NO SHOWS, NO MONEY?
NOTE: the information in this feature does not constitute legal advice. The following are some general suggestions on how matters could be handled for those in the music, creative and events industries who have been affected by the implications of the pandemic.
Gina at NASS Festival as artist agent, tour manager, PR officer & official press photographer.
Trying to find new sources of income through music is familiar to every artist however we have never been in the situation where live events are illegal. With live events and touring being the staple income for most artists, new and alternative income streams now have to be the focus rather than the supplemental income.
Live events and touring will come back but when they do it will sensible not to forget the harsh lesson learned of not purely relying on one single income source. Exploring, identifying and maximising a range of income sources will help artists and those working with and supporting them to become more resilient financially, and post-pandemic to hopefully establish a more successful financial position overall.
But what about right now? Firstly, it may be worth considering other work. Trust me I wholeheartedly understand creatives and musicians so I am cringing as I write this. BUT remember this would be a temporary measure, it would not ‘be’ your career or ‘instead’ of your career but just a short term means of getting by until live shows are happening regularly again, and while you get your super-resilient multi-income sources plan in place.
Now is the time to be looking at other ways of making money from your music career. For savvy artists you will be doing this anyway so this is the time to develop this further, add new possibilities and maximise on existing ones. For some this is an area previously overlooked so will provide an opportunity to maximise income ongoing into the future.
Suggestions on other ways to make money through music include:
ARE YOU OWED MONEY?
*If you are owed money chase up on this immediately. No matter how old the invoice/money owed to you may be call it in, you need it.
*Check if you’re owed performance royalties from entities such as PRS for Music. If you are not already registered with PRS, now is the time to change that so you aren’t missing out in future. That time you would have spent doing a live show this week, well use a fraction of it to go onto the PRS website and register. Even if you aren’t already registered if you are quick you may be able to claim backdated royalties.
GRANTS
Don’t all sigh at once, its true grants are not always that easy to get and there is more competition than ever, plus you have to actually find what grants are out there in the first place. The best approach to grants is to consider them a kind of journey. Applying for a grant usually takes quite a lot of time and effort but the application process can actually be quite the learning experience. You will learn more about yourself and your music than you ever knew, you’ll usually have to look closely at the financial side of your music too which whether you are applying for a grant or not is incredibly useful if you intend to make music your ongoing career.
Applying for grants is also inspiring, you will come up with new ideas and angles for your music and creativity along the way, and one thing that is absolutely clear is that musicians excel at the skill of never giving up and that’s exactly the type of persistence you need to win the grant grabbing game. I think of the experience of applying for grants as what I call ‘the grants circle’, you find the grant - you apply for the grant - you wait for the outcome - whichever way the outcome goes you request feedback on your application and evaluate and review your application - then if you have the option you apply for the grant again, and you keep doing this, round and round it goes.
So where to begin, firstly you have to find grants. Some of the most commonly known ones are from The Arts Council (aka ACE – Arts Council England) and PRS for Music so those are good place to start – normally!
Right now, and I mean right now as a matter of urgency it is worth speaking to your local council about grants to support businesses, even if you are a freelancer and / or work from home / home studio /mobile / on location etc AND especially if you have been excluded from or had minimal other support such as low or no support from the SEISS (Self Employed Support Scheme).
As long as you can prove you have your own business (usually with a UTR self-employment number that you get when you register as self employed with HMRC, or your Company Number), that your business still exists (basically that you haven’t given up and your business is still ready to trade if the opportunity comes along), then it is worth looking on your local council website to see if you can apply for a business grant from them. Unfortunately, the criteria and values for these types of grants does seem to vary from council to council but don’t let that put you off, many have been successful.
Particularly for those in the events, entertainment and hospitality industries and supplying these industries (with skills, products whatever it may be), it seems the two key grants to look for are the ARG (Additional Restrictions Grant) and the LRSGO (Local Restrictions Support Grant – Open), though this may differ from council to council, the names of the grants may differ too, and there may be other or alternative grants. Importantly if you don’t find the answers you need from your local council’s website then contact them, and even more importantly BE QUICK, DO IT NOW! Funds are limited and most have limited application windows.
So back to the Arts Council and PRS for Music Grants, both offer various grants for different purposes and projects throughout the year, visit their websites regularly to see what is available. It is also worth looking at Help Musicians and The Musicians Union, both of which have facilitated Hardship Funds since the onset of the pandemic.
Joining forums and groups on Facebook and LinkedIn can also useful in funding grant funding opportunities. WeAreViable and Music Artists and Industries Unite both list and regularly share information on sources for grants and funding.
