In a world where no one pays for music, how do musicians make money?

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Back in the olden days of the 1990s, people actually went to a store to buy CDs when they wanted to listen to music. Before that, people bought records and cassettes. Although the money didn’t go straight to the musician because of producers and record labels, it was much more direct than it is now. Listeners get their music either illegally or from streaming services such as Spotify or Apple Music. So if no one’s buying their music directly, how do musicians make money?

According to NPR musicians make money from streaming services, selling merchandise,
having concerts, and YouTube.

Streaming
 Every time someone streams a musician’s song on Spotify, the musician gets about a seventeenth of a penny. This, as you can imagine, doesn’t account for most of the money that musicians make. It is, however, a small way for musicians to make money.

Merchandise 
 Selling tee shirts, sweatshirts, phone cases, and other merchandise is a good way to make a profit. Small musicians make most of their money this way. It’s the most direct way for musicians to make money because there aren’t other groups, such as streaming services, producers, record labels, or venues that have to get paid before the musicians.

Concerts
For larger musicians, it’s concerts that bring in the big bucks. If you can fill up stadiums, it’s likely that money isn’t an issue for you at all. Lesser known musicians get paid small amounts to play shows or gigs. This won’t make nearly as much money as having their own concert, but it will put a little extra cash in the musicians pocket.

YouTube
YouTube is a very helpful tool for musicians. Listeners don’t have to pay, but musicians still get paid from ad revenue. One drawback of YouTube is that it takes a lot of views to make a little money. Even for smaller musicians who aren’t making much from ad revenue, YouTube can help them expose their music to a new audience, which will indirectly help them make money. Sources: NPR