Self Releasing Music
General Producer Chat
Hi Samuel, you probably don't want to worry too much about having your own label if you just want to get your tracks out onto streaming platforms. In these days of self-releasing it doesn't seem to be that relevant. The exception is if you want to build a reputation for a group of different artists or aliases on a DJ download platform like Beatport/Traxsource/JunoDownload. To me, these seem to be only places where you can search by label.
I've just started doing this and because I'm very old (and old school) I decided to go down the own label route. I use a distributor called iMusician that allows you to set up your own label on Beatport. But what I've found is that it's very difficult getting any visibility on Beatport if you're starting from scratch like I am (e.g. no social media presence).
If you go with Distrokid, that'll be a good choice and very cheap and easy to get on all the main streaming platforms. You can also release on Beatport through them (for an additional charge) and it will appear as a release on the Distrokid label.
If it's just streams you're after and not downloads, you can look at using sites like Submit Hub and Groover to get on playlists etc. And also Facebook Ads (the cost can build up on these though). There's some good advice on YouTube from people like Andrew Southworth to help get started releasing through Distrokid and the marketing side of things.
Good luck and if you'd like any more help or questions answered I'll do my best to help with what very limited experience I have on this.
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