat on MySpace and similar sites which would probably never be discovered! Slicethepie is not just another band competition, but a chance to get reviews from real music fans, and possibly record your album too!
In a nutshell, how does it work?
Artists create a profile, upload some tracks and straight away start receiving reviews. Music fans can register too, and get paid to review the tracks in ‘Scout Rooms’. The reviewing is double blind, so reviewers don’t know who it is they’re reviewing until the review has been posted, and artists don’t know who reviewed them. This means that reviews are totally objective, thus more accurate. The top rated artists move on to ‘Showcases’ where fans can invest in them from as little as £1 upwards.
Is there a fee for bands/artists to join?
No, joining Slicethepie is absolutely free!
What do the bands use the finance for? Is it mostly releases?
Yes, artists that get financed use the money to record and release an album (which has to be 10 tracks).
Most artists release a single or 2 as well. The £15,000 can be spent at an artist’s discretion, so some artists have splashed out on big producers, other held back as much as possible for PR, and so on.
How many unsigned bands & artists have been financed through Slicethepie?
25 so far!
 Any success stories you can share with us?
One of our artists is about to sign a huge deal but it’s completely top secret! Between our financed artists they have played at all the major UK festivals, worked with some huge producers, had coverage in magazines such as Kerrang! and NME, and been played on national radio stations (including BBC 6 Music etc). We wouldn’t like to give one artist all the glory so that covers a bunch of them.
And how much do fans have to invest?
Fans can invest anything up from £1 upwards.
What do the investors get out of the process?
Investors get a copy of the album, exclusive access to the artist (competitions/forums etc) and their name on the album sleeve. Probably best of all…they get the bragging rights to tell everyone they discovered them first and have the proof!
Do you have any general tips or advice for unsigned bands?
I don’t envy unsigned bands, it’s a tough job. Our advice would be to stick at it, keep enjoying what you’re doing and (*ahem shameless plug*) get involved on Slicethepie to get some feedback about your tracks, and potentially get the chance to gain £15k to record your album!
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