Music hosting platforms have transformed the way artists interact with their fan bases, allowing more musicians to have one-on-one interactions with their audiences. Additionally, online platforms allow for easy uploads and outreach, reducing time spent on your sales and marketing efforts. This gives you flexibility in tracking your stats, allowing you to focus on producing more music. But even with these benefits, not all platforms are created equal, with some providing personalized care. So, what are some ideal platforms for musicians and bands?
SoundCloud
SoundCloud is one of the well-known music-hosting platforms, making it a top contender for artists and their fans. Musicians looking to build a community will find this platform helpful, as it allows your audience to leave comments on your songs. Through this, you can collect information on which tracks resonate most with your audience, allowing you to focus on music that enhances your musical portfolio. SoundCloud will be ideal if you are also looking for a platform that enables you to monetize your music.
In addition to this, sites such as Rhinonetworks help you monitor your music engagement securely. This could be analyzing the number of plays on your songs, the reposts, likes, and downloads. With this, you can easily enhance your marketing strategy, providing a personalized tool to collect essential data. Lastly, SoundCloud also works well with other music hosting platforms, allowing seamless integration.
Bandzoogle
Bandzoogle is another website that allows musicians and bands to have control over their music. Artists have a dedicated page where their fans can access all music, with musicians given free reign over how to display their music for audience consumption. Bandzoogle allows you to sell your music at a fixed rate or, as you see fit. It also allows you to choose between streaming and free downloads for your audience.
You can also let your fans decide the price to buy your music, creating cohesive interaction with your fans while still giving you a chance to earn an income for the work you put into your craft. Unlike other websites that charge musicians commissions, this platform allows you to keep 100% of your sales and reap the full financial benefits.
YouTube
YouTube is another popular music-hosting platform. One of its core values is music discovery, with its algorithm tailored to promote tracks to new audiences and regular listeners. It allows you to upload audio and high-quality videos of your music to your channel, helping alert your fans when you release new music.
This platform also allows you to arrange your tracks into playlists, making it possible to group your content according to album releases or based on your preferred themes. YouTube also allows you to monetize your music, with more watch time increasing your incentives on the platform. Opportunities such as ad revenue are available on this platform, with more viewership increasing your monetary benefits.
Bandcamp
Bandcamp is another platform designed to boost interaction between musicians and their fans. Artists can upload and sell their music to their fans without any upload fees, allowing audiences easy access to new content. The platform also pushes for music discovery, promoting your music to audiences that may be unfamiliar with your sound. This allows you to reach new audiences without the regular marketing hassles, making it a win for upcoming and established artists. Bandcamp caters to individual artists, bands and labels alike, allowing creators at various levels of their careers to get the most out of their music sales.
Bandcamp also works hand in hand with Bandzoogle, with the former allowing you to add your music to your website in just a few clicks. This reduces time spent on re-uploads and eliminates the hassles of managing multiple apps on your devices. If you prefer utilizing a theme for your website, Bandcamp will adjust your player to match your pick. Other gradual changes in your website design will be automatically updated to your player, allowing for flexibility and coherence throughout your music career.
Tips To Help You Choose the Best Music-Hosting Website
Start With a Personal Website
If you are still new to the entertainment scene, having a personal website is one way of pushing your music to your audience. It allows you to customize your brand image and sound as you see fit. Ensure that your platform prioritizes music discovery, which will be vital in showcasing your tracks to your market base. A strong foundation gives you a better chance when approaching hosting websites, giving you a fighting chance against other musicians in your field.
Do Some Research On Your Digital Distributor
While not all websites require you to work with a digital distributor, some may call for such a partnership. The above-listed platforms allow artists to upload their music directly to their hosting sites, eliminating the usual hassles of a third-party collaboration. Streaming platforms like Apple Music and Spotify are some that require such an agreement.
Before choosing your distributor, make it a point first to check their credibility. Look up the type of services they offer and the kind of artists they work with, whether individual artists or bands. Additionally, look at some of the partners that they work with. Distributors such as CD Baby come highly recommended and are the preferred partners for Spotify, YouTube, and Apple Music. They ensure that their artists are well represented on the various music-hosting platforms and go out of their way to ensure you receive your compensation.
Each music-hosting platform will have unique advantages, with some ideal for up-and-coming artists, while others will be tailor-made for established musicians. Various venues will also have different monetization structures and audience reach. With this in mind, consider the benefits they offer to help you increase your visibility for long-term success.