Spotify is now allowing indie artists to upload their own music to the platform via a beta version of Spotify for Artists.
[jwplayer gvkTjsCy]
While the artist portal has been around for about a year now, the new feature will allow them to upload their shit without first going through a label or music aggregator, which has been a big part of the process originally. They’ll also be able to track metrics for their music and fans.
After uploading directly to Spotify, users will be able to preview how it will appear, edit any metadata on the tracks, and choose a date for the music to go live. Uploading will be completely free and artists will cop a 50 per cent cut of all profits and royalties.
This is a big deal, particularly for smaller artists, as they’ll no longer need to pay aggregators to put their music on the platform, nor will they, or labels, be able to take a cut of their profits. On the other hand, it could backfire on Spotify if labels refuse to play ball moving forward, whether that’s via withholding licenses or not agreeing to new terms after existing contracts expire.
Payments will go directly into the artist’s bank accounts and they’ll even be able to get an idea of what’s coming and when they can expect to receive it.
It’s great news for indie artists who stand to make more money out of this than they would via a label. Not only that, it’s another great way for them to easily expand their fan base beyond the likes of Soundcloud or similar sites.
The feature is currently available as an invite-only beta in the US, with Spotify set to contact more artists to be a part of the trial in the coming months. There’s no word on if or when the service will be made public to the global community, but I really, really hope that happens.
