Independent Music Platform Ampwall Launches Signups Built by and for DIY musicians, the Bandcamp alternative is now open to the public.
By
Tara Bellucci
September 30, 2024
Image by Clem Onojeghuo
A new platform for DIY musicians, Ampwall, launched public signups earlier this month. With artist pages, libraries, e-commerce, and more, the site is aiming to be an independent music alternative to Bandcamp.
Founder Chris Grigg started building the site in January 2023, devoting nights and weekends to the project around his day job as a software engineer. Grigg also happens to be in black metal band Woe, and had experienced the limitations of current platforms firsthand.
There are certain things I want from a platform that Bandcamp cant do for me. I can build these things. Itll be fun, Grigg says. Eventually, he began working on Ampwall full-time and self-funding the operation with a small team.
Artists can update their pages with images, band information, and links to press, social media, collaborators, visual artists, and collaborators. Music can be batch uploaded (a feature that costs extra on Bandcamp but is included in a basic $10 annual subscription on Ampwall). Artists can post announcements and blog posts, include metadata about uploads, add lyrics, and set up pre-orders.
One unique artist page feature is the supported artists section, where bands can link to their other favorites on Ampwall, like a MySpace Top 8. We have a big dungeon synth community. The dungeon synth artists are all linking to each other through the top artists, so if you hit one, you can discover them through each other, Grigg says.
It creates a kind of long-forgotten facet of discovery. Were used to discovery being, you go to the explore section and you click tags. This is a more organic form of discovery where its this band likes these other bands.
On the merch side, there's the customization and shipping options you'd expect from any e-commerce platform. The major difference is that Ampwall doesn't want to be an e-commerce platform that focuses on the small percentage of top-earning users to grow. Incorporated as a public benefit company like Patagonia and Kickstarter, they have to consider the impact on society of their work alongside profit. The subscription model (starting at $10 per year for five hours of uploaded music) helps avoid the pressure to take large transaction fees. Grigg says they will actually reduce transaction fees from the current 5 percent (Bandcamp charges 10 to 15 percent) as Ampwall grows.
We want bands to keep their money. We dont want to tax bands for their success, he says.
The platform's library is still in its early stages-at the time of writing, the tag indie rock pulls up 14 artist results, shoegaze has five. But as you can see on the company's X account, new musicians are joining every day.
Grigg wants to make sure everyone feels welcome on the platform. The truth is, I'm a metal guy, our team is metal people. [For] our early users, we drew from our network, our friends, word of mouth-its coming out of metal. But you don't have to have an amp to be on Ampwall. He says that there will be site and branding tweaks in the future to reflect that.
We like building cool things. Part of the inspiration [for Ampwall] is that Bandcamp stopped innovating, Grigg says. We have big ambitions for our technology. Were 19 months in and they have a 15-year head start. We have a lot of ground to cover, but weve covered a lot of distance so far.
Related Categories
News
Most Popular
Jim Lucchese
Image by Kelly Davidson
Jim Lucchese Named Berklee's Fifth President A 20-year music industry veteran and a committed artist advocate with deep Berklee roots, Lucchese sets the tone for a new era at the institution.
Latest
Boston Conservatory Orchestra Presents Telling the Story at Symphony Hall The program celebrates the art of storytelling through orchestral favorites and a contemporary composition.
Berklee and Can We Talk Celebrate Healing Power of the Arts in BIPOC Communities Arts Activation 2024: Harmony and Healing (October 19) unites artists, thought leaders, and healthcare professionals to explore the arts' ability to heal and connect.
Image by Kelly Davidson
Student Spotlight: Rafael Heredia The flamenco percussionist is channeling the vibrant music scenes of Japan and Spain in his musical explorations at Berklee, and offers a refreshing take on looking within for inspiration.
Read All
Subscribe The latest sounds, stories, and ideas, sent to your inbox weekly.
North America Stories
06/04/2026
Michigan legends bring a new voice to the broadcast as TNT Sports and CBS Sports...
06/04/2026
From high school sports all the way up to the major leagues, building high-quali...
06/04/2026
Quickplay, an AI company for the media and entertainment industry, has been accepted into the Advanced tier of the TwelveLabs Ecosystem Partner Program. Quickpl...
06/04/2026
Grass Valley has announced the Future Playmakers Program, a global initiative to...
