Words: Chuck Fishman
In previous parts of this guide, I've mentioned that it's important to capture mechanical performance and mechanical royalties from your songs when they are streamed by major music services and played on radio and other broadcasts. If you've decided to forgo a record label for your release and want to self-release instead, the first step is to set up publishing.
Publishing your own music
You can't capture 100% of performance and mechanical royalties - the share for the publisher and the share for the songwriter - without publishing your songs yourself.
To set up as a songwriter, you need to become affiliated with a Publishing Rights Organisation (PRO). In the US you would join either BMI or ASCAP, and in the UK songwriters usually register with PRS - for a complete list of copyright collection societies worldwide, click here. However, being the songwriter on a release will only give you 50% of the royalty share, the publishers get the other half.
If you want to register as an individual song publisher too, I recommend doing so with the same organisation that you've registered with as a songwriter, to keep things streamlined. It will cost you $50 to become a self-publisher at ASCAP and $150 at BMI. However, before you register with a PRO as an individual publisher, I suggest that you go to Songtrust first, because they will register you for free with the PRO of your choice.
Songtrust is a publishing administration company that collects all royalties on a song publishers behalf, and their platform works with royalty collection societies across the globe, giving you the furthest reach to get paid for the use of your music. It costs $99 a year to have them collect on the songs that you - as a publisher - register with Songtrust.
There are very few publishing administration companies that serve independent artists publishing interests, so many artists rely on the PRO they registered with to collect and pay out royalties. In addition to Songtrust in this space, there is now UK-based Sentric Publishing, and Spain-based Unison.
I'm now a song publisher. Am I also a record label?
If you want to have the appearance of being with a record label, you could create your own record label that has a different name to your artist name. Although you often see established artists launching their own record label after they've become successful, other artists build record labels around themselves from the very start. For instance, the Indie imprint Mad Decent was started because music producer Diplo needed a label home to launch his career. His label now has dozens of new artists signed.
Having your own record label name is something to consider, and there may come a time where you want to give like-minded artists a home under your label and music publishing firm. If you decide to skip the record label name and just use your own, your music will simply display as released by your artist name on music streaming services. You can be on your new record label in name only - meaning you haven't set up any legal business behind it. One other option is to establish your label as an LLC (a US-specific form of a private limited company) or your country's equivalent, so that you can structure your profit and losses from selling and marketing your music in a more tax-efficient manner.
Using a distributor to self-release
There are three major independent distribution services that can deliver your music digitally to most streaming services (e.g., Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music) as well as retailers (e.g. online music stores like iTunes, Beatport and Bandcamp). The big three self-service distribution companies are Tunecore, CD Baby, and Distrokid. They are called self-service because you won't need a rep from the company to handle your music. Instead, you'll be able to upload your master audio files directly to their distribution service webpage. The major labels also operate music distribution companies - Sony Music owns The Orchard, Warner Music group has ADA, and Universal Music has InGrooves. You would have to have a pretty big fan base and established track record of success to work with those firms. Regardless, the technology is pretty much the same with both the majors and self-service companies. When you distribute your music through any kind of digital distributor, you will find an online dashboard where you upload your music files and enter in all the related metadata (information about the songs).
Selling music directly to your audience
It's becoming more common for musicians to sell audio files directly to consumers and skip streaming entirely. Musicians who have established fan bases may feel they can do very well with sales and keep the majority of their income without giving a percentage of the sales revenues to a distributor. However, if you set up a website to sell audio files directly, you'll still have to pay the web hosting fees.
Many musicians now have Patreon accounts. This platform allows artists to set up a monthly subscription service for their fans where they can offer regular, direct, and early access to their music. They may also offer other exclusive content like behind-the-scenes videos and limited-edition merchandise. Patreon only takes 10% of the fan subscription revenues, which is a lower rate than Bandcamp's 15% of revenue for digital music sales.
Both Patreon and Bandcamp have a huge advantage over other music retail sites and streaming services in that if you are self-releasing, youll be able to upload your music to their platforms and sell your release immediately. Using a digital distributor means that you are obliged to wait for them to deliver your release to music retailers and streaming services. It's typically about a week from the time you upload your music to t
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
07/01/2026
Spotify is launching a week-long celebration spotlighting creators at the center...
07/01/2026
We know people use Spotify not just to listen, but to share the songs, podcasts, and audiobooks they love with their friends and family. When we launched Messag...
07/01/2026
This week, all eyes are on the podcast industry as the Golden Globes recognizes ...
07/01/2026
Podcasts are stepping onto a new stage this week as the Golden Globes recognize the medium for the first time. To mark this milestone moment, we're hosting ...
06/01/2026
Spotify is launching a week-long celebration spotlighting creators at the center...
06/01/2026
Lorde. A$AP Rocky. JENNIE. Baby Keem. KATSEYE. That's just a taste of who...
06/01/2026
Channel 4 and UKTV are giving viewers even more reasons to stream, with UKTV's U service set to feature thousands of hours of free, unmissable and bingeable...
