The internet has shaped the music industry in a significant way over the years. While it allows your music to reach millions of people simultaneously, it has also become the only way to connect with music fans. These days, many performances, festivals, and tours don’t occur, and most musicians are taking to the internet to stream their music. If you’re wondering how to make money streaming your music, you’re in the right place.
Streaming your music helps you reach a large audience while growing your brand. There are many streaming services today, and you can utilize them to grow your music and pay your bills simultaneously. However, not everyone makes money streaming their music online. This article covers how to make money by streaming your music online. It will cover 9 creative ways to get it done and the best streaming services to get your music on. Now that you know what to expect let’s take a look.
Best Streaming Services to Get Your Music On
If you’re trying to edge out as an independent artist, you should be aware of many streaming services. With many music fans switching to online music streaming because it provides them access to a vast music library, getting on a streaming platform has become imperative. Below are some streaming platforms that can help your music skyrocket. Streaming platforms are an integral part of making money streaming your music; keep reading to find the right fit for you.
Spotify
Spotify has developed over the years into one of the best digital music streaming platforms. It is a king in the business and continues to grow. Spotify boasts of diverse music from major artists, so it is a top option for many listeners. On this music platform, your music is attached to your profile. Most fans visit your profile to find out the latest happenings with you and if there’s a new release. They can also access your playlist and find out where your next tour will be. It is also an excellent spot for music fans to buy your recordings. The best way to make money on Spotify is by being active on the platform.
You don’t have to sign to a label to enjoy the benefits of Spotify. You can access deals that allow companies to deliver your music to the world and collect your royalties for you. If you’re signed under a label, you can access one of their services that handle the distribution of your music. It also allows them to pay you royalties every time fans stream your music.
Apple Music
Another music platform you should consider as an artist is Apple Music. It made an appearance in the music scene in 2015 and has exploded since then. Apple Music combines a vast music library with its iTunes catalog. This music streaming platform also offers a live radio station that runs all day. You can listen to diverse music on the radio and also gain access to artist interviews. More importantly, as an artist, you get to enjoy the Apple Music Connect feature.
One of Apple Music’s best features is that it allows you to connect with your fans directly. Music fans can request content from their favorite artists on the platform. This service will enable you to engage with followers by sharing your lyrics, photos, videos, and much more content.
Google Play
If you’re a blossoming musician, Google Play is an excellent choice for you. For those wondering how to make money streaming your music online, Google Play is a great way to do it. It allows your fanbase to support your music financially. However, you will need to have an active presence on the platform. Whether you want to sell your music or you want fans to listen to it free of charge, Google Play has a spot for you. It also allows artists to share their new demos and live recordings if they want.
If you’re interested in sharing your music, Google Play requires you to share your price. Every time someone buys your music on the music streaming platform, you earn up to 70% of the revenue share. Google typically keeps 30% of the revenue made from selling any music. The best part about Google Play is that there’s no fee attached to using the platform. You can upload your tracks and albums as well. You can also edit your albums and artist page for free on the platform.
Amazon Music
Amazon music is simply an extension of Amazon Prime. It is a great streaming platform that boasts over 80 million users. Amazon Music has a catalog of over two million songs and differs from many other music-streaming platforms in many ways. Amazon Music offers users the opportunity to download and save many music albums. As an artist on Amazon music, your songs become eligible for streaming to Amazon Prime members after 90 days of releasing the song. It also gives you the option of selling your music CD right on Amazon.
Tidal
Tidal boasts of an extensive music video library and top-quality playback. However, this platform is not as large as Spotify or other top music streaming platforms. It is still a leading streaming platform to consider. Tidal offers higher artist royalties than other platforms and focuses on blossoming artists. If you’re looking to get recognized quickly, Tidal is a great way to get it done. It brings the spotlight to you through its feature ‘Tidal Rising.’ This function picks one artist or band every week and gives them the exposure they need. The tidal streaming platform also allows you to add your social accounts to the platform. Fans can also know more about you through your artist profile on the platform.
SoundCloud
This music streaming platform is also one of the best ways to connect with your fans. It allows them easily access your music and play your track as many times as they want. SoundCloud is known for its sharing features, and there are many significant artists on the platform daily updating their music. SoundCloud provides music fans with the ability to engage more with music through social media-driven comments. It facilitates a stronger music connection between fans and artists.
Soundcloud allows bloggers to embed music pieces into their blogs and is free for fans and artists to use. It is a great platform to promote your music and enable fans to stream the music for free. Although not an excellent choice for making money streaming music online, it allows artists to connect with fans better.
Audiomack
Audiomack is quite similar to SoundCloud, but it focuses more on upcoming artists. It offers free music sharing and helps artists get discovered. Various trend-based ranking platforms allow you to measure how far your music has gone. Audiomack shares the number of plays your music enjoys every day, month, and week. There’s also the ‘what’s trending’ tab on the homepage. It allows music fans to discover the songs and albums they want to listen.
Youtube Music
Youtube Music is relatively new among music streaming platforms. However, this platform seems like it’s here to stay. One of its top and leading features is that it helps music fans discover old songs. The service is free to use but also comes with subscription packages for listening to music. It is available on every Google-powered smartphone. It is a great platform to share your music videos as that is its focus, unlike other music streaming platforms.
