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Digital Audio Insider is David Harrell's blog about the economics of music and other digital content. I write from the perspective of a musican who has self-released four albums with the indie rock band the Layaways.

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November 17, 2011

What I Like About Google Music for Self-Released Musicians
by David Harrell

Maybe it's a coincidence, but the Artist Hub feature of Google Music, which allows self-released musicians to upload and sell their albums, reminds me a lot of Bandcamp. As with Bandcamp, Artist Hub allows musicians to set their own prices. Changes are apparently instantaneous, as Google is touting the ability offer "flash sales" with short-term price reductions. And both services can be used to quickly release live recording or demos.

Unlike Bandcamp, Google charges a one-time fee of $25 to set up an artist page, but as with Bandcamp, there are no ongoing annual fees or per-album setup charges. Google takes a 30% cut on all sales and payments are made monthly. I was glad to see that unlike Google Adsense, which has a $100 minimum payment threshold, the minimum Google Music payout is only $1.

Google Music already has relationships with TuneCore and CD Baby, so if you use either service to distribute your music, you don't have to do anything -- your music will soon show up in the Google Music even if you don't create your own artist page. In my case, going direct would also eliminate paying the 9% commission to CD Baby, though you'll need ~$397 in Google Music sales ($397 x the 70% Google payout rate x the 9% CD Baby commission) to offset the $25 charge. But even if it takes a while to reach that amount of sales, or your music is distributed by TuneCore, which doesn't charge a commission, the ability to control your artist page, set/change prices, and to easily add and remove albums seems worth the one-time fee.

Finally, while I completely understand why Apple didn't want the hassle of working directly with self-released musicians, I wish the same option were available for iTunes.

tags: digital music Google Music Bandcamp iTunes self-released musicians TuneCore CD Baby

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Free Christmas music from the Layaways:

O Christmas Tree -- free download
Silent Night -- free download

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THE LAYAWAYS

Out Now -- "Maybe Next Year" -- The New Holiday Album:

"This is a sweet treat, deliciously musical without being overbaked for mass media consumption." -- Hyperbolium

"Perfect listening to accompany whatever holiday preparations you may be making today." -- Bag of Songs

O Christmas Tree - free mp3 lyrics and song details
Away In A Manger - free mp3

Download from eMusic, iTunes, Amazon MP3, or Bandcamp. Listen to free streams at Last.fm.

"...about as melodic and hooky as indie pop can get." -- Absolute Powerpop

"Their laid-back, '60s era sounds are absolutely delightening." -- 3hive

"...melodic, garage-influenced shoegaze." -- RCRD LBL

Keep It to Yourself - free mp3
All Around the World - free mp3
Come Back Home - free mp3

Download from eMusic, iTunes, Amazon MP3, or CD Baby, stream it at Last.fm or Napster.

"The Layaways make fine indie pop. Hushed vocals interweave with understated buzzing guitars. The whole LP is a revelation from the start." -- Lost Music

"Catchy Guided by Voices-like rockers who lay it on sweetly and sincerely, just like Lionel Richie." -- WRUV Radio

Silence - free mp3 lyrics and song details
The Long Night - free mp3

Download from eMusic, Amazon MP3, or iTunes, stream it at Last.fm, Napster, or Rhapsody.

"These are songs that you want to take home with you, curl up with, hold them close -- and pray that they are still with you when you wake up." -- The Big Takeover

Let Me In - free mp3
Ocean Blue - free mp3

Download from eMusic, Amazon MP3, or iTunes, stream it at Last.fm, Napster, or Rhapsody.

More Layaways downloads:

the layaways website

Current/Recent Reading and Listening:

Music Supervision: The Complete Guide to Selecting Music for Movies, TV, Games and New Media by Ramsay Adams, David Hnatiuk, and David Weiss

It's written as a how-to guide for those looking to become music supervisors, but I found it to be a good resource for musicians (like me) who are trying to get their music used in movies, TV, etc.