Stereogum Reveals They’re At Risk of Shutting Down After Founder Reacquires Site, Announces ’00s Covers Benefit Album Featuring Speedy Ortiz, Anna Calvi, Charly Bliss, Thou, Ty Segall and More

Stereogum was recently reacquired by its founder Scott Lapatine earlier this year, however the site has been facing financial issues due to the impact of COVID-19. The legendary site is now hosting benefit album to help keep the site running titled Save Stereogum: An ‘00s Covers Comp, featuring over 44 artists covering songs from 2000 to 2009.

An extensive list of artists including Mac DeMarco, Death Cab for Cutie, El-P, Sharon Van Etten, Julien Baker, Jeff Rosenstock, Ty Segal, Kero Kero Bonito, Waxahatchee, The National, Wye Oak and Thou will be featured on the upcoming compilation, Sad13, the solo project of Speedy Ortiz frontwoman Sadie Dupuis teased a Cake cover, which is slated for the upcoming compilation.

Donors can purchase this album via an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign, which has been launched today. Each of these tracks will be released one at a time and while 44 artists are currently confirmed, more are expected to join the project. The site will be selling several packages, with the GA covering just the album, Front Row being bundled with t-shirts, VIP is accompanied by a special Zoom launch party and Backstage is a limited edition bundle containing the t-shirts, posters, sunglasses, their chewing gum from SXSW 2019, stickers and matchbooks. The final package All Access, includes every single number one Hot 100 hit recorded since 1958.

Prior to Lapatine’s re-acquisition, the company was owned by the Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media Group, who ran the company under the Spin Media Group, which also managed Spin. Spin was later sold off to a private equity firm called Next Management Partners, which followed a series of extensive layoffs from both companies.

Lapatine explained that these problems were enhanced by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has shuttered all live music events across the country and thus a major ad revenue source for the site. According to Lapatine the site’s revenue has been more than halved as a result of the pandemic.

“We knew building a sustainable operation would not be easy,” Lapatine wrote. “But since March, like so many other publications big and small, we have seen our advertising revenue plummet more than 50% because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Concerts and festivals, historically our biggest advertisers, have disappeared entirely.”

List of contributing artists:

Anna Calvi
Bedouine
Bethany Cosentino (Best Coast)
Bill MacKay
Car Seat Headrest
Charly Bliss
Chris Farren
Clipping.
Colleen Green feat. Diarrhea Planet’s Emmett Miller
Death Cab For Cutie
Dirty Projectors
El-P
Frankie Cosmos
Half Waif
Hamilton Leithauser
Hand Habits
Illuminati Hotties
Jeff Rosenstock
Julien Baker
Kero Kero Bonito
Laura Jane Grace & The Devouring Mothers
Laura Stevenson
Mac DeMarco
Nothing
PUP
Pure Bathing Culture
Ratboys
Rostam
Ryley Walker
SAD13
Shamir
Sharon Van Etten
Soccer Mommy
Strand Of Oaks
The National
The New Pornographers
Thou
TOPS
Ty Segall
Waxahatchee
Wet
White Reaper
Wild Pink
Wye Oak

Aaron Grech: Writer of tune news, spinner of records and reader of your favorite author's favorite author. Give me the space and I'll fill it with sounds. Jazz, funk, experimental, hip-hop, indietronica, ambient, IDM, 90's house, and techno. DMs open for Carti leaks only.
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