Saturday, January 23rd
2021 Music Publishing Company Reviews
TuneCore
- Cost: $75 one-time fee + the cost to upload albums, singles, and ringtones
In 2006, TuneCore started partnering with digital stores to allow musicians to sell their songs worldwide. Some of these partner platforms include Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, TikTok, YouTube, and others. TuneCore has paid out over $1.8 billion in royalties to the artists who use their platform. Despite having a mediocre Better Business Bureau rating (B-), thousands of musicians have reported success by using what TuneCore has to offer and seem happy with their services.
Music publishing services
There are three main areas of music publishing that TuneCore provides to their clients. The first is fine-tuning and getting the music ready for publishing by offering feedback and licensing help. The next is to prepare artists to sell their music by setting up YouTube monetization, allowing Facebook to use the music, stocking up on physical CD copies, and so on. Lastly, TuneCore helps with music promotion through services like feature.fm, radio airplay, and TuneCore's social page where artists can schedule posts, connect with fans, and analyze engagement stats.
Cost breakdown
Musicians keep 100% of their copyright through all of the streaming platforms where their music is found. In return, they must pay for distribution of each song and album as well as split royalties. Here is a breakdown of costs that you can expect from TuneCore:
- 15% of royalties go to TuneCore
- 20% of sync commission goes to TuneCore
- $75 one-time fee to use their services
- $10 one-time fee for YouTube publishing
- $29.99/album the first year, then $49.99/album for following years
- $9.99 for singles
- $19.99 for ringtones
Credits can save you money
You can purchase credits through TuneCore, which can be used for new releases. Buying credits in bulk will save money on the album, singles, and ringtone publishing costs. For example, 5 album credits costs $134.95, which saves the customer 10%. Or users can buy 20 single credits for $171.82, which saves them 14%. For musicians hoping to use TuneCore for a long time and release a lot of music, using credits will definitely save them money in the end - because TuneCore is definitely a pricier option for music publishing.
Commercial films, tv, and video games
Similar to their competitors, TuneCore works to get their client's music placed in commercials, films, TV, and video games. Their highlight reel video shows a series of success stories from musicians who have used their site. Some of the companies that have used TuneCore client's music include Amazon, Rover, Pizza Hut, Legends Rising, Dancing with the Stars, Nordstrom, AT&T, and other recognizable names.
Mixed reviews
TuneCore has a B- rating from the Better Business Bureau due to lots of complaints that TuneCore took the customer's money, but then never published the music and also made it nearly impossible to contact their customer service team. There are musicians who reported that they waited months for their music to go live and saw zero results from TuneCore. On the flip side, other third-party sites have comments from thousands of musicians who say that they have been pleased with TuneCore's services. Some even say that customer service is easy to work with, though others still complain that working with a rep is like pulling teeth.
Worth consideration
The two main reasons we suspect artists might be leery of TuneCore are the expensive publishing costs and the less-than-ideal BBB rating. However, TuneCore has been in the industry long enough to have well-established connections and really knows how to help their musicians find success. Many prefer TuneCore over other music publishing platforms because of how quickly they distribute music and get the ball rolling for musicians to make music. We recommend seriously considering TuneCore for your music publishing needs.
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The 7 Best Music Publishing Companies
Where Can You Find the Best Music Publishing Services?
You don't have to be famous to have your musical talents shared with the whole world. There are companies that allow vocalists and other musicians to get their work published for streaming on platforms like iTunes, Spotify, Napster, and other big-name services. This allows individuals to skip the need for a music producer and put themselves out there independently.
Finding a music publishing service is a great way to start out in the music industry. Even though today you might just be writing and producing music in your basement, publishing companies allow artists to share their vocal talents with millions and potentially get discovered by a big name label.
Continued from above...
There are quite a few music publishing services to choose from when exploring your options. A more reputable company will know the ins and outs of getting their musicians the maximum amount of exposure possible. If perhaps your music does get discovered and have millions of streaming listeners, you'll want to use a service that allows you to keep larger portions of sales.
Before choosing the company you want to publish your music, we suggest you keep the following things in mind:
- Cost. Will you be paying a reasonable price for services whether or not you make much money from your music? What is the cost of publishing a single song versus an entire album? Is there a continued fee for using their services?
- Services Included. Does the publishing company offer assistance along the way for first-time musicians who don't yet know the ropes? Do they provide templates to give you a professional presence?
- Distributing. What music networks will the publishing company help you get in with? Are they reputable and well-known in the industry?
TopConsumerReviews.com has reviewed and ranked the best music publishing services available today. We hope this information helps you achieve your musical aspirations!
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