What Does CD Baby Actually Do?

[Snowman]

I recorded 3 albums that were released on cassette, and dozens of others that I have in Pro Tools. 

 

I'm looking at CDBaby for distribution/streaming and I'm confused as to what they can actually do for the low price they say. 

 

If you use them, do you actually make any money?

 

If there are other better alternatives please let me know. 

 

Thanks!

[john]

There are a number of OMDs out there. CDBaby can do everything from CD manufacture to digital distribution to iTunes, GooglePlay, YouTube etc. What you get exactly depende on what package you sign up for.

 

As a more budget option look at Distrokid. CDBaby reporting is slightly better in some ways, but many use DistroKid as it is pretty cost effective.

[Snowman]

Thanks. So, if I pay $70 for Pro on an album, it's automatically listed on all those services, and CDBaby will pay me weekly IF anyone listens. What is the catch? Are there hidden fees or things you have to do before music is accepted? 

 

Is it easy for an unknown artist to make the $70 back?

[geographyhorse]

On 11/7/2019 at 8:02 PM, Snowman said:

Thanks. So, if I pay $70 for Pro on an album, it's automatically listed on all those services, and CDBaby will pay me weekly IF anyone listens. What is the catch? Are there hidden fees or things you have to do before music is accepted? 

 

Is it easy for an unknown artist to make the $70 back?

A couple of things to consider. First,  the upc is a separate purchase so there's a hidden -ish fee there. Second,  CD Baby will list your single/ album on their vendor site, from which they take a cut. (Not really a deal breaker as the percentage is reasonable and you can set the price). Finally, CD Baby takes 15% of all royalties collected.

The benefit of going with CD Baby is that it's not subscription based. Meaning, your music is listed everywhere, forever (well, as long as those vendors exist). With distrokid, if you were to die or fall into financial ruin, your music would be removed from all sites and vendors as its subscription based. 

So, I guess, ask yourself of you're concerned about legacy or not. 😋