Amanda Palmer TED Talk

Amanda takes music and brings it back to an art form- not a business. She makes her music for the music; not the money. She gives her fans her music and her fans give her a place to stay and help her out. It’s like her fans are a part of her band because they do so much. If they are true fans they will gladly support the artist they love. She says that asking her fans for help brings them closer and forms a connection. She doesn't just love her fans- she trusts them. She trusts that they will give her what she needs to keep making her music. Her presentation style is very easy-going. She is obviously at home and calm on the stage. She moves around some but it is in a casual style, not agitated or nervous. She used her hands to emphasize and she has a very theatrical look. Her topic is not a very widely accepted thing but she is passionate about it and shows the audience that. She is dressed differently than most of the speakers we have seen, which adds to her persona and her topic. She is not afraid to be that person. She even says that her music is not for everyone but she continues making it and advocating for a record label-less music business. Even though she got a lot of crap for being a street performer, she says that it has helped her tremendously in her music business because it has showed her that asking for help is okay. All the people yelling at her “to get a job” probably do not realize that she is educated and a college graduate who chose this as her current job. It took me a while to warm up to the ideas she was talking about but she presented them in a way that makes sense. She knows not everyone is in favor of them and she speaks from all angles.