A 4-Minute Guide to Putting Your Music on Everything
The other week I was invited out to a show by a friend. In Atlanta, shows are a dime a dozen and the one you end up going to ultimately depends on who you know, or which had the best promotion. In true local show fashion, it was hot, sweaty, and many of the acts weren’t good. As the night went on, I eventually got to see a few that I genuinely enjoyed. I approached one act, eager to get her social media information and ended up chopping it up with her. Our conversation went something like this:
Me: Hey, you were dope! Can I get your Instagram or something so that I can keep up with you?
Her: Yea sure! It’s _____.
Me: Cool, cool. Is your music on Spotify?
Her: *laugh* No it’s not.
Me: Apple Music?
Her: No, sadly. I’m working on it. You can check me out on Soundcloud though!
Later in the conversation, I learned that she had been avoiding those platforms because she thought that she needed a label or some sort of big entity backing her to put her music on them. Funny enough, she’s not the first artist I’ve met that thinks the exact same thing.
Having your music on one platform only is dangerous. You’re shunning people who want to support you but use other platforms. In this age of warring streaming services, your fan base could be scattered all over the place, and it’s your job as an artist to be where they want you to be. Not to mention all the new fans you could potentially gain from these other platforms. If that’s not enough to convince you, then here’s something else. Money. $7 Billion was generated last year (2017) through streaming alone. That’s billion with a “buh.” In order to maximize your streaming profits, you have to have traffic coming in from all angles.
If you’ve ever asked yourself “How can I join the race? How can I get my music on Spotify, Tidal, Amazon Music, etc,” I promise you it’s a lot easier than you think. Here’s what you need to do…
Have Your Files Ready
This one should come as a no-brainer, but the “duh” information is the most important. Having all of your files in one place just makes everything easier. At the least, this includes a high-resolution photo of the cover or single art and a stereo wav file of each song. You may also want to keep a list of producers, writers, release dates, and other information on hand just in case.
Find a Distributor
This is the fun part. Digital distributors are basically services that let you put your music on any platform (Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, etc), while letting you keep 100% ownership of your songs. There are dozens of them out there, and it will take a little research to find the one that’s best for you. Some are cheaper than others, while others offer additional services outside of distribution. I prefer to use TuneCore, but I’ve met people who swear by Distrokid or CD Baby. It all comes down to your personal preference and what you need. Here’s a more in-depth breakdown of some of the more popular ones:
Pick one. Make an account. Follow their upload process. Choose the sites to upload to (I recommend everything because, why not?). Wait for it to go live, and that’s it! It’s really as simple as that. Now I can finally listen to your music on Spotify 😌
Take Action
If this article helped you out, please share it with all your friends and help spread it around even more. If you have any questions, thoughts, or ideas, feel free to hit me up on Instagram!
Jacorey Barkley is a freelance Digital Music Marketer based in Atlanta. He specializes in getting music heard using Spotify, Instagram, and YouTube. You can reach him on Instagram @kohreydasavior
