Do I have to live in the United States?
No you don't, you can be a SongCast artist or label from anywhere in the world.

What is SongCast?
SongCast is a world class music distribution service that delivers independent music to the world's most popular download retailers, including; iTunes, Rhapsody, Amazon, Emusic and Napster! Combined with the power and social phenomenon of sites like MySpace, it is no longer necessary to give away your freedom to the labels. With SongCast, you can start selling your music on major download sites right away, and we will also provide you with customized code to link your MySpace and other websites directly to the stores. Your fans will easily be able to find and purchase your music online.

How does it work?

First, you will need to create your SongCast account.

Once you have an account you will:

Submit album information - Tell us your album title, song and track listing, etc.

Upload your album cover - Each download retailer wants to display your album cover on their sites. If you don't have an album cover, SongCast can make one for you at no charge.

Upload your music - You will upload all of the songs for your album onto our secure servers, where we will convert them into many different formats, as each download retailer has different formatting standards. We handle all of this on our end. All you have to do is upload your music one time and we do the rest.
 

I've submitted my album now what?

Now we are hard at work getting your music out to the download retailers. Once your music starts showing up on the various retail sites, this is what will happen:

People buy your music - Hopefully your fans and possibly new fans are buying and downloading your music.

Retailers send payment - Your royalties will appear in your SongCast account on the 20th of every month. You will have the ability to withdraw your earnings at anytime by check or electronically through the PayPal service.

Retailers send sales data - Along with your money, the retailers will send us sales data and a breakdown of how your music is selling. This will include detailed info...song by song and store by store. You will be able to access this information directly from your SongCast account.

How do I submit my music?
When you are ready to start the music submission process, you can do so by creating a SongCast account.

How do I prepare my music?
SongCast requires that all uploaded audio files be in Apple's Lossless format. You can easily convert your audio CD into Lossless format by using the free iTunes software.

What about album artwork?
Having an album cover is not mandatory. If you don't have an album cover, SongCast can make one for you at no charge. When submitting your artwork, it must be 600 x 600 pixels in dimension and in RGB color mode. Accepted file types are .JPG, .BMP, .GIF, .PNG and .TIFF

Do I need a UPC Barcode?
If your album does not already have a UPC Barcode, one will be generated for you at no charge. The UPC Barcode is used to track your album and song sales throughout the world. We also recommend registering your album and UPC Barcode with Nielsen SoundScan. This company tracks album and song sales throughout the United States and Canada.

What do you consider an album?
An album is simply a collection of songs. It doesn’t matter if it’s only 1 song or as many as 25! So even if you’re submitting just one song, it's still considered an album.

Do I have to submit a full album?
No you do not. If you don't have a full album, you can sell just a single, an EP or a full length album if you do have one.

Do I give up any rights to my music?
No! You maintain the rights to your music and recordings at all times. SongCast is not a record company. We are simply a distribution service that puts your music up for sale on digital download sites.

How much does this service cost?

SongCast membership is $5.99 per month. This is not charged per album, but per account. You can have an unlimited number of albums in your account. SongCast also charges an album setup fee of $25. This charge covers the time and expense of encoding your audio tracks, converting and processing your album artwork, and managing your albums with the download retailers. SongCast Artists and Labels maintain 100% of all Royalties.

 

Do you offer volume discounts?
Yes we do. Email us with how many albums you would like to submit and we will quote you a special price.

How much do I get paid?
Most of the retailers are very similar in what they pay the artist. You will earn an average of $6.00-$7.00 for each album sold or 60-70 cents for each song purchased. SongCast Artists and Labels maintain 100% of all Royalties.

Each of the international stores pay in their native currencies. The banks will handle all of the currency conversions before it gets to us, based on the worldwide daily exchange rates.

When and how do I get paid?
Your royalties will appear in your SongCast account on the 20th of every month. You will have the ability to withdraw your earnings at anytime by check or electronically through the PayPal service.

Click here to view the monthly sales reporting and royalty payment schedule.

Will I get to see how my songs are selling?
Yes! A detailed report of how your songs are selling is sent to us every month from the download retailers. You will be able to access this directly through your SongCast account.

Can my albums have explicit lyrics?
Yes they can. You will be asked this question during the album submission process. Make sure you select the appropriate answer.

How long until my music shows up for sale?
You should expect to wait approximately 6-8 weeks for your music to start appearing on the retail sites. Although, we have seen albums show up in as little as 2-3 weeks. We can't guarantee that your music will show up that fast, but it does happen on occasion.

How long will my music be up for sale?
Your albums will stay up for sale until you decide to have them taken down.

Can I cancel the service?
If you signup for SongCast and distribute your content through us, and later change your mind, just let us know and we will cancel your account. A $25 album takedown fee will apply to each album that has been 'live' for less than a period of 8 months. All SongCast fees are non-refundable.

Can I submit cover songs?
Yes you can! You will need to find out who the publisher is of the song and get permission. There are three key places to check for this information; ASCAP, BMI, SongFile.