In this post I discuss making a six figure income with music, sync licensing, micro licensing and royalty collection with Eric Copeland of Make Music Income and Hello Composers.
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Important Points:
Eric and Andrew both agree that it’s important to have a multiple income streams. Focusing on one initiative like Spotify will not be enough. An ideal income strategy in music marketing involves both passive income and creative music production. It can be a combination of building a strong following on Spotify, micro-licensing, teaching, marketing, or producing music for other artists.
Eric encourages the musicians he works with to check out these opportunities for success in music licensing. He highlighted opportunities, including sync licensing for TV shows, lucrative prospects in gaming and advertising (where musicians can earn six-digit figures), and the use of music on streaming platforms like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon for exclusive shows.
Eric recommends tapping into smaller but consistent income streams by submitting work to music libraries, where music and library supervisors, acting as the new A&R, seek fresh talent across various music production aspects. Original creators in punk, polka, and funk can explore micro-licensing for decade-specific TV shows. Gain micro-licensing insights by listening to fellow creators on channels like Jessie, Clint, Stevie B., Dave Croft, and his own.
Podcast Outline:
[00:19.1]: Have multiple music-related income streams to achieve the six-figure income. — Eric
[03:44.4]: An ideal income strategy in music marketing involves both passive income and creative music production. — Eric
[04:19.5]: His aim: Achieve financial success in music publishing and recording deals. — Eric
[05:58.9]: An early adopter in building income streams through the internet.— Eric
[07:20.1]: Post-9/11, artists emerged, fueling his business growth. — Eric
[08:31.6]: He collaborates with self-identified artists, guiding them to release licensable music for upfront income. — Eric
[10:02.9]: Reflecting on the challenges of independent music production, he redirected his focus back to his first love: composing. — Eric
[10:44.6]: They talked about the varied responses they get as a producer and artists when it comes to CDs. — Andrew & Eric
[16:31.3]: Musicians can earn through music licensing in four key areas: TV shows, advertisements, streaming platform shows, and gaming. — Eric
[23:30.6]: It’s important to submit their work to music libraries, where music and library supervisors, the new A&R, seek fresh talent for various aspects of music production. — Eric
[27:47.4]: Original music creators in punk, polka, and funk genres can explore micro-licensing opportunities for decade-specific TV shows.— Eric
[30:41.1]: For micro-licensing insights, it’s advisable to listen to fellow creators. Check out channels like Jessie, Clint, Stevie B., and Dave Croft, in addition to his own. — Eric
[34:49]: Pond5 and Music Array provide composers opportunities for a consistent passive income. — Eric
[40:58.8]: They discussed opportunities for musicians in AI, involving training AI technology and paid voice talent roles. — Andrew & Eric
[42:13.0]: AI offers voice artists a passive income stream, allowing them to earn for each usage of their voice. — Andrew
[48:41.3]: BMI and ASCAP safeguard artists by ensuring comprehensive coverage of their performance royalties. — Eric
[50:23.4]: The Mechanical Licensing Collective in the U.S. aids musicians in collecting mechanical royalties from platforms like Spotify and Apple. — Eric
Wise Words:
[00:04.5]: In my experience over 25 years in making a six-figure income, there’s only one answer to making a full-time income from music things only, and that is, you’re going to need multiple music incomes. It’s the only way. Have all the income streams working for you. — Eric
[11:56.9]: I bought an album by a band called Rich Lou because they sold it earlier, meaning you could get the whole album now or wait a long time for it to be trickled on and streaming. And so I’ve been telling people [12:09.0] the physical can work, but you, you have to add incentives to it. Like, “Oh, you can get the whole album now or wait a year for it to be on Spotify or, and you can get it signed. And by the way, the CD has this cool thing [12:21.7]: I added a QR code in my CDs that when they scanned, it would give them to like an extra portal full of extra free goodies. So it was almost like an NFT ticket, in a way. — Andrew
[29:41.9]: There is so much opportunity out there for music, for so many networks. — Eric
[41:51.3] So now they can effectively have infinite work, right? Because before doing session work, it’s gated by your time and all that. But this it’s like, you have an AI clone of your voice; someone can use it. You have infinite scalability. Even if you’re only making two-tenths of the amount of money, you’re putting yourself out there to release 5, 000 songs a year with that. — Andrew
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If you enjoyed this interview you might also like this one I did with Adam Ivy on how to make $100k per year with online music income.