06/04/2026
El l der de operaciones impulsa la producci n en estudio mientras encuentra insp...
06/04/2026
The ops leader helps lead the charge in studio for the Spanish-language broadcas...
06/04/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
06/04/2026
The National Hockey League (NHL), in partnership with Verizon and the New Jersey Devils, today announced the opening of the NHL Innovation Lab powered by Verizo...
06/04/2026
Rock League, a new professional curling league, has announced that ESPN+ will stream its inaugural 2026 season for fans in the United States. The first Rock Lea...
06/04/2026
Advanced Systems Group has announced the appointment of Andrea (Andy) Cummis as Vice President of Systems Design and Engineering. In this role, she will lead de...
06/04/2026
Backed by Bolt Ventures, the venture brings Bryson DeChambeau, Grant Horvat, and...
06/04/2026
With this environment we can start that collaboration even earlier because we ca...
06/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/04/2026
Dalet Showcases Dalia Agentic AI and End-to-End Media Workflows at NAB Show 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Dalet, a leading technology and...
06/04/2026
OpenDrives Shows Off Sports Expertise in Sports Business Hub located in NAB Show...
06/04/2026
Proton to Demonstrate 3D Application at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Yet further creative potential unleashed through innovation in ...
06/04/2026
Autoscript Highlights Voice-Driven Prompting and PTZ Solutions at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Experience Autoscript Voice, PTZ prom...
06/04/2026
Mediaproxy Highlights Significant Enhancements to its LogServer suite at NAB Sho...
06/04/2026
April 6th, 2026
TRIBECA STUDIOS AND LILLY ANNOUNCE WINNERS OF INAUGURAL VITAL...
06/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Expands Kids Entertainment Lineup With Playground App ...
04/04/2026
The University of Arizona's Men's Basketball team has only loss twice th...
04/04/2026
1080p HDR arrives, a new generation of storytelling tools takes center stage, an...
04/04/2026
Michigan legends bring a new voice to the broadcast as TNT Sports and CBS Sports...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
DHD Introduces AI-Based Audio Noise Reduction to XD3 IP Core
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
The accompanying image shows the rear panel of the ...
04/04/2026
Macnica Redefines ST 2110 Flexibility with Two Speeds on One Card
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
New for NAB Show 2026, MEP100 SmartNIC now sup...
04/04/2026
Unified Media Workflows for Story-Centric Production
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
Framelight X unifies field capture, editing and publishing ...
03/04/2026
Michigan's Fab Five will reunite for an alternate presentation of the Mich...
03/04/2026
Avid will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (April 18-22, Booth N2226, Las Vegas Convention Center), demonstrating its Content Core platform and new AI-driven workflow c...
03/04/2026
Mark Roberts Motion Control (MRMC) has announced the appointment of Nick Barthee as Chief Operating Officer.
The announcement follows MRMC's transition fro...
03/04/2026
Interra Systems has announced that Elite Media Technologies has selected its BATON file-based QC solution for media workflows. Elite Media Technologies speciali...
03/04/2026
Ateme has announced that Moldtelecom has deployed Ateme technologies across its streaming workflow, covering encoding, delivery, operations, and analytics.
Mol...
03/04/2026
Grass Valley will demonstrate Framelight X, its content management platform, at NAB Show 2026. The platform connects capture, ingest, editing, and publishing in...
03/04/2026
Encompass Digital Media and Techex have announced a cloud-native Master Control ...
03/04/2026
Live Vertical Video automatically track the action on the court via AI technology and delivers a fully optimized, 9 16 live feed for viewers...
03/04/2026
As the Illini make their first trip to college basketball's biggest stage si...
03/04/2026
After last summer's Softball National Championship victory and last week'...
03/04/2026
The University of Arizona's Men's Basketball team has only loss twice th...
03/04/2026
Eight games across four tournaments will be played in three venues; accommodatio...
03/04/2026
The Ottawa Senators and Bell Media have announced a long-term rights extension for regional Ottawa Senators games on TSN and RDS. TSN Radio 1200 remains the exc...
03/04/2026
Massive production in Phoenix is run out of Game Creek Video Flagship mobile uni...
03/04/2026
New York April 2, 2026 TelevisaUnivision, the world's leading Spanish-la...
03/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
Independent Music Platform Ampwall Launches Signups Built by and for DIY musicians, the Bandcamp alternative is now open to the public. 
