Big labels only release music by artists who already have a following on social media, huge songs and know how the music business works. So the first thing you should do (after making b*ngers) is releasing your tunes on Spotify, Apple Music etc.
Fortunately, it has never been easier to release your own music. However, there are still a few things you should know.
Step 1: Pick a distributor
Distributors are the companies sending your song to all stores & streaming platforms (Spotify, Apple Music etc..). They also make sure that you get paid, your song gets connected to the right artist profile and a few other things.
There are a couple of different distributors you could pick.
My recommendation: DistroKid
Here’s why:
- They’ll get your music into 150+ stores & streaming services
- You can keep 100% of your royalties
- You’ll get paid monthly
- They’re incredibly cheap
Click here to sign up for a DistroKid account!
Step 2: Prepare your files
Before uploading your song you need to prepare these things:
- Song (I’d recommend using a WAV file)
- Song name
- Artist name
- Album cover
- Real names of everyone involved
Have everything you need? Cool, let’s move on..
Step 3: Upload your song
To upload your song to DistroKid you have to click on the “UPLOAD” link at the top menu.
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The first things you can pick are the stores / streaming platforms. I recommend to take all of them.
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Next up is the number of songs (this point is pretty self-explanatory 😉).
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Now you can enter your artist name:
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If you have previously released songs on Spotify or Apple Music, DistroKid will automatically find your artist page (I really wonder if they’d allow me to upload a song to David Guetta’s artist page 🤔).
If you haven’t released music yet, you can create new artist profiles.
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Depending on the plan you chose you can also select a specific release date (I’d always release new music on a Friday), an iTunes pre-order date and the name of the record label.
The next step is uploading the cover. I suggest uploading it as a .jpg file (3000×3000 pixels). Please make sure that the cover doesn’t contain any links, user names, prices or store logos. Otherwise some stores might reject your release.
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Pick the language of your release:
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If you’re making any kind of EDM the primary genre is usually “Dance”. Rappers should pick “Hip Hop/Rap”. You can also select a secondary genre.
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Time to enter your song name (don’t forget to read their guidelines so you won’t make any formal mistakes).
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After uploading your audio file you have to fill in THE REAL NAMES of everyone involved in writing music or lyrics.
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DistroKid will also ask if your song contains explicit lyrics or any lyrics at all.
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Step 4: Time for some extras
I’d always pick the “Instagram & Facebook” option (it allows your fans to share your music to their stories).
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I’d NOT pick the “YouTube Money” option, because this will monetize any uploads of your song, which s*cks if you want to submit your song to promo channels, such as Trap Nation (they usually want to monetize the upload on their own).
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Don’t forget to pick the “Shazam & iPhone Siri” option, because it makes it easy for people to identify your song if they hear it somewhere (it only costs $0.99/yr).
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Now all you have to do is enabling all the mandatory checkboxes and click on “done”.
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That’s it 🙂
BTW: If you haven’t signed up for a DistroKid account yet, feel free to use this link to get 7% off your first year’s membership.