‘Kadasig,’ a good project to support

The phrase “support local music” has been tossed around numerous times. But “Kadasig” is one of those projects that challenge and give locals the opportunity to put their money where there mouth is.

The brainchild of songwriter/producer/musical extraordinaire Jude Gitamondoc, Kadasig is a crowd funding project aimed at producing and releasing 10 Bisaya songs, one song per month, beginning February of next year until November. For Kadasig, Gitamondoc works in partnership with Fatboys Production and 1032 Recording Studio.

To jumpstart the project, Kadasig aims to raise P300,000 by Dec. 27.

So how does Kadasig complement the local music scene? Gitamondoc, co-organizer and creative director of Vispop, said: “We were not really able to convince music enthusiasts to pay for the songs as they were all readily available online. It is the common pitfall of songwriting contests to choose songs that are lyrically or conceptually superior. Thus, there were some really great songs, possibly hit songs, that didn’t make the cut as they did not stand out enough compared to other ‘winnable’ entries during the arduous screening process.”

“Another pitfall of songwriting contests is the issue of publishing. Vispop’s revenue from publishing mostly services the organizing committee and its affiliate publisher rather than the interests of the campaign and the benefits of the songwriters. Furthermore, since Vispop is hugely dependent on the generosity of Filscap at this point, the activity isn’t really self-sustaining, nor is it providing substantial financial returns for its songwriters.”

Gitamondoc believes that this is where Kadasig comes in; the next step in promoting Bisaya music.

Kadasig is an online campaign that wants to convince everyone to support Bisayawriting songwriters by donating for the cause or buying the music and merchandise through legitimate means. Through this, the project hopes to build a sustainable music environment that empowers local songwriters as they can support themselves financially. It aims to achieve this via two dimensions: Kolektib (External) and Kooperatib (Internal).

Kolektib takes the form of a crowd funding campaign and is also supported by The Spark Project, a crowd funding site based in the Philippines. When people pledge a certain amount for the Kadasig project this 2017, donors not only get to hear the new songs released, but will also get incentives relative to the amount of their donations. The higher the donation, the better the incentive. The incentives range from merchandise lyric shirts, perks like exclusive online performances, to original handwritten manuscripts of the lyrics (with an autograph from the songwriters).

Kooperatib allows a featured songwriter to sign a publishing agreement and become a regular member. Upon release of the song, the songwriter is paid a fixed amount as advanced royalty. The publishing contract also does not cover the entire lifespan of the song; just the first 10 years, with the option to extend left to the discretion of the songwriter. Should he opt not to extend, the publishing returns to him, but he also loses his share in the cooperative.

Basically, the premise is to make the project sustainable both for the songwriter and the cooperative. The songwriter earns enough to make him want to write more Bisaya songs.

“I have long searched for a business model that would be relevant, useful and sustainable in the context of a Bisaya-writing songwriter. This is the closest I got to an attempt. I would be needing input from everyone regarding the viability of the idea. I really hope this would be a good first step to realizing the dream of a sustainable Bisaya music industry,” added Gitamondoc.

For 2017, Kadasig has collected songs from songwriters who’ve proven their artistry through Vispop and other avenues. In the future, Kadasig will open its doors for submission and a screening committee will be set up to choose from all the entries. Take note: Kadasig is not a songwriting contest.

For more details on how to support this project, or questions as to how it works, visit www.thesparkproject.com/projects/view/kadasig.