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Joe Martin calls himself a 21st century troubadour. He is an independent singer-songwriter based on the Isle of Man, writing Americana and country, touring the UK, and selling music and merch for sats.

In this episode of Share Your Bitcoin Journey, Bitcoin For The Arts founder Dion Wilson sits down with Joe about putting the song first, the streaming economy that paid him almost nothing, and the week he uploaded one song as a podcast and earned about $100. That was more than years on Spotify.

They walk through his album Alone in Valentine, recorded in Nashville with Cal Campbell and Cornelius Webb, sons of Glen Campbell and Jimmy Webb. Joe went to Valentine, Texas, to shoot the artwork himself. He spent most of his savings. He made the record with no AI, on purpose. He wanted one fully human document before shortcuts became the default. The parallel is plain. Inflation eats your money. AI slop eats your art.

IN THIS EPISODE: Piano at five, a guitar in his teens, and a father who wrote songs at home Why he calls himself a 21st century troubadour It's all about the song: nothing left to take away Why he left the UK for the Isle of Man About $100 in the first week on RSS, more than years on Spotify The chicken and egg of value for value Alone in Valentine: Nashville, most of his savings, and no AI Inflation and AI slop as twin debasements Vinyl at Grimey's in Nashville, and why he would rather be paid in sats A room of 30 listeners over a room of a thousand Advice for a younger songwriter: Nostr first, then RSS, then save the sats What a $500 to $2,000 Bitcoin micro-grant would unlock: marketing the album

FIND JOE MARTIN: Website: https://www.joemartinmusic.com Listen and zap: Fountain and Wavlake U.S. vinyl: Grimey's, Nashville Nostr: Joe Martin Watch: https://youtu.be/MXUgrViBCaI

ABOUT BITCOIN FOR THE ARTS: 501(c)(3) nonprofit empowering artists with Bitcoin grants, education, and sovereign funding tools. https://www.bitcoinforthearts.org Grants: https://www.bitcoinforthearts.org/grants/apply Donate: https://www.bitcoinforthearts.org/donate X: https://x.com/Bitcoinfta Nostr: https://primal.net/p/npub15rnn220qfdyhpgv9apjt38nadc0dzj8a7zpcrd2q4spq5apvvt2suswnaw