How to make money with your music in 2024: Best tips and methods

Are you a passionate musician who wants to start a musical career? Have you written a song and want to develop your artistic talent?

Whether you are part of a band or are a solo artist, it’s possible to make a name for yourself in the industry, provided you pull the right levers and work hard to get there. To help your dreams as an artist come true, make the right decisions and surround yourself with the right people.

How do you make money with music? Although there are no hard and fast rules for making money with your music, here are some ideas and tips on how to get the fame your songs deserve.

Making money with your music: key tips

How do you make it in the music business?

To break into the music business, you need to be aware that there is no real set of instructions on how to do it. As with any artistic profession, there are many different ways to achieve notoriety.

Moreover, in music, there is a wide range of jobs and activities that allow you to gain recognition for your art. Musician, singer, DJ, composer, conductor, etc.

Whether you’ve taken courses and studied music, or are completely self-taught, it’s possible in both cases to succeed in your endeavors.

It will require a lot of self-sacrifice, hard work, tenacity, but above all, an unwavering passion that will allow you not to count the hours while climbing the ladder of success for your project while listening carefully to the advice of musicians and professionals in the music industry.

How do you earn money as a singer?

To be able to earn money as a singer, it’s not only your voice that will count but the way you present it to the public, your brand image.

In addition to the talent for singing, many commercial levers will allow the highlighting of your productions:

• sale of albums,
• tours,
• live broadcasting to your subscribers on social media networks,
• music or singing lessons,
• private performances at special events,
• presence of your songs on a playlist followed by many listeners, 
• etc.

Earning money as a singer can also be done through a stage career: many artists succeed by joining musical theater companies for example.

It’s up to you to decide what kind of music you want to offer to the public and how you want to perform on stage!

How do you make a living from your music?

Making a living from your music isn’t easy, but it’s not impossible!

Certainly, at the beginning of a career in music, it’s rather difficult to make a place for yourself with your own artistic creations when you start from scratch.

That’s why many singers and musicians start by performing well-known and recognized songs.

This type of performance will allow you to create a real community and become known locally. This won’t prevent you from composing and writing your own sounds: at the same time, try to get some time in a recording studio and get started.

Once you’re well known locally and maybe even on social media networks, offer your own creations and start selling your albums. Your tracks will then earn you royalties on streaming and/or video platforms.

Facilitate the path to fame and popularity for your creations by following certain steps to bring your talent to light.

Let’s look at some of the ways that will allow you to make your music known so that you can earn your first revenue, with the aim of earning several thousand dollars (or more)!

How can you get your music known? 6 effective strategies

Participate in concerts

Many years ago, concerts were a way to promote the musical creations and albums of musicians. Now, the place of the concert has changed because the sale of albums has been completely turned upside down with the internet and streaming sites.

Today, concerts and festivals have become the main source of income for artists.

In addition to being remunerative, the scene makes it possible for artists to build a community of fans to evolve and reach more and more users listening to their style of music.

Performing on stage in different establishments, in different cultural places, is a way to reach different audiences, to attract more and more people, and finally, to be able to sell your music to a conquered public.

You can also consider creating merch and derivative products in order to sell them to your fans on the web or during your concerts: another efficient method to earn money with your music.

Spotify, Deezer, YouTube: publish your music on platforms

To share your music on the internet, two types of services can help you: streaming platforms and social networks.

As far as streaming services are concerned, Spotify or Deezer, for example, will host professionally recorded songs to provide users from all over the world quality music, which they can save in their playlists. 

Social networks, on the other hand, will allow artists more freedom and spontaneity in their content: whether you produce music in your room using your smartphone or have a professionally recorded album, every artist is free to share their art to their fans in the way they want.

Keep in mind, however, that the better your content, the more likely you are to attract new listeners. Also, the presence of your music on Apple Music, Spotify, Deezer, or any other streaming service helps serve as a guarantee of the quality of your work.

Note that each streaming service pays artists from the first listen: it’s a more efficient way to make money with your music online. You’ll be paid royalties for each time that your songs are streamed by people using the service. However, note that it can be tough for a musician or artist to earn a living from streaming royalties alone, as the revenue they receive per stream is generally very low. For this reason, many people supplement this income in other ways, such as by selling merch.

Share as much of your news as possible on social networks

In order to get your music known and sell as many albums as possible, you’ll need to build a community around your stage name.

For that, social media networks are a great way to highlight your news and keep your followers informed in real time through different types of content, be it a photo, video, tweet, etc.

Album release, videos of your concerts, images of your tour schedule: the networks will be your logbook and a privileged communication support, in addition to being the channel of your live broadcasts or the relay of your store in order to sell your music and merch. Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook: make these solutions your best allies to succeed on the web.

Enter singing competitions

When it comes to breaking into the music business, who hasn't heard of singing competitions? The most popular example is television shows like The Voice.

By registering for the castings of this kind of contest, you’ll be able to pass the stages of selection in order to perform on the stage of televised competitions.

Of course, even if you will do everything to win, note that many candidates who didn’t make it to the finals have still managed to make a name for themselves in music.

Jennifer Hudson, Lewis Capaldi, Maren Morris: these well-known artists of today didn’t win the singing contest but are at the top of the bill thanks to their talent!

Send your demos to professionals

Once you’ve recorded your first songs, get in touch with professionals who can help you, advise you, and even help you break into the music business. Granted, this is much easier said than done, but do your research and attend networking events to help boost your list of contacts.

Producers, journalists, other artists, bookers, distributors, tour operators, agents, etc. All contacts will be great to have in order to give voice to your musical creations. 

Shares, comments, private messages: solicit your community on the internet

Your social networks also allow you to get in touch with professionals in the field in more informal ways.

Thanks to your actions on networks, you could get noticed by getting in direct contact with the main actors of the sector.

Sharing publications, commenting on their videos, private messages to ask for advice or simply comment on other artists’ activities, etc. The more visible you are to people online and offline, the more you’ll maximize your chances of creating a buzz around your talent.

Moreover, if you host your music on streaming solutions but also on your online sales site, it’ll be much easier for you to share the direct link to your songs with professionals in the industry.

How do you sell your musical compositions?

Offer your songs for purchase online

The first idea is to host your music on certain streaming platforms that are also album purchase services such as Apple Music. Selling your album or vinyl can also be done on sites such as Amazon to allow customers to purchase your music in physical form.

Another solution is to create your own platform, your own sales site: unlike a traditional library that’ll take high commissions on each transaction made, having your own sales site allows you to recoup the most money possible and pay only a subscription plus a small commission each month.

What if you started selling your music online on your own website?

Create a sales website dedicated to your music

Make money with your music and be in control of your work. With the WiziShop solution, it’s possible to sell your songs and musical creations directly on your online sales site. Once your album is recorded, you just have to put it on sale on your online store to offer it to your customers/fans. 

When it comes to earning income with your music, there’s no limit to how much money you can make with your ecommerce site!

In addition to offering all the music styles you want, you benefit from 400+ ecommerce features, more than 50 SEO optimizations, personalized support with Business Coaches, and complete marketing and ecommerce training offered in your subscription. What's more, you'll have access to our powerful AI tool for generating all kinds of text content for your site in mere seconds!

From $24.90 per month, create your platform and earn money in ecommerce by selling your artistic creations, including your songs, merch, and other products, to the largest number of people!