How To Make Money as a Musician: 14 Ways for 2024 – Shopify South Africa

The tale of the struggling musician is one as old as time. But that story is turning around thanks to the wealth of online music platforms and streaming channels available today.

If you love making tunes, there’s a good chance you want to know how to make money from music—and why wouldn’t you? Whether it’s your full-time job or a lucrative side gig, selling music online is a creative way to make money doing something you love.

We’ve compiled a comprehensive list of ways you can make money as a musician so you can diversify your income. Doing this removes the pressure of churning out records and gives you the freedom to pursue new projects while maintaining a steady income.

21 ways to make money as a musician

1. Master use licensing
2. Sync licensing
3. Music libraries
4. Music streaming
5. Digital downloads
6. Selling physical recordings
7. Live performance
8. Session work
9. Songwriting for other artists
10. Producing for other artists
11. Film scoring
12. Composing for commercials
13. Giving music lessons
14. Music therapy
15. DJing
16. Weddings and corporate events
17. Merchandise sales
18. Crowdfunding
19. Patreon and other fan-support platforms
20. YouTube
21. Twitch

No matter your musical area of expertise, you can find ways to monetize your passion. Here are some of the best ways to make money as a musician:

1. Master use licensing

Master use licensing is the process by which musicians or record labels grant permission for their original master recordings to be used with visual media, such as films, TV shows, commercials, and video games. You can get paid upfront or via royalties based on factors like usage, distribution, and audience reach. 

When you’re paid based on usage, you’ll receive payments from a performing rights organization like ASCAP or BMI. These organizations monitor the public commercial use of artists’ music, and they collect and distribute royalties to those artists.

A platform like Royalty Exchange can help you fund your music project by selling a portion of your future royalties to investors. This provides you with an upfront payment and allows funders to potentially earn a return on their investment.

2. Sync licensing

Sync licensing, or synchronization licensing, is like master licensing, only the focus is on the composition or underlying musical work rather than the actual sound recording. In many cases, a licensee might choose to re-record a song rather than use the master recording.

Sync licensing is managed by the songwriter, composer, or music publisher who owns the rights to a musical composition. In order to make money from a sync license, you must have one or more of these ownership statuses. You’ll likely need to seek out buyers for the synchronization rights to your music. Synch licensing libraries like Music Gateway can also help you connect with buyers (more on that next).

3. Music libraries

Music libraries are platforms that connect musicians with opportunities to license their work for use in TV shows, movies, and commercials. To create your own music library, you need to record a large number of musical compositions and categorize them using metadata like length, tempo, mood, tonality, genre, and instrumentation. You can then sell the entire library to an end user, or you can sell tracks à la carte for use in sync licensing or master licensing.

To succeed in the sale of a music library, it helps to have extremely polished recordings of your tracks. It also helps to record tracks that could conceivably serve a commercial purpose. For instance, soothing acoustic music could work well in an aromatherapy commercial, while energetic music might be used to sell a sports car.

Some of the most popular music libraries include:

4. Music streaming

You can post tracks on music streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, and more, and receive small payments when listeners stream your songs. The earnings per stream are quite low—less than a penny per stream on most platforms—but this medium continues to surge in popularity. Statista reports that roughly 90 million US subscribers paid for a streaming service in 2022. In the same year, streaming music brought in 84% of revenue made from recorded music in the US.

To get your music on the major streaming platforms, you’ll need to sign up with a distributor. Most will charge a fee or a commission, but they will also be the ones that pay your royalties whenever someone plays your song. 

Here are some distribution networks to consider:

5. Digital downloads

You can sell downloads of your songs and albums, which lets fans own the recording rather than effectively rent it via a streaming service. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) reports that total revenue from digital music downloads in 2022 was approximately $456 million. While this is a sizable amount, it represents only 3% of US recorded music revenues. Nonetheless, you can claim a piece of the pie by posting your tracks on platforms like iTunes and Bandcamp.

6. Selling physical recordings

Even with the advent of streaming, music consumers still purchase physical media, particularly vinyl records and compact discs. This means you can sell your music to your fans using these physical formats. The RIAA reports that consumers spent roughly $2.7 billion on physical music media in 2022. You can pay to press your own records or CDs, but it helps to be signed to a music label, which will likely have established relationships with manufacturers and can handle the process on your behalf.

7. Live performance

As consumers spend less money on recorded music, the industry depends ever more on live performance to support its many artists. LiveNation alone reported $13.49 billion in concert revenue in 2022. The revenue you can make from live music varies widely. Local bar performances may net fewer than $100 per player, but national touring bands can make tens of thousands of dollars per night.

Consider using the ReverbNation Gig Finder to source live performance opportunities in your area. Good old fashioned networking skills will also come in handy as you search for gigs. Start small and find venues that are open to new acts. 

8. Session work

You can make money as a musician by performing on other artists’ studio recordings. To be qualified for such work, you generally need a true mastery of your instrument, with an ability to play in many different genres. In some cases, you’ll also be expected to sight-read music off a page or mimic the performances you hear in a demo recording.

The work can be challenging, but seasoned studio musicians charge hundreds of dollars per hour. You could also forego a fixed fee in exchange for royalties over time. This can be a lucrative way to earn passive income if the song sells lots of copies or generates lots of streams, but there’s less money for you upfront.

9. Songwriting for other artists

Many of the world’s leading artists hire professional songwriters. If you’re just starting out, you may have to work on spec, creating songs without any guarantee that an artist will want to record them. Or you can team up with an up-and-coming singer and ask to write or co-write songs for them.

