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TuneCore Celebrates 15 Years of Empowering Independent Artists

January 25, 2021

Leading Independent Digital Music Distribution Marks Anniversary with Donations to Organizations Assisting Live Music Venues Around the World

BROOKLYN, January 25, 2021 – TuneCore, the leading digital music distribution and publishing administration company for independent artists, today celebrates its 15th anniversary. The company will be making donations across the globe to organizations formed in order to keep live music venues afloat while providing relief for staff. The announcement was made today by Andreea Gleeson, Co-Head and Chief Revenue Officer and Matt Barrington, Co-Head and Chief Operating Officer of TuneCore.

In 2006, TuneCore disrupted the industry by introducing a flat fee digital distribution service, allowing independent artists to send their music to digital stores like iTunes. The model then and today enables artists to pay a low annual flat fee per single or album and keep 100% of the revenue earned from stores and streaming services.

Said Gleeson, “What TuneCore did 15 years ago was groundbreaking. By removing the traditional barriers, pushing aside the major label gatekeepers and putting artists in the driver’s seat of their own careers without taking a percentage of their music sales, it democratized the music industry. Today, TuneCore continues to empower artists to sell their music online, market themselves, and build a career, all while keeping 100% of 100% of their revenue.”

“Over the years we’ve prioritized TuneCore’s initiatives by always putting artists first.” Gleeson continued, “Today, independent artists make up the fastest growing sector of global music sales, and TuneCore is the worldwide leader in indie music distribution, so we know we’re doing it right.”

In October of 2020, TuneCore artists hit the record-breaking milestone of $2 Billion earned by artists. The company currently pays an average of $1.2 million to artists each day.

TuneCore became a subsidiary of Paris-based Believe, itself a leading distributor of digital music, in April of 2015. With this change, TuneCore, alongside Believe, are able to serve artists at every stage of their careers, from their beginnings and throughout their growth.

Commented Barrington, “Being a part of Believe gives us advantages which we are able to pass along to our artist and label partners. We’re part of one of the leading digital music companies in the world and we can make deals as one company. Not only that, but TuneCore artists have the unique opportunity to sign to Believe. Over the course of the last three years, we’ve signed over 260 artists to deals with Believe.”

Many of TuneCore’s artists have been with the company for years. Pop/Rock singer-songwriter Ron Pope stated, “Fifteen years of TuneCore! I uploaded my first song almost FOURTEEN years ago now, so I’ve been along for a lot of this ride. Careers like mine didn’t exist before TuneCore. By giving artists real access to the support of fans from all over the world, TuneCore allowed people like me to turn an idea into the actual dollars and cents needed to power a career. I’m forever grateful!”

TuneCore is marking this milestone anniversary with sorely needed donations being made  to a number of key organizations aiding the live music industry. The company will make a meaningful donation to NIVA (the National Independent Venue Association), whose legislative efforts led to the passing of the SaveOurStages Bill in early 2021.

In addition to NIVA, TuneCore will be donating to UK Venue Trust (UK), SAFE (South Africa), UNISON (Canada), Initiative Musik (Germany), and SGMUSO (Singapore). The week-long celebration of TuneCore’s 15th Anniversary and live music relief advocacy will be featured on TuneCore’s social media channels and include activations in partnership with NIVA such as daily unplugged performances from longtime TuneCore artists, Instagram Live interviews  and more.


About TuneCore
TuneCore is the global platform for independent musicians to build audiences and careers — with technology and services across distribution, publishing administration and a range of promotional services. TuneCore Music Distribution services help artists, labels and managers sell their music through Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Deezer, TikTok and more than 150 download and streaming stores worldwide, while retaining 100 percent of their sales revenue and rights for a low annual flat fee. TuneCore Music Publishing Administration assists songwriters by administering their compositions through licensing, registration, worldwide royalty collections, and placement opportunities in film, TV, commercials, video games and more. The TuneCore Artist Services portal offers a suite of tools and services that enable artists to promote their craft, connect with fans, and get their music heard. TuneCore, part of Believe, is headquartered in Brooklyn, NY, with offices in Los Angeles, Nashville, Atlanta, and Austin, and global operations in the UK, Australia, Japan, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Russia, India, Brazil as well as the LATAM, Africa and SEA markets. www.tunecore.com

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