Which Music Distribution Company Should You Use To Upload Your Music To Streaming Platforms?
Digital music distribution companies are the best way to get your music heard by more people. They distribute your songs to streaming platforms and collect royalties for you, which makes them a great option for musicians who want their work out there but don't want the hassle of figuring out how to market themselves or distribute their music. This means that they play a crucial part in today's music industry.
There are many different types of digital distribution services, with varying prices and services. So you must know the basics before deciding which one works better for your particular situation. Perhaps you're interested in physical distribution? What if you only care about digital distribution, meaning getting your music up on major streaming platforms? Let’s examine some of these digital music distribution services so that you have a better idea of what works better for you!
Music Distribution Company #1: CD Baby
CD Baby is still one of the most popular digital music distribution services. They allow musicians to upload their music albums, EPs, and songs to Apple Music, Amazon Music, Spotify, Google Play, etc. All of the major streaming platforms. It's a great way for independent artists to distribute their work without having to set up payment processors or learning how to code.
CD Baby has been around since 1998. This digital music distribution company started as a website where you could share your portfolio with professional studios. But now, it’s primarily known as one of the best places for artists to release music hosted under them directly through multiple platforms simultaneously at reasonable rates.
Their fee is $29/year which includes digital music distribution and royalty-paying accounts. If you are making less than $5000 a year in total sales before deducting any fees you don't have to pay royalties. This all sounds great but what are some potential drawbacks?
Well, the biggest drawback is that CD Baby takes a percentage of your music royalties for providing this service to you. They take a whopping 15% cut which I know might seem like a lot but if you compare it with other music distribution companies out there then it’s not bad at all, especially since they do everything in-house and have been around for so long.
Music Distribution Company #:2 Tunecore
Tunecore is one of the best music distribution companies, particularly independent artists. The company has been around since 2006 so it is well-known in the music industry. It has been used by many artists to distribute their music across the web on all major streaming platforms such as Apple Music and Spotify.
Digital music distribution isn't easy, so the main benefit of Tunecore is that it can get your songs into all these places without you needing to sign up with each store separately which saves an incredible amount of time when trying to upload dozens of tracks!
It also takes care of registering your songs at collection agencies like ASCAP so you don't have to worry about paying performance royalties yourself or chasing them if they are not paid automatically (the collections process can be very complicated).
They do this through what's called "administration deals" which essentially means signing over some of your royalties so Tunecore can collect them for you. You should be aware though, there are some disadvantages to using Tunecore too.
The company charges a yearly fee of $49.99 for a full album or $9.99 for one track but they take 15% of your music royalties as well. You will need to set up an account with the company before uploading any music which means sharing all your personal information with yet another business.
They also only allow one release per account at their cheapest level meaning if you want more than one album out or different versions like Spotify vs Apple Music etc., then it gets very expensive quickly (see pricing).
Music Distribution Company #3: Amuse
This is a digital music distribution company that works for all types of artists who release music in digital form. This includes producers, DJs, and solo musicians, among others. This is not the place to go if you are interested in releasing vinyl records or CDs, though.
The process of using Amuse requires a bit more effort than most other services but it has its benefits as well which we'll discuss later on. While some distributors only work with labels, this one will accept your applications regardless if you're an independent musician or signed to a label already!
Of course, getting through their application process might be difficult without previous experience under your belt but they still have something for everyone when it comes down to genres covered by the platform itself (see below). In fact, at first, they'll provide you with a distribution service for free and only ask that if your music starts to generate revenue (royalties) they get their cut of course.
Amuse application process
The first step when signing up is to fill out an online form so this digital music distribution company can see what kind of artist you are and what genres you create. They will then decide whether or not it's worth setting up your artist profile on the platform in question which means there may be some waiting involved before any results start coming back!
This also applies even more after this initial assessment has taken place but at least things move faster than usual once again. If your style fits into one genre, Amuse might be willing to take a risk and give away their services free of charge. If you are more diverse, it'll depend on your specific case but they may ask for a commission fee to cover the extra work.
Music Distribution Company #4: Distrokid
This is one of the best music distribution companies that allows upcoming music producers to upload their songs for distribution. It costs $19 per year and you keep 100% of your royalties! This platform also provides helpful features such as getting feedback on tracks from other artists who use Distrokid or even the option to purchase beats directly within the app itself.
Distrokid has become extremely popular with up-and-coming musicians because of its reasonable price (especially compared with some competitors) and simple interface which makes uploading content quick and easy. The main reason why many producers are using it over competing services is that they collect your royalties and you get to keep all of them! And, they also make the digital distribution process so easy! Hence why they've been taking market share from CD Baby, Tunecore, and some of the other traditional music distribution services.
