Announcing the Indiegogo Campaign for 7 Days in Ohio II: Return of the Juggalos!

When I flew to Cleveland in 2016 for what I saw as the opportunity of a lifetime—a chance to write about the Republican National Convention and Gathering of the Juggalos at the same time, since, in a miraculous coincidence, they were happening in the same week in the same state—I did not have an assignment from a website or newspaper. 

MEL Magazine eventually bought my pitch but not until I had arrived in Cleveland for the Republican National Convention. So in a fit of desperation and inspiration I launched a GoFundMe campaign to pay for what would become the basis for 7 Days in Ohio. 

The campaign turned out far better than I could have possibly imagined. I raised almost six thousand dollars, in part because the legendary Tom Scharpling plugged the campaign on The Best Show. 

My life and career have never been the same. I discovered that I could bypass the safe, predictable and mercenary world of corporate media and do work that I feel passionately about by making my living through crowd-funding and self-publishing. 

The key to my crowd-funding success is that I genuinely believe in everything that I’m doing. When I discovered that “Weird Al” Yankovic would be doing a tour unlike any before in which he eschewed the hits and parodies in favor of originals and obscurities, for example, I knew that that was something that I had to experience as extensively and intensely as possible for the sake of The Weird Accordion to Al book. 

So I funded it through GoFundMe and got to spend nearly two unforgettable weeks on the road with Al and his biggest, most pathologically obsessive fans for a trip that made The Weird Accordion to Al a much better, deeper and more complete book.

As the man “Weird Al” Yankovic hand-picked to write his 2012 coffee table book Weird Al: The Book, I felt uniquely qualified to write about his complete discography for The Weird Accordion to Al and his complete discography, film, television and live career for the Ridiculously Self-Indulgent, Ill-Advised Vanity Edition of the book. 

I am passionate about what I do. That’s why I do it: for the love. But it’s also nice when you can do what you love and make rather than lose money in the process. 

That is why I am once again turning to crowd-funding, specifically Indiegogo, for my latest project 7 Days in Ohio II: Return of the Juggalos. 

The Juggalos are gathering again, in the same place as 2016 and I will be there to document it for posterity. As with 7 Days in Ohio, I’ll be going with my long-lost Juggalo brother, who I had not seen in decades when we reconnected for 7 Days in Ohio. It will be one hell of an interesting four days as society emerges from the 18 month long fog of the pandemic and the Dark Carnival roars back to life. 

I’m not going to lie: I spent a lot of the pandemic dreaming about the magical moment when I could return to the Gathering because it is something my misfit soul somehow cries out for but also because Insane Clown Posse has inspired some of my best and most personal and impactful writing, both in the form of You Don’t Know Me But You Don’t Like Me and 7 Days in Ohio and countless articles I’ve written about the clowns for any number of websites and periodicals.

For the first time in the twelve years I have been going to the Gathering of the Juggalos I’m less excited about seeing individual acts (they also haven’t announced anyone beyond ICP and the Psychopathic artists you’d expect) than just experiencing  the whole thing as a whole. 

I plan to write five main pieces for the project: a meaty prelude chronicling the many, many feelings I have about returning to The Gathering after a two year absence, lengthy pieces covering all three nights of the Gathering and then a 6 to 8 thousand word master essay about the experience as a whole. 

Felipe was kind enough to create this glorious image of me and Vin Diesel in Juggalo make-up hanging in Shangri-La that you can get as an autographed print if you pledge to the campaign. But that’s not all! For the first time ever you can buy an autographed copy of You Don’t Know Me But You Don’t Like Me, the critically acclaimed (four stars in Rolling Stone, baby!) book that started it all, as well as copies of many, if not, most of the books I’ve written and the books I am currently in the process of finishing.

I want to make it as easy and appealing as possible for you to give me money! And I want to give you maximum bang for your buck!

I think I can speak with no undue modesty when I say that I bring a unique perspective to writing about Insane Clown Posse rooted in the eight Gatherings I’ve attended and the books and countless articles I’ve written about the Juggalo world. 

So please do consider pledging to the 7 Days in Ohio II: Return of the Juggalos campaign. It’s going to be wild and I’d love to have you along for the ride. 

Be the very first person to pledge to the 7 Days in Ohio II campaign over at https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/make-7-days-in-ohio-2-return-of-the-juggalo-happen--2/x/14797497#/

Pre-order The Joy of Trash, the Happy Place’s upcoming book about the very best of the very worst and get instant access to all of the original pieces I’m writing for them AS I write them (there are EIGHT so far, including Shasta McNasty and BOTH seasons of Baywatch Nights) AND, as a bonus, monthly write-ups of the first season Baywatch Nights you can’t get anywhere else (other than my Patreon feed) at https://the-joy-of-trash.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders

Missed out on the Kickstarter campaign for The Weird A-Coloring to Al/The Weird A-Coloring to Al-Colored In Edition? You’re in luck, because you can still pre-order the books, and get all manner of nifty exclusives, by pledging over at https://the-weird-a-coloring-to-al-coloring-colored-in-books.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders

and of course you can buy The Weird Accordion to Al here: https://www.nathanrabin.com/shop

AND of course you can also pledge to this site and help keep the lights on at https://www.patreon.com/nathanrabinshappyplace