As a songwriter, you’re entitled to royalties from a song you’ve written. These include:

• Mechanical royalties: related to the sale or stream of a specific recorded version
• Performance royalties: related to public live performances of a song
• Print music royalties: related to the sale of print transcriptions

10. Producing for other artists

Just as you can write songs for other artists, you can also serve as their producer, overseeing the recording process in a studio. Producers can either work for a flat fee or they can negotiate a share of royalties for a song or album. The industry standard for someone starting out is between $200 and $400 per song, depending on your experience and the quality of your portfolio.

11. Film scoring

Film scoring is the art of composing music to sync up with visuals in a film or TV show. It requires close collaboration with a director. Increasingly, it requires mastery of MIDI music production, where you create virtual orchestras and bands on a computer, using triggered samples of instruments rather than hiring live players. However, the biggest budget film scores are still often recorded with large ensembles in professional studios.

As with other musical artists, film composers can work for a flat fee, a share of the film’s royalties, or both.

12. Composing for commercials

This job is like film scoring, only you are working for a commercial client whose principal objective is to sell a product. You may work under the guidance of a director filming a commercial, or you may work for the product seller who is financing the project—such as taking direction from the toothpaste company whose commercial you’re scoring.

Many of today’s commercials take their music from music libraries. It may make more sense to invest your efforts in building up a music library for licensing.

13. Giving music lessons

You can improve your craft and make a reliable income by teaching the next generation of musicians. Even prominent gigging musicians often give lessons during weekday afternoons as a way to supplement their performance income. And while live gigs may come sporadically, music lessons can continue steadily, particularly during the school year when many young students work lessons into a weekly routine.

You can also give lessons on online platforms like Udemy and Google Classroom.

14. Music therapy

You can train to become a music therapist, which may include having a bachelor’s degree and a license.

A music therapist helps clients improve communication skills, reduce stress and anxiety, enhance motor skills, foster self-expression, promote emotional well-being, and facilitate social interaction. They do this through a combination of musical activities, such as singing, playing instruments, listening to music, and songwriting. 

Music therapists work in hospitals, schools, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, mental health facilities, and private practices. They collaborate with other healthcare professionals to provide holistic care and support to their clients.

15. DJing

DJs are a popular alternative to live bands. Clients hire DJs either because they prefer electronic music and mash-up mixes, or because hiring a single DJ can be more cost-effective than hiring a multi-person band. Not all DJs are musicians, so you may have a leg up if you approach DJ work with a musical background. DJs may charge a few hundred dollars to play a private party, and the most in-demand DJs can charge tens of thousands of dollars to headline at a nightclub.

16. Weddings and corporate events

You don’t have to be the star of the show to make money performing music. You can work as a vendor at a wedding or corporate event, playing songs that match the taste of your client. To do this, you must be a versatile player with a large repertoire spanning many genres. This initial legwork may be worth it, as the best live wedding bands perform on a near weekly basis throughout much of the year.

17. Merchandise sales

Some touring musicians make more money selling merchandise at their shows than they do selling tickets. Famed songwriter and Bleachers vocalist Jack Antonoff even went so far as to call merch sales “literally the only way you make money when you start out touring.”

As a working musician, you may benefit from designing and printing t-shirts and other apparel, as well as glasses, mugs, and magnets with your logo on it. You can sell these at shows, or you can set up an online merchandise store in minutes with Shopify. You can also get tips on how to design a logo and choose from many print-on-demand apps.

18. Crowdfunding

Using a platform like Kickstarter or ArtistShare, you can ask for public support as you record an album or launch another music initiative like touring. While it’s customary for crowdfunding to go directly toward production expenses, you can also earmark funds that go toward paying you a salary while you work on your project.

Take note that crowdfunding takes time and effort, and you may find yourself reliant on your existing network of family and friends, rather than strangers from the internet.

19. Patreon and other fan-support platforms

Patreon is similar to a crowdfunding site, but it’s designed so that your fans can provide long-term sustained funding for your creative endeavors. ​​Patreon creators offer subscription-based content, exclusive perks, and rewards to their patrons in exchange for monthly monetary contributions.

20. YouTube

Musicians can make money on YouTube through various avenues, primarily by monetizing their content through the YouTube Partner Program. This program enables creators to earn revenue from ads displayed on their videos, with payment based on factors such as ad impressions, clicks, and viewer engagement.

Additionally, you can generate income through YouTube’s Merchandise Shelf feature, where you can sell branded merchandise directly below your videos. You can also utilize YouTube’s fan funding tools, such as Super Chat and channel memberships, allowing viewers to make voluntary donations or subscribe for exclusive perks.

Top tip: You can claim money from YouTube videos that use your music without your permission. The platform’s content ID system identifies videos that use your music and places ads to collect revenue on your behalf. There’s a strict set of criteria to meet to make use of the content ID system, so it may be best to sign up with a content ID company that does it all for you, such as Airbit.

21. Twitch

As a musician, you can make money on Twitch, a livestreaming platform, via subscriptions, where viewers pay a monthly fee to access exclusive content, emotes, and ad-free viewing. Additionally, Twitch offers a system where viewers can purchase virtual currency and donate it to their favorite streamers during live broadcasts, with musicians receiving a portion of the revenue.

Musicians can also monetize their streams through ad revenue, which is generated by displaying ads to viewers before or during their broadcasts. Furthermore, Twitch lets you engage with your audience through live performances, song requests, Q&A sessions, and collaborations, potentially increasing donations and subscriptions.