Jonathan Coulton

http://www.jonathancoulton.com/
I first heard this guy in one of Ze Frank's last episodes of "The Show". I've been a fan ever since. Jonathan is a very talented guy that has gone from programmer to (full time) independent musician. Of course, why not? This is one of those stories that couldn't have happened without the medium of the internet. At least, it would have been much more difficult.

"I used to write software, but I quit the day job in order to pursue…other things…or something. I am the musical director for Little Gray Books created and hosted by friend John Hodgman, and I am the Contributing Troubadour for Popular Science Magazine.(for whom I do a weekly interview podcast).

My most recent project was called Thing a Week, in which I produced a new song every week and released it for free as a podcast for an entire year. All of these songs will be released on CDs in their original order (and state of completion) very soon, but you can also buy them from my online store, or from iTunes."

Here lies a giant baby, and a rubber duckie. (Bye Ze Frank)

Last episode of "The Show with Ze Frank" was today. The bizarre, funny, and often thought-provoking podcast will be missed. My best to Ze.

To those who didn't see "The Show", it was essentially a year-long community experiment and podcast (read more at wikipedia) with the personality of a John Stewart. It involved a lot of community projects such as the Earth Sandwich, Comunity Haikus, and many more. The projects are almost more interesting if you know that Ze Frank has a background in neuroscience. If you're just finding this guy, he's worth a look.