SOUND ON SOUND

[paul tha other]

hi there...ive been looking into releasing a few things ive been working on over the last few years.lockdown has enabled me to finish them off..

i just googled how to get songs up on to spotify etc and the list was extensive..so i thought i would ask you knowledgable chaps here who to use

it seems tunecore are the big guns in this (either that or they have the most money to spend on ads on google)

there is a emubands.com that are local in scotland and they look like they are good..

more importantly, is there anyone/thing i should avoid?

[RichardT]

If you look at the website 'Ari's Take' you should be able to find an analysis Ari did of the major providers.

There are lots of people offering lots of different deals.

There are some distributors who require an annual subscription - and if you cease to pay it they will take your music down. Personally I was keen to avoid that kind of deal.

[paul tha other]

There are some distributors who require an annual subscription - and if you cease to pay it they will take your music down. Personally I was keen to avoid that kind of deal.

im keen to avoid that too

[CS70]

Imho the gist is whether or not you expect to make significant money on what you release.

If you don't, the best is to use a one-time fee and be done with it.
If you do, you want to think for how many years you expect to sell and check the amount vs. yearly fee (which should be quite cheaper than the one-time fee) and see what's what.
Also depends on the amount of material you are going to release, as certain distributors also charge a yearly fee to stay in the catalog, but with unlimited releases.

In other words, look at your business plan and sales estimates and pick up the best combination out of that.

Other factors are, of course, speed, artist service and user friendliness (especially when u want something a bit out of the ordinary). It's difficult to say here because, at least with certain services, there seem to be very satisfied people and very unsatisfied people (Tunecore and Distrokid for example, but that's only what I remember on the top of my head).

Plus, all these companies ain't Amazon-size, so they seem more vulnerable to current events (for example the pandemic) but also service and staffing shifts over the years (which may also explain the variability of opinions above).

For what's worth, I'm very satisfied with Cd Baby because their standard interface is easy to use, and every time I contacted them they have replied quickly and effectively (considering that a lot of what you may ask is actually implemented by the distribution channels and they need to act as middle men).

Obviously it's a far cry from the personal relationship you may have with a real publisher, but it does the job.

And I like them also because I got the first check of the year two days ago :D

[paul tha other]

thanks for the reply.

id be amazed if anyone listens to it apart from family and friends, so making lots of cash isnt the goal in this instance..im just really happy with this batch of home recordings so i wanted to release it as a vanity project,


ill go and have a look at cd baby

thanks dude

[CS70]

Honestly if that's your goal, why not simply put them up on Soundcloud? No cost, faster, etc.

[blinddrew]

Worth having a look at this article: https://www.whippedcreamsounds.com/best ... tion-2020/
They seem to favour Ditto and I think I'll be giving them a try this year.