Bandcamp is a website where artists can sell their music and merchandise directly to their fans. Seems common enough, yeah? But what sets them apart is the ability for artists to provide a name-your-price option for their music. According to the website, “On name-your-price albums, fans pay an average of 50% more than the minimum.” Sounds pretty good for an independent artist just trying to make a buck.

I prefer going old school and buying physical CDs but a ton of today’s music is strictly distributed digitally. For many independent artists, shelling out money to manufacture CDs is an unnecessary expense in a digital age. Bandcamp is a great place to discover, buy, and download music. There are many albums on the website that have minimum or set prices so don’t be disappointed when you stumble upon music that’s more than $1!

I’ve scoured the website and picked a bunch of my name-your-price favorites. You can download them for free by typing in $0 when you check out, or pay as much as you want to support the artist. Please know that the music I listed below is not guaranteed to stay free forever because the artists can change their prices whenever they want to. Download away!

Watsky, Nothing Like the First Time

You guys remember Watsky? Say what you will, but his flow is crazy good. He’s like a rapping Michael Cera.

Staycen x Koen, Never Too Late EP

Staycen is a singer and Koen is a producer so together they’re…Staycen x Koen. Their music has a neo-soul vibe with a harder hip-hop beat.

Cries Wolf, Frankly, My Dear

Cries Wolf is an acoustic band with a folk twist from the UK. Frankly, My Dear is their solid debut EP.

OVERWERK, The Nth º

OVERWERK specializes in electro dubstep. His music is tailor-made for massive clubs and festivals packed with EDM lovers.

Mosh, Monarchy

Monarchy is like house music’s version of industrial rock. It’s not for everyone but still worth checking out.

The Townhouses, Diaspora

Listen and download this if you like ambient music a la Jónsi/Sigur Rós and Explosions in the Sky.

The Oh Hello’s, Through the Deep, Dark Valley

The Oh Hello’s is a fun folk rock sibling duo from Texas. My favorite song from them is “Eat You Alive” which sounds like something from The Lumineers or Of Monsters and Men. If you like Mumford & Sons, you’ll be into this.

Capital Cities, “Safe and Sound”

“Safe and Sound” was my summer song. Upbeat? Check. Synths? Check. Singalongability? Check. Click here for a few more free downloads from them!