DOWNLOADS ETC
*Ensure your music is available to buy online on as many platforms as possible. Promote the fact your music is available to buy online and use this time to get creative with your promotion. Check out platforms such as CD Baby, Spotify, Soundcloud, iTunes, Discogs, RDio to find which works best for you.
*Submit Your Music to a Record Club – services like Feedbands.com stream your music to their listeners, they plant 1 tree for every 100 streams, get enough streams and they start paying you. It’s not much but you’ve got nothing to lose.
*Give Away Your Music for Free – this may sound like an ineffective thing to do but for some artists it can really work, sites like NoiseTrade.com, offer full albums or samplers for free but give listeners/patrons the option to tip. Given the option to choose how much you tip rather than being told what to pay can have some usefully surprising results.
LIVE
Our live music industry is the most creative in the world and has adapted as much as it can as a result of the pandemic, adopting the virtual space, demonstrating blue prints for Covid secure events and pioneering new visionary means to bring live music to audiences.
Many changes will be lasting, notably the move towards a more hybrid model of physical and digital combined outlooks as the future of the way the industry will operate. Many of the changes we have had to make will be here to stay, but there is an upside to this for artists as it will provide a wider scope of opportunities for live music appreciation.
*Live Streaming became the new live events of 2020 and even when physical live events return live streaming will still be here to stay.
There are many online platforms to chose from on which to host your live streams with many artists using Patreon in order to generate an income from these performances.
GoFundMe is another way to accept donations from live streams, Frank Turner notably used it to accept donations to help support his team and crew through 2020.
Twitch has proved a very popular online platform and has a great guide on how you can get started with streaming, including how to keep connected with your fans and make an income from your efforts, visit
Streamland has been launched by Resident Advisor as a listings hub for virtual events to help connect fans and streamers worldwide, you can register and submit an event here.
*Watch Parties - Host live listen/watch parties such as those on Facebook and provide/promote a link whereby watchers can pay a donation for their favourite requests of your songs, you then prioritise playing/performing these. For interaction and to gain more viewers do Q&A’s from the comments in-between songs. Here’s an example.
Also check out this living document from Cherie Hu with some more in-depth live streaming advice:
*Host live ‘feedback’ listen/watch party’s whereby you play the songs of other up and coming artists and provide constructive critique on the songs. Music producers are particularly keen users of these set ups. Hosts tend to get long waiting lists of songs sent to them that they are requested to play. Hosts provide/promote a link whereby those who have sent songs can pay a small donation for their song to be bumped up the queue and prioritised to be played before those that haven’t paid. So, if you have paid, your song gets heard first before non-payers songs.
*If you have the means you could host live online concerts on a pay per view basis via private link or join a group that organises online music events such as this one.
YOUTUBE
Though it could be added to the list of online performance platforms it is worth looking more closely at YouTube. Why? Well, YouTube now outranks Spotify and other audio streaming services for streaming music consumption across most markets globally. (Forbes, 2020).
According to a recent MIDiA Research report titled “The Rising Power of UGC,” in 2019 UGC (that’s User Generated Content) and user interaction contributed more than $1 billion to global music revenues. It is continuing to grow to the point that YouTube now outranks Spotify and other audio streaming services for streaming music consumption across most markets globally. UGC has now become a part of the distribution model for musicians.
The report, sponsored by Los Gatos and commissioned by California-based ‘Audible Magic’ content identification company, indicates that UGC will contribute to a significant portion of growth in music consumption over the next two years, for an opportunity worth about $6 billion to the music industry value chain. So:
*Create a YouTube Channel and Share a Link to Buy Your Music
*Sign Up for MicroSync Licensing with YouTube. This form of licensing, makes it possible for you to get paid when someone uses your music as background on one of their videos posted to YouTube. CD Baby can also make this possible for you.
*Create a YouTube Channel and Display Advertising. Basically, earn funds by allowing adverts to be displayed on your YouTube channel.
TIKTOK
Now let’s take a moment for TikTok. We’ve all heard of artists rising to prevalence almost instantly through TikTok fame. Think of this as platform to get even more creative on, a true combination of visual-audio-interactivity at a high level. For your TikTok content always keep in mind how you can engage the viewer in an interactive way, make them part of the post.
Music-related UGC (User Generated Content) revenue, MIDiA estimates will have totalled $4 billion in 2020 alone, including $2.2 billion potentially directed to music rights holder income. UGC platforms do not respond to traditional licensing structures, so profit opportunities are being missed. For example, with TikTok, you can go further beyond advertising and monetize directly on the platform through subscriptions, in-app purchases, virtual merch and tipping artists.
