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Estimate streaming income

Per-stream payouts are a share of a revenue pool, not a fixed price. Set the range yourself and see the spread.

GUIDE RELEASING LAST UPDATED — CONTENT SLOT

How do musicians get paid from streaming?

A practical walkthrough of a first release — from the master file on your desktop to a live release everywhere. Written for artists who have never distributed before; no jargon left unexplained.

01

Prepare your master

Export the final mix as an uncompressed WAV — 24-bit / 48kHz is the delivery standard. Listen to the whole file once, start to finish, on headphones and on a phone speaker. Check the start and end for clicks, and leave no accidental silence at either end.

Uncompressed WAV, 24-bit / 48kHz
Full listen-through on two devices
No clipping, clicks or trailing silence
02

Artwork that passes review

Artwork requirements vary by destination. Confirm the current file, colour, text and logo rules before delivery.

3000×3000 px, RGB
Readable at thumbnail size
No platform logos, handles or URLs
03

Metadata & codes

Metadata is how the world finds you: artist name spelled exactly the same way every release, the real title with no decoration, the correct language and genre tags. Identifier codes — ISRC for the recording, UPC for the release — are assigned during onboarding; you do not need to buy them anywhere.

✦ Spelling drift is the most common first-release mistake — “Human decision”, “LaylaNoor” and “Layla N.” become three different artists in the stores.
04

Choose your release date

Give yourself runway. A date several weeks out leaves room for review, delivery and pitching before day one. Align the date with anything you control — a video, a show, a post series — so the release lands with support rather than alone.

05

Apply for your invite

Mazufa is invite-only. Complete applications enter a human-review queue subject to capacity. Submitting never creates an account; approved applicants may receive a private onboarding invitation.

06

After approval

Once onboarded, an eligible release is prepared to current destination specifications. Available reporting depends on platform data and account access.

TERMS USED IN THIS GUIDE
ISRC

An ISRC identifies a recording; reporting and royalty coverage depend on each platform and agreement.

UPC

The barcode of your release — one per single, EP or album.

DSP

Digital Service Provider — a music service such as Spotify, Apple Music or Anghami, subject to current availability.

PAGE CONTENT
Home How Artists Get Paid

Streaming services generally calculate royalties from revenue pools and usage share—not a single per-stream rate. Payments then move through rights holders, distributors and reporting cycles before reaching artists. This guide explains what changes the result and what to verify.

How it works

The path from stream to payout

Services such as Spotify and Apple Music do not publish one universal rate that applies to every play. Revenue varies with territory, subscription type, service revenue, listener plan, rights type, agreements and reporting periods. A distributor may receive recording revenue on an artist's behalf and report it after store processing. Distributor commissions, subscriptions, per-release charges, taxes, withholding, payment-method charges and third-party deductions depend on the current contract and account.

Where the money goes

What happens to your streaming royalties

Streaming royaltyMazufa RecordsTypical paid distributor
Calculation basisRevenue share and usageRevenue share and usage
Distributor termsCheck the current Mazufa plan and agreementVaries by provider and plan
Artist amountDepends on store reports and current termsDepends on store reports and current terms
Service costCheck current pricing and eligibilityMay include subscription or per-release fees
Rights and licencesGoverned by the artist agreementGoverned by the provider agreement
Questions

Frequently asked

How much do artists earn per stream?

There is no universal rate. Results vary with service revenue, territory, listener plan, usage share, rights type, agreements and the reporting period.

Who actually pays musicians for streams?

Streaming services account to recording and publishing rights holders under separate agreements. A distributor may collect recording revenue on an artist's behalf and report it after store processing.

Does a distributor take a cut of streaming money?

It depends on the contract. Compare commission, subscription or per-release fees, taxes, withholding, payment-method charges and third-party deductions before choosing a service.

How do I get paid with Mazufa?

Review Mazufa's current terms, eligible stores, reporting cadence, withdrawal rules and any applicable taxes or third-party fees. The dashboard separates daily quantity reports from monthly earnings reports.

Do I need a distributor to earn from streaming?

Many independent artists use a distributor to deliver recordings and receive recording-side reports. Distribution is not the same as publishing administration, so confirm which rights and services are included. apply to Mazufa Records for review →

Start now

Understand every step before you distribute.

Review Mazufa's current service terms, supported stores, reporting cadence and any applicable third-party fees before submitting a release.

Your first single starts here

One invite application, reviewed by a human. Bring the master, the artwork and the story.

Apply for Invite ♪