Matthew Taranto
patreon
BitMusical coming to an end after December
🕑 Added 2024-10-25 19:07:51 +0000 UTCHi friends. It’s bittersweet to write but today’s announcement is that BitMusical will be wrapping up this December.
The reasons why are a little complex, but the main one is due to the amount of work required. It’s simply not feasible for me to continue financially given how long each video takes (~5 or so weeks of work). I was hoping it could be a full-time gig but as I alluded to when wrapping up the Waluigi songs, YouTube just doesn’t quite work the same way as it used to.
Lots of creators are feeling the sting of being ignored by the algorithm and it can be discouraging. Case in point, Masahiro Sakurai’s absolutely genius game development channel got some 20M views across 260 videos, and he deserved fifty times that amount when considering the level of work and professionalism put into those. What “goes viral” can seemingly feel random, luck-based. It is stressful.
Ending the Waluigi videos was actually a lead-in to ending BitM, a sort of more encompassing personal decision for me to shift gears and be online less often. I’d like to disengage a bit with the internet in a broader sense. It can be addictive, stressful, and frustrating, somehow all at the same time.
You guys have all been great though. Ever since Brawl in the Family, I’ve really enjoyed interacting with fans and every positive message has been very encouraging over the years to continue doing my best. Thank you for the years of support!
Bringing it back to BitMusical, I’m very proud of the work done through this series and consider it some of my best and most accessible. I’ve been able to put my all into these songs to combine several things I love doing—drawing, composing, writing, storyboarding, singing, and making silly jokes—into a singular vision.
So how do the next couple months shake out? Well, next week will feature the fourth and final BitMusical Live!, where I’ll play, sing, chat, and take requests for the usual 2 hours. I’ll also reveal then what the final BitMusical song will be, which will be ready in December. In the meantime, I’ll still be providing the usual Patreon updates such as the tier bonuses, but there’ll also be a lot of reveals/descriptions of my master document for song ideas I hadn’t gotten to make. Things like a Wicked parody featuring Gruntilda and Brentilda, or a yodeling number all about Eario. These ideas were a lot of fun to think up, so don’t miss them!
Soon after song 11 goes up, I’ll be uploading “BitMusical: World 2” to Spotify and other apps, so you’ll be able to enjoy 2024’s bunch of six songs alongside the six that are already up.
Even though I’m planning on distancing myself some, I won’t be resting on my laurels. I’ve got another Kickstarter planned soon, and at least two other projects currently in the planning stages for me to tackle in 2025. So I’ll still be around, just not as often.
So what’ll happen with the Patreon? Starting in 2025, I won’t be doing regular updates here, but the plan is to keep it up as a sort of an occasional blog on what things I’ve been working on and feel comfortable revealing. I don’t love social media so I may prefer this method for a while just to keep people informed. These upcoming posts will all be free to view as well.
Thank you again for all your support! It means a great deal to me and interacting with you guys and sharing my videos has been a memorable and exciting experience, even if I can’t sustain it much longer. There will still be updates every week through the end of the year including December’s song, so stick around until then at least!
Thanks,
-Matthew
Comments
Glen Straughn
Man, what a shame. I understand, though. It was a cool idea, just not one that's compatible with how YouTube works, sadly. But I'm not going to mope. Not when there's a Kickstarter and more to look forward to! Whatever the project, I know you'll deliver! And that's to say nothing of the remaining songs or livestreams.
Quester
I was really hoping this would work out financially for you but was afraid it wouldn't. I became a patreon because I've appreciated your stuff for many years and still do. And now my kids absolutely love all of it: the songs, the comics. Hardly a day goes by where they aren't reading BitF or Waluigi Time. That's not an exaggeration. So absolutely do start a new chapter in life. And if you choose to share it, we'll be waiting, ready to enjoy and cheer you on. Thanks, Matthew! (By the way, my clothed Samus kickstarter drawing is my computer background on all my computers. Love it.)