06/01/2026
Tuesday 6 January 2026
An update on our Sky Mobile prices
Devesh Raj, Chief Operating Officer, Sky
Today, we've announced some changes to the prices of ...
06/01/2026
Comscore Launches Daily Program-Level Reporting with Deduplicated Insights on Sh...
06/01/2026
Comscore Completes Recapitalization Transaction with Preferred Stockholders Foll...
05/01/2026
Bad Bunny's DeB TiRAR M S FOToS defined the sound of 2025 for listeners eve...
05/01/2026
As the clock struck midnight and 2026 was born, so was an exciting range of new ...
05/01/2026
These Sacred Vows starring Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Justine Mitchell and Jason O'...
05/01/2026
DANDANCING WITH THE STARS RETURNS TO SHAKE UP SUNDAY NIGHTS
Reigning Rose of Tr...
02/01/2026
Any Given Day: Cork University Hospital premieres Wednesday 7 January on RT One and RT Player at 9:35pm
RT will debut a powerful new six-part documentary se...
02/01/2026
Friday 2 January 2026
All episodes of Heated Rivalry will be landing on Sky and...
02/01/2026
Sequins, chat shows, live sporting action, ground-breaking docuseries and brand-new Irish drama to kick off 2026
New Year, New Content Coming Soon across RT
...
01/01/2026
We had been using the club's previous console for the last ten years, so we researched manufacturer information very carefully, says venue audio manager Mr...
30/12/2025
Your live countdown to 2026 with Inhaler, David Gray, Lyra, Garron Noone, Sharon...
29/12/2025
From crisper Lossless audio and immersive music videos in beta to new Audiobooks+ plans, custom transitions between tracks, and in-app Messages, we keep levelin...
24/12/2025
RT has unveiled an exclusive first look at the new Dancing with the Stars promo...
23/12/2025
The year is winding down, the weather outside is frightful, and it's the perfect time to escape into a story that warms the heart. For listeners looking for...
23/12/2025
23 Dec 2025
VEON's Beeline Kazakhstan and Rakuten Symphony Collaborate to A...
22/12/2025
For a decade, popular German podcast Fest & Flauschig has hosted an annual Chris...
22/12/2025
Monday 22 December 2025
Sky extends PGA TOUR partnership until 2029, as Sky Spo...
22/12/2025
Siobh n McSweeney, Rory McIlroy, Elon Musk, Catherine Connolly, Jim Gavin, Ivan Yates and Traitor Paudie Moloney lead new characters for Callan Kicks the Year 2...
22/12/2025
Winner announced in the picturesque surroundings of Wicklow's Avondale Tower and Treetop Walk
Andrew Trimble wins the show in his first series as coach
Th...
22/12/2025
The 2025 winners have been announced today, Sunday 21 December, for Ireland's largest choral competition Choirs for Christmas hosted by RT lyric fm.
Ove...
21/12/2025
John Shortt named Young Sportsperson of the Year Kerry are the Team of the Year
...
19/12/2025
With Playout Release 2025.4, ToolsOnAir continues to push professional playout w...
19/12/2025
19 Dec 2025
VEON's Mobilink Microfinance Bank Launches Islamic Banking Oper...
19/12/2025
The six-part drama, set in a close-knit Welsh town fractured by an unspeakable c...
19/12/2025
Rohde & Schwarz drives the future of mobility at CES 2026 At the 2026 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Rohde & Schwarz will present a powerful lineup o...
19/12/2025
RT is proud to return to the RDS to support the 2026 Stripe Young Scientist & T...
18/12/2025
Canada's largest indoor arena has transformed its live production capabilities with a full ST 2110 infrastructure and Calrec's compact Argo S console. S...
18/12/2025
Long-term agreement includes the SES SCORE platform and hybrid distribution worldwide to deliver more than 5,000 hours of golf tournaments annually featuring th...
18/12/2025
18 Dec 2025
VEON Upgraded to Nasdaq Global Select Market, Enhancing Investor Visibility Dubai, December 18, 2025 - VEON Ltd. (Nasdaq: VEON), a global digital o...
18/12/2025
Thursday 18 December 2025
Sky Sports remains the exclusive home of the Masters ...
18/12/2025
Using the additive process of 3D printing, layer after layer gets printed until an object is as close to the final shape needed as possible. Historically, machi...
18/12/2025
In 2025, RT proudly supported 185 arts and cultural events across the island of Ireland, reflecting significant growth since the scheme was re-launched in 2014...
18/12/2025
RT Sports Awards 2025 live on RT One and RT Player at 8:05pm on Saturday 20 December
On Saturday 20 December live on RT One and RT Player at the earlier t...
18/12/2025
RT lyric fm presents a very special Winter Solstice edition of Ambient Orbit, l...
18/12/2025
At 7.45pm on 1st January 1926, the precursor to RT , then 2RN, delivered the fledgling new Irish state's first public radio transmission. From those first c...
18/12/2025
December 18 2025, 05:30 (PST) The Movie Experience SLO Becomes First U.S. Exhib...
17/12/2025
Investigative journalists across the Western Balkans and T rkiye continue to con...
Words: Chuck Fishman
