The market has changed, but that doesn’t mean you are not going to be able to take advantage of “the streaming”. The sales of physical copies has definitely gone down, but streaming and merch has certainly gone up.
How do you make your music streamable? Well first you have to make fire music. (Well, you don’t actually) If you are reading this you probably already make fire music, or you are about to.
Next you will need to distribute your music. Most of the distribution companies charge, often and well. You can pay per project, yearly, by song, etc. Then, you can add all sorts of options with each.
There are some free ways to do so, Soundcloud, Youtube, Amuse (I tried distributing a track but it got rejected). There are also paid ways, CD Baby, Distrokid, tunecore.
I signed up with Distrokid, after looking at all the options. Distro is the best deal in my opinion for me, and I went with their lowest tier $19.99 a year. They do not charge for additional singles or albums, you can release an unlimited amount of tracks for the same $19.99 a year.
The other guys, have different rates and yada and it made more sense to use Distro. Click my link to get 7% off your new plan, and they give me a small referral if you use my link (FULL DISCLOSURE).
I like the simplicity of the pricing, and the interface online. They do not have an app as of this writing.
You submit the information on their website with your account. You will need to use your full legal name, and have 1000 by 1000 photographs with each release (single) to submit your music. This can get a tad annoying, with a mac you can use preview, and select 1000×1000 and save a new file and viola!
You can add different items ala cart for each track. You can add a store maximizer, for $7.95, or leave a legacy fee of $29 per song, so if you die, and no one keeps your account active your song will stay there for ever…
Being independent is much easier when you can personally release your music on your terms.
The amazing thing is that I have received plays from my artists from Germany, Sweden, The Philippines, France, Turkey, and all over the USA.
The fact that you can release music today, at home, over the internet, and know that people will be streaming it on Spotify, IheartRadio, Deezer, Amazon Music, Apple Music, and other radio stations.
Distribution is the process of getting your music into the hands of the music streaming companies such as: Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, TikTok/Resso, Google Play/YouTube, Amazon, Pandora, Deezer, Tidal, Napster, iHeartRadio, ClaroMusica, Saavn, Anghami, KKBox, NetEase (beta), MediaNet, Instagram/Facebook
But, how can you get people to listen?
Check back to read my next article!
Redundantmedia 