How To Make Money with Music as Your Primary Income Source

Understanding Music Monetization

The first step to making a living from your music is understanding music monetization and music monetization boils down to two key components:

• Continuously maximizing your resources

• Maximize your earnings

Do you play an instrument? Be willing to gig for that instrument at an hourly rate. Do you produce beats and love sample-digging? Consider teaching production to others online.
Yes, these pursuits are less glamorous than instantly monetizing millions of streams from YouTube Music, but both are bedrocks of a life where music is the primary fiscal provider. When you gig, you’re making money from instrumental music. If you teach beatmaking, you’re making money from instrumental production.

In both cases, you’re building up the financial resources to take incredible next steps like touring, recording, or shooting a video with viral potential.

Here’s Italian rapper and TuneCore artist Egreen, discussing embracing this process from TuneCore’s Creative House in Ibiza:

“From ages 18 to 30, I had all types of jobs and, at lunchtime, I would write bars, I would come home at night, and write…I did that life for 12 years…and then, when I realized I could have paid my bills with [music]? I just kept waking up very f**king early in the morning and I always took it very seriously and I took it as my job.”

Exploring the Income Landscape for Music Artists

Where do musical artists make money? How do music artists make money now?
The music industry landscape is forever changing, and getting a foothold on what the most contemporary income methods are can feel more challenging than doing the renegade on TikTok.

Thankfully, it isn’t. The most financially successful music artists have monetization strategies for six core categories:

• Music copyright and licensing

• Music streaming platforms

• Social media

• Fan engagement

• Creating profitable music

• Selling original compositions

Take Olivia Rodrigo: she announced her comeback single “vampire” on social media two weeks before its release with the ability for fans to pre-save it on Spotify, Apple Music, and Tidal. She dropped “vampire”-themed merch when the song officially launched. That was followed by live performances and thousands of fan-created TikToks. “vampire” is one of Rodrigo’s lowest-charting Billboard songs, yet it still proved very monetizable.

Can you afford to make bucket hats and jean jackets for every song you drop? Probably not. But you can follow Rodrigo’s template in microcosm with TuneCore’s help.

Let’s start with a look at the heart of any monetization strategy – music licensing.

1) Understanding Music Licensing

Have you ever heard a song in a movie, TV commercial, or television show and rushed to open Shazam? That’s the power of music licensing in action.

Synch options afford artists a wealth of opportunities to make money from original music and get promoted on multiple streaming platforms in one fell swoop. Your best chance at getting synched and maximizing the money you make from it is fully understanding how both music licensing and copyright work.

Since we just discussed copyright, let’s dive into music licensing further.

As we previously mentioned, any musical recording yields two separately protected works; both can be licensed.

• The publishing license applies to the song and credited songwriters

• The master license applies to the recording being synched

Put another way: if you write a hit song and another artist covers it, you're due royalties from their cover. And if their cover of your song gets licensed for a film, TV show, or video game? You’re owed additional royalties. This is why music licensing is such a valuable income source for musicians. It can generate loads of passive income across multiple mediums, and it is why TuneCore is committed to helping you monetize and maximize your returns through music licensing quickly by covering all your music licenses under one digital umbrella, whether they’re publishing, mechanical, or streaming.

Remember Russ' Instagram post from the introduction? That covered master license residuals alone. This is why it pays to understand real-world music licensing opportunities.

It also pays to be online.

2) Online Opportunities for Musicians

It isn't impossible to make money from music if you're not taking advantage of online opportunities for musicians, but it is like playing a video game in "extreme" mode -- an uphill battle.

Making money with your music online is all about leveraging the platforms available to you, the artist. Spotify, Apple Music, and Tidal are known global commodities. Independent platforms like Bandcamp offer higher payouts and strong scene cred. All are the most reliable way to reach millions and earn money from music on the internet in the process. The question isn't whether you want to do it but how.

Let’s look at each and how they integrate with social media.

Streaming Platforms

The revenue potential offered by streaming services such as Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Beatport, and Tidal is a music industry equalizer. The base rate for all artists is the same. That’s right – you technically get paid the same rate as Beyonce. Let that sink in.

Monetizing music streaming, then, is a numbers game. And artists make money from streaming by being on as many platforms as possible and maximizing their engagement on each one. Spotify is known for its wide-reaching playlists. Beatport is favored by electronic music insiders.
TuneCore uses algorithmic tools to help make your music more visible, but developing your understanding of and confidence in your catalog is your ace in the hole. It also feeds directly into having excellent social media.

4) Maximizing your Earnings with Fan Engagement

As we mentioned at the beginning of the guide, making money with music isn’t just about monetization – it’s about maximizing earning potential. And if your work as an artist is the proverbial floor, fan engagement will help establish just how high your ceiling is.

Think of it this way: even your most casual fans passively engage with your work every time they stream your tracks. If you actively engage with your most fervent supporters, there’s no telling how empowered they might feel and what they’ll pay for that connection.

Here are some tactics you can take to catalyze fan engagement:

1. Crowdfunding (and crowdfunding perks) – reward your fans' investment in your work with one-of-a-kind connections to the music you wake, be it signed copies of an album or exclusive behind-the-scenes of your creative process.

2. VIP Concert Packages – they’re not just for pop superstars. Tier access to your shows or creative exclusive merch for fans who will pay extra to see you live and in person.

3. Merchandise – It’s not just tee-shirts anymore: mugs, keychains, and mousepads have all become viable swag for bands trying to express themselves. Take stock of your margins and audience to make products your listeners will rush to purchase.

4. Instagram Lives – When a major artist risks the spontaneity of live-streaming, it instantly makes them feel more human and relatable. Even if you’re not huge yet, that logic still applies. Put yourself out there on social media to form active, meaningful connections with the audience that adores you.

And there’s another way to engage with fans entirely that you’re already great at –songwriting.

6) Monetizing Original Music

There’s one more step you can take when it comes to making money with your music – and it’s the most direct one of all.

You can write songs for companies that license music for a flat fee, such as Epidemic Sound, Shutterstock, and Pond 5. The downside: your residuals will be capped because songs on these services are sold sans negotiation. (In the case of Pond5, users can add a track and its license to their digital shopping cart and then check out).

On the plus side? You might get synced in some cool and unexpected places. Twitch streamers utilize these services, Netflix shows, and tons of other appealing content creators and properties. Peruse these sites. See what sort of categories they offer and organize their music by. Then, if you’re inspired, get to composing.

Remember: every step counts as long as those steps maximize your opportunities and revenue. This one does both.