There are many advantages of being an independent musician, especially in the age of music streaming which allows you to reach millions music listeners all around the world. However, if you are not signed yet or don't want to be signed ever, you have to upload your music online by yourself using a distribution company. And the internet if far from mainstream yet: roughly only 1/3 of the world's population has access to it. So uploading your music online for people to hear is a wise investment that doesn't require you to spend a lot of money (with free options available as well).

music streaming

Where to upload your music

It's recommended to upload your music to as many streaming services as possible. This way you'll reach more potential listeners. However, if I were to choose, I'd upload your next single or album to Spotify, Apple Music (biggest music streaming services), to Google Play Music and YouTube music (big audience of android and YouTube users), to Tidal (pays artists most streaming platforms and my personal favorite) and to Amazon Music.

Picking a distribution company

All distribution companies have certain characteristics that distinguish them from one another, which is why it’s necessary to find the one that works best for you. Each company comes with certain positives, however, there are also negatives that could possibly affect you and your career. Check the list below and decide which one works for you considering all cons and pros of each offering.


CD Baby

Pros

  • CD Baby collects the money made off of your projects (royalties) and give them to you via PayPal, check or bank transfer. To get paid, you just have to sign up for SoundExchange, which is an organization that distributes your royalties for you so you won’t have to go through the hassle of tracking down producers, songwriters, etc. to pay them their share of the royalties
  • No yearly fees and you pay just $9.95 a single (each individual song), and $50 for an album (usually seven songs or more). Pay once and your music is uploaded forever. Other companies require you to pay yearly fees in order for your music to stay online
  • They offer help with physical distribution: CD's, vinyls and more
  • Promotion services to get your music heard. For example, they promote (via pitching music to podcasts, blogs, etc.) to people who are into the genre of music you make
  • Free sync licensing. CD Baby pitches your music to companies to license it for commercials, TV shows, games, movies and YouTube channels (and you get paid for it)

Cons

  • You keep only 91% of your revenue (9% fee goes to CD Baby)
  • Pay $10 for a each single uploaded or $50 for an album which is very pricey compared to other companies, but they upload it forever and you don't have to pay an annual fee of any kind to keep it live

CD Baby offers some good services like free promotion. They also don't have annual fees to keep your music live. They also take 9% fee, which leaves you with 91% percent of your revenue. However, some of their advantages like free promotion or one time fee to upload your music make them a great option depending on your personal needs.



TUNECORE

Pros

  • Keep 100% of your revenue
  • TuneCore has an administrative publishing arm, which will help track down your songwriter royalties (TuneCore Publishing) which is great because you won’t have to go through the hassle of getting in touch with songwriters or producers in order to give them their cut for whatever they contributed to your project
  • They offer advances for future revenue projections (this can help fund future projects e.g. studio time, mixing, etc). Tunecore pays for you to make music if you have already had an account with them for two years, and if you are able to bring in an above average amount of streams
  • Tunecore offers some great artists' services: Fan Reviews (Get your songs reviewed by real fans), Mastering (master your music with the help from GRAMMY Award winning engineers), Cover Song Licensing (cover songs easily and legally) and TuneCore Direct Advance. They actually offer a lot of great stuff for upcoming artists, please check their page to have a full understanding

Cons

  • No Free Plan
  • There are no mechanisms in place to help new artists. For example, they offer no marketing support, playlist plugging, etc., which can be very helpful to new artists because it can get them discovered by a bigger audience. However, as I mentioned above, they offer great help for artists who have an audience already
  • Fees include a $9.99 charge for each single if you want to upload it individually, and $29.99 fee for an album upload (covers the album being live on platforms for a year). After that first year it costs $49.99 a year. There is also a 5-year option which costs $207 (as of 2019)
  • TuneCore’s music publishing fee is $75.00. On top of the upfront cost, they also charge a 15% overall commission fee and 20% sync commission fee for services that are generally offered for free with other distribution companies. The added service you pay for includes them collecting your royalties for you and providing sync pitching where they pitch your songs for placement in TV, movies etc.

Overall, Tunecore is a great option for artists who have a decent audience already and some loyal fans who check their music regularly. However, if you're just starting out you may end up spending a lot money and overestimating your potential. If you're on a strict budget - consider other options.



DISTROKID

Pros

  • The cost is only $19.99 a year. You only have to pay this fee once annually and you can upload as much music as you want
  • Keep 100% of sales and streaming revenue
  • Lots of discounts for new artists
  • Receive email with updates on every step of the way until the songs are successfully uploaded. This keeps you updated on the process and how long it will take to upload your music. It’s also helpful because you’ll know when your music is fully uploaded so you can properly promote it on social media, and more
  • They give an option to pay a one-time legacy fee of $30 which means your music is live on streaming platforms forever (you won’t have to pay any annual fees to make sure your music is still live)

Cons

  • There is no administrative publishing partner to help collect songwriter royalties for you, which means you have to do it yourself (other companies can solve this problem for you)
  • They charge a $0.99 fee per year per release for your music to show up on Shazam (other companies offer it for free)
  • Shazam is a really important feature for an up-and-coming artist trying to gain engaged listeners. People can identify your music if they just happen to hear it playing somewhere and don’t know the name or artist

For new and up-and-coming artists, Distrokid offers a lot of great features and some really reasonable pricing. If you're on a budget - look no more.



Soundcloud Premier Distribution (BETA)

SoundCloud now helps artists self-distribute music to Spotify and other streaming platforms. Monetize your streams and distribute to every major music service, with SoundCloud Premier.

However, it's still in beta testing and you have to be eligible in order to use their distribution services. You must be an independent creator, meaning you must earn all the rights to your music and must be producing original content. You must own 100% of the rights, you must have zero copyright strikes at the time you enroll, you must be a SoundCloud Pro or Pro Unlimited subscriber, you must have at least 1,000 eligible streams in the past month. It's also available in limited countries as of now. Check their page for more information.



How to upload your music to streaming services

Ordered

  1. Decide which music distribution company works best for you.
  2. Upload your music (use high quality files to upload to Tidal Hi Fi and Amazon Music HD)
  3. Choose streaming services to upload to. Most of the time, distribution companies upload music to the most popular platforms.
  4. Track uploading progress on your distributor's website.
  5. Make sure to upload your profile pictures and your bio too, it makes you more professional and easier to remember. Not every distributor offers profile edits. Usually, you'll have to do it by yourself for each streaming service. Read Distrokid's guide, How Do I Update My Artist Bio or Photo in Stores?.


Conclusion

Music streaming saved the music industry. It allowed independent artists to upload their creative outputs instantly and without hassle. And while it costs some money (upfront or percentage of your earnings) to get your music heard - it's totally worth it. If you're a creative who knows what he or she is doing - don't hesitate to upload your music online. Don't be selfish - share your passion with the world. You may eventually get signed or decide to stay independent. Upload music regularly, don't limit your creativity, use free and paid promotion services, stay passionate and consistent about your decision to be a professional musician.

While this article provided you with a detailed comparison between some of the most popular distribution companies, make sure to visit their websites to get a full picture. Also, do your own research about music distribution, promotion, royalties, performance-rights organizations and music business in general.