This is sad to see.
AJ Rafael says he will soon suspend all live concerts due to a lack of support from his massive base of subscribers on You Tube.
The Filipino American has amassed a following of a half million subscribers and 100 million views.
Yet those same people aren’t turning out for his concerts and he can no longer justify producing them.
New Media Rockstars posted an open letter from Rafael to his fans.
“I can admit that things are getting harder. It’s harder for me as an independent musician to be financially stable nowadays. I played a tour last year where it was 5 cities and a total of 300 people came to see the shows. The promoter thought I would sell out 500 capacity venues because of my 100 million views and 500,000 subs on You Tube. And that burns a little, to be honest.”
I can admit that things are getting harder. It’s harder for me as an independent musician to be financially stable nowadays. I played a tour last year where it was 5 cities, and a TOTAL of 300 people came to the shows. The promoter thought I would sell out 500 capacity venues because of my 100 million views and 500,000 subs on YouTube. And that burns a little, to be honest. – See more at: http://newmediarockstars.com/2014/06/aj-rafael-announces-hiatus-from-performing-exclusive-letter/#sthash.FcKDDMdR.dpuf
Perhaps what’s even tougher for Rafael is that views of his videos have declined dramatically as the music landscape has changed and You Tube becomes more crowded. In his letter, Rafael drops hints he may also post fewer songs on You Tube as well.
His letter is a heart felt admission that performing is tough and making a living from it can be even tougher. It’s perhaps an indication why so few Asian Americans have made it in the entertainment industry.
So don’t take it for granted. If you see something you like, enjoy it, share it, become a loyal fan and most of all, support it. If you don’t, one day you may wake up and your favorite performer will be gone.
You can read his letter in its entirety on New Media Rockstars.