Distrokid was founded in 2011 by Bart Decrem, a former Vice President of Disney Interactive who left entertainment to work with emerging musicians. The platform now has over 600,000 artists in its books and provides an easy way for upcoming producers to release their music without having to worry about copyright or other legal issues that may arise from uploading content themselves through less reputable channels. They also work closely with record labels such as Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Publishing Production Music which highlights the popularity of this service among established musicians too!
Music Distribution Company #5: Awal
This is a music distribution and royalties service that makes it easy to upload, store and distribute your creative work worldwide to all the major streaming platforms, including Apple Music and Spotify. It also offers you the opportunity to get paid automatically for any royalty-producing use of the material registered on the website, which means no more chasing down payments from different places.
Awal takes only a small percentage of music royalties. This is because it uses blockchain technology to ensure that all transactions are accurate and reliable. This means artists who use Awal will receive their royalties much faster than compared with other services like TuneCore (which can take months) or even Amuse itself, which can sometimes take up to three years for your first payment!
The simple interface makes uploading music quick and easy, while you also have access to helpful features such as feedback from other musicians on how you could improve your sound if need be. Your material stays available forever thanks to the cloud storage system so there's no worry about having old songs taken down due to copyright issues giving you peace of mind when promoting yourself online through social media.
Awal was founded in 2018 by a group of industry professionals who were frustrated with the lack of transparency and trust that exists between artists, managers, and labels. It has received support from various music producers including Jimi Needles, Tristan Garner, and Jens Oettrich.
Although this digital music distribution platform is relatively new to the music industry it already allows up-and-coming musicians to upload their tracks for distribution much more quickly than compared with similar platforms. The royalties feature also means you can easily monitor how many times your songs are played online without having to wait months or years before receiving any credit!
This way you always know where you stand financially which makes promoting yourself through social media easier since there's no pressure about whether your latest track has been earning you any money or not.
Music Distribution Company #6: United Masters
This is one of the newest digital distribution services that help artists earn music royalties by distributing their content among the streaming platforms. It is very useful for upcoming music producers. But it can be confusing to find out which platform you should use to distribute your songs or albums.
United Masters works with all popular platforms including Spotify, Amazon Music, and Apple Music so the audience of your music will expand quickly for free! However, what makes United Masters special are its royalty rates. The company pays up to 88% of every dollar earned back to artists instead of distributing most royalties between other people who have nothing to do with creating the song or album itself.
This means an artist only has to sell around 12% more units to receive double royalties compared with other services like CD Baby where 45-75 cents per sale go towards paying for administrative costs. This is an exciting opportunity for upcoming music producers to benefit from their work!
Music Distribution Company #7: Spinn Up
This is an online digital music distribution platform for music distribution and publishing. It allows upcoming producers to distribute their songs to all streaming services such as Spotify, Apple Music, or Deezer.
Spinn Up also provides a royalty collection system that is designed to help future music artists manage royalties across multiple platforms (iTunes, Tidal, etc). Spinn Up ensures that every cent of your revenue is properly distributed back into your pocket through its unique system.
In today's music industry, it seems like everyone has his/her record label. There are thousands of opportunities out there for upcoming musicians who want to make money from their creative work but don’t know where to start exactly. This makes things confusing sometimes because you never know who to trust and how much money you can make.
Spinn Up gives away 100% of the revenue collected back into artists’ pockets! Set up an account with a royalties collection system (which we highly recommend) that will allow you to collect net royalty payments directly into your bank account every month (it usually takes around 45 days). The good news about this process is that it is FREE to join and you can easily set it up by yourself and start collecting your first royalties!
The Bottom Line
When it comes to music distribution, there are many options. That's why you should not rush to make a decision! Spend a few minutes analyzing each company before "marrying" yourself to them. I say "marrying" because once one of these music distribution companies distributes a song of yours, then they will be the ones collecting your music royalties and paying you. So, keep that in mind! There's no turning back.
Also, you may not just want to consider digital music distribution. Perhaps it makes sense for you to sign up to one of these music distribution companies because they offer physical distribution, which is still a thing even in today's music industry! We're not just going off of streaming services and digital music stores!
Sure, there are many others. But the ones above are some of the best music distribution companies. They will take care of your digital distribution, some may also handle physical distribution, and even though their pricing models vary, we can vow that all of these are good music distribution companies where great people work.
If you’re looking for some guidance on which of these music distribution companies is best suited for your needs, let us know in the comes and we'll help you out. We know that while they all upload music to streaming services and handle and handle other aspects of music distribution, there are certain things each company does better than others.
Whether it’s getting your single up on Apple Music, song exclusivity, or customer support, different distributors will excel in different areas. So what do you need? Do you want more exposure through their streaming services? Is low pricing important to you? Tell us below and we’ll get back to you with our thoughts ASAP.