9 Creative Ways on How to Make Money Streaming Your Music
Now that you’re aware of the top streaming platforms you could utilize to make money, knowing how to make money off them is vital. If you’re curious how to make money streaming music, below are 9 creative ways to make it happen.
Get on YouTube
One of the best methods to promote your music and make money streaming online is by utilizing YouTube. YouTube has billions of viewers and is a great way to monetize your music. You can use YouTube to establish your online presence and build up your fan base. Ensure you consistently drop videos on Youtube to keep you in front of the viewers. You can build your fan base if you’re an up-and-coming artist by doing covers of popular songs.
When people love your cover, they’re sure to look out for more, and you can then link up your YouTube Music account for them to check it out. You can then drop song demos with links to your account on streaming platforms when you have an established fan base. You could also drop short lyrics videos for your music on this platform, asking viewers to click on the link to your song for the full videos.
Facebook Live
Another way that tops the list of how to make money streaming your music online is Facebook Live. It is also an effective way to ensure you have consistent content for your listeners. The best part is that you don’t have to limit yourself to Facebook. You can also go live on YouTube and Instagram or any other platform that you prefer. Many musicians are making money by going live, and so can you. When you host a live concert on digital media, you can make a lot of money. Ensure you also go regularly live to draw viewers to your page. Afterward, you can set up a virtual tip jar using PayPal, Venmo, or Cash App. Listeners could tip you through this tip jar, and you would make money streaming your music online.
Create Custom Songs
This method is a very creative one amongst how to make money streaming your music online. It is also a great way to establish an online presence. Simply ask your fans to reach out about song requests. It could be asking them for names to write a song about or an idea they want you to pass across in a song. By creating custom songs for your fan, they’re sure to stick around. It will also prompt them to stream your music on whatever platform you share. First, start writing short songs and request listeners to use the drop requests on any social media platform of your choosing. If you’re using Instagram, Facebook, or YouTube, you could ask viewers to drop requests in the comment section.
Subscriptions
The best type of way to make money streaming your music online is through a paid subscription. Most people do this with the use of a Patreon account. Subscription is how many people have grown to be world leaders in their line of business. You can take a cue from Netflix who requires a subscription for their streaming services. One top method amongst how to make money streaming your music online is by opening a Patreon account. If you have one thousand loyal fans who are willing to pay $10 to listen to your music, that’s about ten thousand dollars in a month. You could have subscription plans for custom songs, live performances, and many more. It is a great way to create a solid foundation for your music career through music streaming online.
Create a Challenge
Challenges are fast taking over our social media platforms. A lot of people are eager to jump on new challenges that may come up. You can create an exciting challenge using your song as the sound on platforms like TikTok. As more people jump on the challenge and it becomes popular. Your song would go viral and more people would stream your songs, increasing your revenue and your fan base in the process.
Make Online Tutorials
This strategy is another way to make money streaming your music online. You can create tutorials about an aspect of music that you feel you are an expert on. As your channel grows, so does your fan base and more people willing to subscribe to listen to your music on streaming platforms. Promote your songs while carrying out your tutorials and on social media platforms. One way to do that is to end every tutorial by asking your fans to stream your music with the link in the description or comment sections. Your fans will become interested in any content you share and subscribe to stream your music.
Get Featured
Many people on streaming platforms tend to check out new music by looking at featured artists every week. That’s why you should try to get featured on Spotify, Apple Music, and other streaming platforms. When this happens, you would be able to get new listeners without putting in much effort. You could also get famous artists to feature your song in their playlists. It will drive up the number of streams you could get. Many artists got discovered simply by being featured in a celebrity’s playlist. It would require a bit of work on your side. Try to build up contacts that matter, reach out to streaming platforms to consider your song for placement. You might get a few rejections, but persistence is key.
Release More Songs
Releasing two to three songs is not an effective method to make money streaming your music online. Releasing different songs is a great way to increase the number of streams you get. If your fan listens to one of your songs, chances are they will be willing to listen to other songs available by you. Don’t hold on to recordings and unreleased tracks when you can use them to leverage more streams. Sometimes, you could release demos on streaming platforms and have your fans listen to them by asking for their views. It would also help keep your streaming number up and help you make money in the process.
Utilize Pandora AMP to Your Advantage
AMP is a feature on Pandora that allows musicians to connect with fans on the platform. However, the first step of having your music accepted on Pandora isn’t always easy. If you get rejected, you can always try again with a new release. After getting accepted and setting up your AMP profile, you could drop messages for your fans on your fans to listen to. This way, you can promote your merchandise, songs, concerts on the platform. It will also help you gain insight into your audience.
Final Thoughts
Making money as an artist is never an easy task, especially on digital platforms. There are many competitions out there, and it can be hard to make your music lucrative. If you’re wondering how to make money streaming your music online, this article has you covered. We have outlined the best streaming platforms and nine creative ways to make money streaming your music online. You can utilize this in your music career, and you’ll see a notable increase in your revenue from streams.
