Trivium’s Matt Heafy Reveals Twitch Channel Income Drawing Power
Update: Trivium bassist Paolo Gregoletto claims the New York Times' math on Trivium's streaming numbers is incorrect:
During the pandemic, artists had to find new ways to reach their audience and in a New York Times piece, Trivium's Matt Heafy reveals just how enjoyable and profitable his life has been since joining the streaming platform Twitch, revealing he makes nearly as much there as from Trivium's other music streaming platforms combined.
Heafy was one of several artists profiled within the piece, which addresses how Twitch has become one of the more profitable streaming platforms for artists. In the piece, it's revealed that In 2019 and 2020, Heafy’s band, Trivium, collected an average of $11,000 a month from the other audio streaming services while his own Twitch channel generated just under $10,000 from an audience that was about one-tenth the size.
Heafy says his daily routine consists of getting his twins dressed and fed before decamping to a bedroom at his Florida home where he uses three computers and three cameras as well as his assorted musical instruments and gear to connect with his viewing audience. Typically online between 9AM and 3PM, the Trivium frontman will practice guitar riffs, play first-person shooter video games and has become known for some of his cover songs and production work.
Two of Heafy's most recent collaborations have been delivering a metal version of Richard Marx's '80s ballad "Right Here Waiting" with the pop-rock singer and pairing up with fellow Twitch user Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park on a new track called "In Defiance." Both collaborations had some "fly on the wall" screen time with Heafy on the Twitch platform as they were coming together.
According to the New York Times article, Heafy has around 220,000 followers on Twitch with an average of over 10,000 watching at any moment.
“Even if I don’t feel like practicing, I know people are going to be there who want to hear a couple hours of their favorite Trivium songs,” Heafy said. “So I make sure I’m there to make their day good.”
The singer-guitarist also says that while he expects viewership to decline some as the world opens back up post-pandemic, he still intends to keep up his Twitch participation even when he and the band return to their touring life.
“I’m going to keep it to the same exact thing — 9AM and 3PM, Monday through Friday,” he said. “Every show, every soundcheck, every vocal warm-up; every day off, me playing games in the hotel room. I look at it as part of my life now. And I want to keep doing this for as long as I can.”
Check out Heafy's Twitch channel here.