Neil Young's Pono Music Kickstarter reaches $800,000 goal in 10 hours

Neil Young's hi-fi audio player/digital music service has already reach it's $800,000 goal on Kickstarter. The mark was reached at 11 p.m. EST Tuesday night, a mere ten hours after the campaign launched. The total currently sits at $1.5 million raised, largely thanks to the ability to pre-order the music player, as well as recieve exclusive artist editions engraved with laser-cut signatures from Tom Petty, Neil Young, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Arcade Fire. Herbie Hancock, Patti Smith, Lenny Kravitz, Norah Jones, Beck, The Dave Matthews Band, Pearl Jam or the Foo Fighters.

The Toblerone-shaped player is the endpoint of a so-called "system for the entire music listening experience" wherein the folks at Pono will rip direct from the masters to the highest-quality audio formats available, then offer them up for purchase on the PonoMusic store.

It seems they didn't even need this promo video with literally every famous person you've ever heard of singing the praises of the service.

In less positive Pono news, Neil Young's SXSW Pono Q&A was derailed by a simple question about their finances. 

Via Billboard:

Taking the microphone, a young man asked: "What's your cut?" - referring, of course, to Apple's now-famous 30% cut of sales on the iTunes Store.

[Pono CEO John] Hamm, after a flustered moment, responded that, "It surprises most people that everyone who buys music from the record labels pays exactly the same amount." At this, several audience members shouted, "What?!"

"That's a delicate question, isn't it?" asked Young.

Shortly thereafter, Hamm turned to the moderator, slightly flushed at this point, and said "We can end it."

"You can answer the question if you like," Snider said.

Hamm shook his head slightly before Snider closed the discussion.

(h/t to Rolling Stone)