Additional Income Streams for Artists

Outside of streaming royalties, what are some other ways artists can make extra income? In this article we review a number of suggestions from artists around the world.

This article came about after a recent post across multiple social media channels delivered a significant amount of helpful responses. I was blown away by how many artists were happy to share ways that they make additional income, knowing that it would benefit other artists as well. Thank you for contributing and please let me know if there's anything I've missed!

Prefer to watch a video instead of reading? Here's a three minute video summary I recorded.

Sell Merchandise

Fans love to rep their favorite artist. Whether it’s a cool logo, or original art design. There’s a number of services that offer print and ship on demand merch which means there is no cost to the artist, nor is there a garage full of product. It’s good for the environment, items tend to arrive quicker and production costs are cheaper.

Amazon Merch - link to artist profile so it also shows up in Amazon Music.

Shopify - link to artist profile via Spotify for Artists.

Go Live

Connect with fans on a deeper level and chat with them while you perform, create, play games or just hang out and chat. Many platforms offer ways for fans to directly “tip” and subscribe to artists. This is a great way to connect with fans while doing something you normally do and you can make some extra money.

Twitch - link to your Amazon Music artist profile and go live simultaneously in both apps.

Instagram - quick to get started, just use your phone. The very first time you ever go live all of your followers will receive a notification!

Reddit - live stream via the Reddit phone app. 

Bandcamp - they take 10%, you keep 90% of earnings and receive money within 48 hours.

Host a Podcast

In 2021, 41% or 116 million Americans were monthly podcast listeners. Let that sink in for a second, now think about how many listeners there are around the world. Your podcast can be about anything you like. Some artists record episodes where they break down the creative process for a song or album, others interview musicians that inspire them. Some podcast distributors and apps allows creators to monetize their podcast with ads, audience “tips” and subscriptions for exclusive fan content.

Anchor - free and easy to use. Fans can subscribe and host can get paid for including ads.

Apple Podcasts - subscriptions can be enabled and they also provide detailed analytics.

Check out this article on adding your existing podcast to more platforms including iHeartRadio, Deezer, Audible and many more!

Sell Your Music Direct

If you own all rights to your music, there’s a number of websites where you can sell MP3's, CD’s, Vinyl, Cassette Tapes and Music Videos directly to fans.

Bandcamp - offers vinyl pressing and direct downloads and streams to fans.

Qrates - set up a crowdfunding campaign for a vinyl record. If enough people purchase it is pressed and shipped. No upfront costs for artist.

Reverbnation - set your prices and sell direct downloads to fans.

Disc Makers - create CDs, DVDs, Blu-Rays, USBs and Vinyl to sell.

Apply for Music Grants

This is something many artists aren’t aware of. Local organizations may have access to funds and be able to provide grants to artists. There are grants available for a variety of artists and reasons. 

There are no direct links as it will be different in each country/region. To find these, search for “funds” or “grants” in your country and if you find one that could help another artist please let them know.

Register With a PRO

A Performing Rights Organization collects public performance royalties i.e. money earned by songwriters, composers and lyricists, when their music is played on radio stations, used on TV shows/commercials, or performed in live venues. Here's a list of PRO's around the world!

Teach What You Know

Put your knowledge in writing, do one on one calls or go all out and create an online course. You could cover production, songwriting, booking tours, anything that others would value.

Teachable - create an online course or sell consulting services.

Gumroad - create and sell almost anything, including courses, videos, documents.

Other Ideas

Create custom songs for fans. Change some lyrics in one of your existing songs to make it personal. These can apply to almost any occasion from birthdays to break-ups!

Sell meet and greets opportunities. If a fan would buy you dinner to chat with you, they would likely pay to spend 15 minutes chatting with you. Offer these opportunities and get to know your fans better!

Create for music production libraries and royalty free library's. A quick search will find many companies that are always looking for producers. This gives you an opportunity to apply your production skills to a different genre. Some will pay an hourly rate to create music while others pay a fee per project.

You may notice a trend with many things suggested in this article. You are giving fans what they want and they are rewarding you by subscribing, tipping, purchasing what you have created for them. Everyone wins. Give your fans what they want and watch your income streams grow.

Thanks for reading. Please chime in via the comments with anything that has been missed!