We are the music makers

Research

Research notes with the calculation shown: what music work pays, and how the numbers are built. Looking for one tool? Try the directory.

  • Pay stub: what one sync placement on a YouTube series actually pays an indie artist

    A worked calculation of one sync placement in a YouTube web series for an indie artist who owns the master and co-wrote the song: the upfront fee, the sync and master split, a sync agent's commission, the co-writer's share, and what is (and is not) knowable about the backend. Every assumption is stated; public ranges checked on 27 Oct 2026.

    Artist rights

  • Pay stub: what 1,000,000 Spotify streams pays an independent artist

    On public estimates of $0.003 to $0.005 per stream, a million Spotify streams is worth roughly $3,000 to $5,000 on the recording side before a distributor takes its cut, and, on our own estimate from the US statutory rate, roughly another $900 to $1,500 on the publishing side. Every assumption is below, so you can swap in your own. Sources read 27 Oct 2026.

    Industry

Subscribe to We are the music makers

One email a week: the music-tech and AI-in-music news that mattered, and what we think about it.

Sign-ups open soon.