Selling
Upload a release
A release page streams to the public, sells the record or the film, and prices the licences professionals buy. This is how to get all three out of one afternoon.
45 min
4 steps
The walk
4 steps
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Upload the masters
Lossless if you have it, in running order, one per track or cut. The streams are made from them, so upload the good files; the masters themselves are never served to anybody. -
Add the sleeve and a few words
A cover, a title, the date it came out and a paragraph about it. Point it at a listing on your shop if the record or the film is for sale as a thing. -
Set the licence prices
Sync, editorial, commercial, venue: for each use you would say yes to, one price, a territory, a term and your terms. Leave off the ones you would rather discuss. Publish the ones you want on the page. -
Confirm the rights, and put it out
Say that the rights are yours to sell, once. When every track has finished packaging, publish, and the page is live with its player and its licences. Send the link to your patrons first.
Good to know
- Name what a licence allows in your terms — one production, credit in the titles, no re-edits. The licence prints them word for word.
- A release stays a draft until you publish it, so there is no reason to wait until the artwork is finished to start uploading.
The mistake everybody makes
Publishing without a price for the people who pay properly
Most musicians put the record up and leave the licensing half blank, because naming a number feels presumptuous. The result is that the editor with a Friday deadline moves on to somebody who did name one.
Put a price on the uses you would happily say yes to, and leave the ones you would want to think about off the list. You can change any of it whenever you like; a licence already sold keeps the price and the terms it was bought at.
Questions, answered
Can I upload something that is still unreleased?
Yes. A release is a draft until you publish it, so the page can be built long before anybody sees it.
Does this replace my distributor?
Only if you want it to. Nothing here is exclusive and there is no term.
What about co-writers?
A release pays out to the storefront it is on. Credit co-writers in the words about it, and pay their share yourself from what arrives.
Give the record two prices
One for the person who wants to hear it, one for the person who wants to use it.