TuneCore payouts to Artists pass $4 Billion

D.I.Y. digital music distributor TuneCore announced that artists have earned more than $4 billion since its founding in 2006.

It has been just a year and a half since the Believe-owned self-service distributor announced it had surpassed $3 billion in payouts.

“Independent artists stand at the forefront of innovation in music, both as pioneers of experimentation and as the trailblazers forging new paths to success in the music industry,” said TuneCore CEO Andreea Gleeson. “Whether artists are recording and releasing their first songs through TuneCore or selling out stadiums internationally, we are proud to provide artists with a distribution and career development platform that puts more money in their pockets and lets them focus on creating the music that moves us.”

Snow Tha Product – Photo by Miguel Madriz

“Being an artist in the age of streaming brings new, exciting challenges every day and has redefined what it means to be an independent artist,” commented Snow Tha Product. “We have total control over both the artistry and backend music decisions, and new technologies to add to the creative process have been a game-changer. With streaming services, social media, and digital distributors like TuneCore, independent artists can now retain control and reap the financial benefits of our work.”

TuneCore vs CD Baby vs DistroKid

Competitor CD Baby said it had paid out $1 billion to artists as of December 2021, its last public payout report. DistroKid, which is believed to now be the largest D.I.Y. music distributor when measured by track uploads, has never publically shared its cumulative payouts.

Bruce Houghton is the Founder and Editor of Hypebot, a Senior Advisor at Bandsintown, President of the Skyline Artists Agency, and a Berklee College Of Music professor.