Professionally-mixed music can be leveraged through mashups, videos, edits, remixed tracks and independent recordings. Beyond the report’s two-year forecast, MIDiA Research’s Consulting Director Keith Jopling anticipates there will be a boom in content creation fuelled by creators, editors, remixers and other curators. He encourages the industry to reach beyond selling and packaging, to get other parties involved in enhancing their music (note my make the viewer ‘part of the post’ advice above, but also this is the time and the ultimate platform for collabs).
“The barriers between the artist, creator, superstar and fan–those barriers are being reduced and broken down all of the time.” MIDiA Research consulting director Keith Jopling, (who authored the report with MIDiA Research Managing Director and Analyst Mark Mulligan).
DISTRO & SYNCH
The holy grail that is distribution (basically getting your music out there wherever possible) and synch (getting your music used in films, TV, advertisements – so music ‘synchronised’ to motion pictures and television).
In an ideal world every musician would be able to find the perfect Synch Agent to represent their music, who will have a strategy and targeted focus on placing the artist’s work, with an outrageously vast network of contacts to bespoke pitch each track to. Good Synch Agents are also given briefs for music requirements, which they work to match the music of artists they represent to. Depending on the Synch Agent’s network and how hard they are working to represent the artist this is often one of the most successful and financially rewarding ways of achieving income through distribution and synch.
*Direct Sync Licensing is another option that you may want to look at offering your music for. You’ll need to make connections in the TV and film industries and work out deals to license some of your music to them. But right now, you have the time to search for those connections and reach out and do this, don’t be afraid to ask others who have done it for their advice.
*Create Music for Video Games. This also involves reaching out to make connections in the video game producing industry. But there’s no time like the present.
*All Media sync licensing will extend your license to all forms of media, like commercials, TV shows, etc. Look at singing up for All Media Sync Licensing with a Library. For example, CD Baby makes this possible through a partnership with Rumblefish.
*Produce Music for Commercials – easier said than done but maybe not as difficult as you think. Start by looking at smaller and local businesses nearby you who make online commercials and videos to promote their business. Rather than them use the same old typical video/commercial backing music that everyone else uses, give them the opportunity to have their own bespoke music for their commercials. Or let them listen through your existing songs and negotiate a license for them to use it.
*Get on Shazam. Ever heard a song somewhere on TV, on an advert, in a shop etc and wondered who it’s by? You’ve probably already heard of it but you can use Shazam to identify that song for you, but it relies on that song being in the Shazam database. Getting in the Shazam database is a must if you are expecting your music to be used on a TV show or commercial. CD Baby and similar organisations can help you get into the Shazam database.
WEBSITES
*Set up an online shop or a link to a set up where people can buy music and merch online from you. If you have the skills to use Facebook then you’ll most likely have no problem building your own website (if you don’t have one already) that you can sell from, or provide link where people can buy your music and merch from.
To build your own website you can use a free service such as WordPress, Wix or check out something more involved like HostBaby.
CD Baby and alike are great as a marketplace, but remember not to rely on them for all of your promotion.
*Join Amazon, ITunes and CD Baby’s Affiliate Programs – If you are already selling your music through these channels you can then make some commission for your efforts. The affiliate links need to be placed from your own website, try joining CD Baby’s affiliate program.
*Be an Affiliate for Music Companies/brands. Endorsement deals can be hard to obtain but you may be able to sign up to receive an affiliate commission. These kinds of set ups mean you receive a commission every time someone makes a purchase from the company/brand because of you. Sign up with Gear 4 Music.
Also try with Musician’s Friend.
SELL ‘YOUR’ MUSIC
*Sell Video Recordings of Your Live Performances, this could be done via your website or social media channels.
*Offer Acoustic Versions of Your Music. It may be an option that you can record acoustic versions on your music. You can then offer your fans a different version of your songs and you can promote it just like you do with any new songs you make.
*Offer Your Single as a Ringtone. Your fans may love your songs so much they want them as their ring tone. You can create your own ringtones and make them available on iTunes.
WRITE
*Write bespoke songs for people - they pay a fee, you write a song for them
*Write for a Music Publication. Contact all music publications and magazines with details of your music background and expertise. Include a sample of an article you have written (it doesn’t have to have been published) to show that you can write. Even if they don’t have any paid opportunities if they have enough readers and allow you to include a link to your website/socials, or mention your music that you’d like to promote, you may be able to get a monetary return than way.
*Publish a Book. Write a book on a music related subject. Contact publishers to try to get it published or look at self-publishing.
*Create a Blog to Promote Your Music. Blogs are super easy to set up. Try Squarespace, Wordpress, Tumblr, Wix to see which you prefer for setting up your blog. Don’t forget to include the links so readers are directed to where they can buy your music and merch.
