Ever taken a peek into the distribution agreements of the platforms where you drop your tracks?
Most artists probably don't bother and just blindly trust those loud promises on the first pages of websites. 100% royalty payouts, just 9% commission on your earnings, pay only for a subscription or just for uploading, and the whole world will groove to your tunes.
But if you actually bother to dive into those long contracts, you'll see a hefty list of exceptions and all kinds of extra charges. Oh, platform commission, oh, payment system fees, oh, commission from some other system, oh, here you gotta pay for a code, oh, and here's an additional fee, oh, you also gotta pay for Content ID, oh, and here are more extra services and fees, oh, oh, oh, and the never-ending ohs. Plus, your releases will vanish from all stores if you cancel or forget to pay your subscription.
Uploading through someone else's label is a whole other story. Here, it's good if you get half of what's left after subtracting all those commissions. And then there's that well-known practice where some sly labels just straight-up don't pay artists their money.
Then artists wonder why the payouts seem a bit lightweight. Well, you haven't even tallied up how much you're losing on those monthly subscriptions and each release upload. Often for lesser-known indie artists, whose tracks might not skyrocket, the sum adds up, never to be covered by earned royalties.
On top of that, after the political drama globally, major distributors lost access to a pretty extensive market in Russian-speaking countries, and some never had it in the first place. Meanwhile, Russian music stores are hustling to fill the void and offering interesting terms, resulting in increased payouts for artists in that segment.
The big players in the American music distribution market are well-established, been around forever, and automatically get trust points. Few bother to figure out how genuinely beneficial it is to team up with them specifically.
So, is there an alternative?
Sundesire Media Worx – a British company, rocking the European scene since 2009. They've got direct deals to drop your beats on major platforms like Spotify, iTunes, Yandex Music, and more. They cover the European, American, Asian, and Russian markets.
It's one of the few global music distributors that believes in the success of its clients rather than just grabbing profits here and now. After all, artists here don't pay a dime for creating an account, uploading their tracks, getting codes, Content ID for tracking and collecting YouTube payouts, creating their own label, and so on. If your music doesn't hit it big or you don't become an instant star, you won't lose a thing, and the platform won't gain anything. But if your track blows up, that's when both you and Sundesire cash in.
And believe me, you'll get more than you expect. You won't lose money on intermediary payouts, subscriptions, or uploads. Your music will be chillin' in digital stores all around the globe. The platform expects its cut only from the royalties you actually rake in. And if you're dropping loads of content, like running your own label, Sundesire Media Worx will hook you up with even more sweet deals.
By the way, there's this special offer available for any user on the platform. Other platforms, agents, and managers might ask you for a pretty penny, but Sundesire does it absolutely free – pitching. Another big plus in supporting their clients.
Pitching from a distributor is the process where they present your track or album to various media and music platforms to get support and include your content in their catalogs. It's like "selling" your music to streaming services and online stores. And need I say that such requests are perceived more authoritatively by the services?
Spotify and VK gladly respond to Sundesire Media Worx's pitching. They throw your music into recommendations, playlists, or ad campaigns. This helps boost your content's visibility, draw in more listeners, and up the number of streams and sales.
It's important to mention that your releases will stay on all digital platforms you decided to drop them on, forever. Only if you decide to remove them or transfer them to other labels or platforms. And doing that is easy and quick. Many folks kickstarted their music careers on Sundesire, got their tracks into global charts, got noticed, and even got invites from major labels. Sundesire never blocks catalog transfers and takes pride in its clients' achievements.
Sundesire Media Worx can also swiftly claim any release violating your copyrights. The platform has a reliable system for tracking published content and a support service that reacts sensibly. You also, don't try to cheat fate and respect other people's copyrights when creating your music.
If you've got any questions, experienced specialists with massive know-how in music production and distribution will guide you. And they'll do it right away, not a month later. Feel free to hit up their support or socials.
In a nutshell, I'm not telling you to take my word for it. Believe it personally; it won't cost you a thing. And I'll repeat, always read through all the contracts you agree to, especially the long ones; there'll definitely be more hidden conditions.
