What Is a Music Distributor?
Glossary & Music Industry Basics

A music distributor gets your music onto streaming services and stores, and gets the money they pay back to you. If you're not signed to a label, a distributor is how your music reaches Spotify, Apple Music and the rest.

Why you need one

You can't upload music to Spotify yourself. Spotify requires all music to come through labels and distributors, and it describes distributors as the ones who handle distribution and pay streaming royalties. Your Spotify artist profile is created automatically when your first release is delivered. (Spotify: Getting music on Spotify, Creating an artist profile)

Apple Music works through distributors too. Apple says distributors manage the relationship between artists and streaming services: Apple talks to your distributor about any problems with your metadata or files, and your distributor handles your streaming, financial and royalty information. (Apple: How to distribute your music with Apple Music)

What a distributor does

• Delivers your release. Your audio, cover art and metadata go to each streaming service and store, known as DSPs, in the format each one asks for. See What Is a DSP?
• Assigns the codes stores use. Every recording needs an ISRC, which identifies that recording permanently, on every service and in every country (ISRC). Every release needs a UPC, which identifies the single, EP or album as a whole. MOOSYC issues both for you, or uses your own. See What Is an ISRC? and What Is a UPC?
• Collects your royalties. Spotify pays the rights holder each artist selected, typically a label or distributor, and they pay the artist under their agreement. (Spotify: Royalties Guide)
• Reports back. You see what your music earned, and where.
• Speaks to the stores for you. When a release lands on the wrong artist profile or has to come down, your distributor is the one the store deals with. See My Music Is on the Wrong Artist Profile.

Many distributors also offer extras like YouTube Content ID, royalty splits with collaborators, pre-saves, smartlinks and Dolby Atmos delivery. Some include them in the price, others charge for each one.

How distributors charge

Spotify points out that most distributors charge a fee or a commission, and suggests doing some research before you pick one. The models you'll come across, often mixed together:

• Per release. You pay once for each single, EP or album. Some per-release distributors also keep a share of your royalties.
• Yearly subscription. One price a year for unlimited releases. The question to ask is what happens to your releases if you stop paying. See What Happens to Your Music If You Stop Paying Your Distributor?
• Commission. Little or nothing up front, and the distributor keeps a percentage of what your music earns for as long as it's out.

The lowest sticker price isn't always the lowest cost over a few years. Add up the fee, the commission on what you expect to earn, and every extra you'd actually use.

What to compare

Here are the questions worth asking any distributor, with MOOSYC's answers.

Whatever you choose, read the distributor's own help pages on pricing, commission and cancelling. That's where the answers to these questions are written down.

Related

• What's Included in the Plan
• How Royalties Work on MOOSYC
• How to Release a Song, Step by Step