Courtesy of Baton Rouge Music Studios
Baton Rouge Music Studios owner Doug Gay with students (from left to right) Josh Campesi, Elise Chaky, Dane Harter, Ann Lin; taken at their last gig of the semester.
“Well, a lot of changes have gone down since Hip first hit the heartland,” wrote music critic Lester Bangs, way back in 1970. What would that arbiter of cool have to say about Indiegogo? The crowdfunding website, operating in a similar vein to Kickstarter, gives filmmakers, musicians, and the like a financial leg up with their projects. Imagine the Medicis, bankrollers of the Renaissance—but instead of one loaded family, you’re looking at a boundless sea of online supporters.
Baton Rouge Music Studios, which specializes in music education for area youth, first began considering the launch of its own Indiegogo campaign in 2012, looking to fund a huge upgrade in facilities and offerings; but it wasn’t until this past March that the effort went live. “We do everything very slowly. We’re a small business that’s growing so fast that everyone has to wear multiple hats,” said owner Doug Gay.
When Gay started the business in 2006, teaching music lessons to a class of ten kids, he vowed to keep the environment negativity-free, thinking back to discouraging teachers he’d had during his own school years. “My passion is to never let that happen to anyone in my sphere of influence,” said Gay. “The primary goal is to have these kids feel smart, supported, and loved.”
Staying positive has paid off, literally. The campaign’s biggest donor—supplying one-fifth of Baton Rouge Music Studio’s $50,000 goal—cited his confidence, based on past experiences with Gay, that the money would be used well.
Gay was even placed in the unusual position of having to dampen the enthusiasm of certain patrons: “I had to ask my mom to stop donating,” he laughed.
The campaign ended successfully on May 12, topping off at $51,305. The money will go towards the company’s move into a much larger building, which will allow for an in-house venue, giving the students a comfortable and convenient place to perform; a professional recording studio; and a sound engineering curriculum, for kids who don’t play an instrument but are interested in the music industry. “These three components can work together to create well-rounded musicians, engineers, whatever. We’re cross-training,” said Gay.
It wasn’t the most natural fit for Gay and company to turn to the community for funding. “Being service-oriented people, we don’t like to ask for things. We like to be givers and not receivers.” But Baton Rouge Music Studios is thrilled to have the financial padding to move forward with its dreams and benefit the city’s young creatives even more. “We’re here to provide something for the kids,” Gay said.