*Start a Music Blog and Help Other Musicians. You can start a blog to include articles (rather like this one) to share your experiences and advice as an artist. As you build up the articles on your blog and attract more readers you can eventually package up your advice into guides which you can sell online.
*Monetise your blog. You can use the affiliate suggestions above to help monetise your blog.
*Become an Affiliate for Other Musicians and Artists Books/Guides
MARKET
Create a Premium or VIP Fan Club. With this you can sell premium monthly or annual subscriptions to be in your fan club. You’ll need to make your fan club worthy of the subscription and ensure there is a value to it for subscribers by providing plenty of freebies and behind the scenes access, unique opportunities, chances to hear songs first, see videos first etc.
*Send Out a Sponsored Post or Tweet. If you have a substantial number of followers on social media OR a smaller but highly engaged number of followers you can look at doing sponsored posts or Tweets. To do this you need a service such as Sponsored Tweets to make money on each sponsored tweet you send out. Check out SponsoredTweets.com to find out how much you could make from your tweets. Do a search to find similar services for Instagram etc.
*Create a Digital Guide for Marketing Yourself as a Musician. If you’ve been successful in the music industry in particularly with regards to promoting and marketing yourself and what to do then create a digital guide or ebook to help others who are in need of advice. This is especially useful for those just getting started in music or who are looking for new ideas and inspiration with their marketing and promotion.
PRODUCE
*Produce Music Recordings for Other Musicians
*Write and Produce Jingles. Ever heard a jingle on the radio or somewhere and thought I can do that! If you have a knack for fun catchy lyrics and melodies take a look into writing jingles. Sites like site Fiverr can market your services, or contact radio stations with examples of the services you can offer.
*Record Backing Tracks and Sell Them Online. Creating a business that sells backing tracks could be an option to you if you have professional quality audio equipment and access to a studio. If you can create a large enough catalogue of backing tracks this could turn into a business that’s making money for you even when you’re not making music.
*Offer Sounds for Sampling Licensing. Similar to music licensing but more focused on specific sounds. You will need to build your contacts and relationships with TV, Film and radio production companies but there’s no time like the present to start.
*Create Sound Files. If you play a range of different instruments you could create sound files or virtual instruments. Composers and music producers often need help when creating their music. Recording sound files (especially unique sounding ones or using unique or unusual instruments) and creating an online database where they can be purchased from could give you an additional income. Take a look at Impact Soundworks, https://impactsoundworks.com/
*Provide Music for Corporate. Video is now necessity in marketing and promotion, it is particularly key for online and social media platforms. Whether for marketing or for information sharing or educational purposes Corporate video creation is on the increase. In light of this there’s now a requirement for people who can create and edit music for these kinds of videos. You can break into this area by teaming up with a videographer to make a few initial videos for free as examples to start your portfolio.
CROWDFUND
*Crowdfund Your Next Album, Single or Video. If you need funds for your next music creation why not look to crowdfunding to raise that money?
Services like Patreon, GoFundMe, CrowdFunder, KickStarter allow people to become subscribers to your music often for just a small pledge for your next song or music video. Take a look to see how it works and how much artists are raising.
RE-SELL INSTRUMENTS/EQUIPMENT
Re-sell Your Old Instruments Online. This is the ideal time to sell off instruments and equipment that you have replaced or that no longer work. Try Gumtree and eBay.
TEACH, EDUCATE & SELL SHEET MUSIC
*Teach Live Music Lessons Online. Charge through a PayPal link.
*Record Lessons and Sell Them Online. Scott’s Bass Lessons is basically exactly that. Charge for subscriptions to access your lessons and/or create a website where you can sell your best video lessons.
*Create an Instructional Digital Guide. These cost very little other than your time to put together. Particularly if you don’t like the idea of teaching live or videoed music lessons, creating an eBook teaching how to play an instrument also provides learners with another type of source to learn from.
*Transcribe Music for Others. If you are particularly skilled in music or playing a range of instruments this could suit you as another chargeable service to offer.
*Create a Music Education or Appreciation App. If you are tech savvy as well as music savvy this is a great opportunity for additional income.
*Sell Sheet Music. If you are highly skilled at playing a rare or unusual musical instrument you could create specific sheet music and sell it from your website. You can also earn Print Rights for Your Sheet Music, this is similar to how it works for your recordings, when a composition of your recording is reproduced, you can earn money.
NOTE: The above does not constitute any legal advice but are some suggestions for artists to consider.
Gina Akers is the Founder of BLENDID Media & Artists
