We were contacted recently by Harrison Welshimer owner of Music Munch – a website dedicated to helping Independent Artists. He had heard of some of the good stuff we were doing here at Horus Music and wanted to write a review. He did and it was so nice we thought we’d post it below: Thanks Harrison!
The internet is both a boon and a curse as we navigate this crazy music business. For example, there are dozens of music distributor service companies to choose from, which is a great thing. But we also have so many options that it leaves us indecisive, which is a bad thing. So what’s the solution?
You’ve heard that the music business is all about relationships. What if you could develop a personal relationship with the company that puts your music in stores around the world? If that sounds good to you, Horus Music might be the right fit.
*Disclaimer: I’ve only worked with TuneCore, but liked what I read about Horus Music. It’s those ‘likes’ that I want to share.*
Just a Little Background…
Horus Music is HQ’d in Leicester, less than a 2 hour train ride north of London, where they’ve been in biz for almost 10 years. Customer service comes first. Take this story as told by Ms. Nina Condron, a Horus Music employee, as an example:
“We look at all of our clients at the same level and don’t just answer to our top label as we have no share-holders etc… A few months ago for example, we gave an independent artist with no label or management backing £4,000 (roughly $6,200) worth of advertising on Spotify for FREE!”
Marketing: The Part About Finding the Right Fans
Another boutique aspect is that any musician can get help with their marketing. Simply describe to Horus Music what marketing help you’d like. The folks there will look at your case and assess whether they can make it happen.
A lot of the time, Horus Music will be able to secure marketing muscle for you. Take 17 year old Melissa Severn, a singer/songwriter from Shropshire, England. She just had an exclusive interview with the MixRadio blog. Read it here!
But if Horus Music can’t help, they won’t send you a “sorry, no can do” response. Instead, they’ll guide you to a place where you can find the answers you need.
How big is Your Potential Reach?
Here’s something that blew me away: Horus Music can deliver your tracks to over 600 digital stores in over 120 countries. This includes all the majors such as iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, etc.
To give you an idea of how many stores this is, CD Baby has partnerships with over 95 stores while TuneCore puts their number at 150+. So Horus has 4x the reach of TuneCore!
Something That’s Hard to Find With Other Distributors…
Want to see your face on TV in Chile or Argentina?! Horus Music is ahead of the game in music video distribution and “growing markets.” Platforms for video distribution include Mu-Zu TV, Vu-Clip and VEVO. Horus Music also has a focused effort on distributing your music in Japan, Latin America and India.
Don’t Take It From Me Alone
“Speedy and reliable in their delivery. Recommend them to any musician ! ” – Bobby Smith
“The Best…..I call them Milestone Makers” – D-Bone Archives
“Fantastic people who really helped me! Thank you guys!” – Arek Pilarz
So What Does All of This Cost?
How does free sound? Yep, this is another highlight I have to bring up. Selling music is hard, today more than ever. Because of that, Horus Music has a free option in which they collect 20% of your earnings to cover their service. CD Baby has a similar model, but you still have to pay an upfront fee and they’ll collect a 9% royalty.
If you have a pretty good idea that you’ll sell more than 40 albums, you’d want to use a paid package. No matter which ‘paid package’ you choose, you keep 100% of your royalties. This is the TuneCore model as well. However, even though TuneCore’s prices are lower, Horus Music doesn’t have a renewal fee like TC.
Options vary in price as to whether you have a Single, EP or Album:
| Distribution type | Price |
| Single | £14.99 GBP ($23.00 USD)* |
| EP (3-6 tracks) | £24.99 GBP ($39.00 USD) |
| Album (7-20 tracks) | £39.99 GBP ($62.00 USD) |
| Urgent delivery | £49.99 GBP ($78.00 USD) |
*All USD prices are rounded to the nearest dollar. Price conversion as of 7/5/15.
And you Walk Away With a Lot…
We’ve all dealt with it whenever trying to sell anything online… minimum pay-outs. Doesn’t it drive you crazy when you’re sitting at $97 in sales, but have to reach $100 before you get paid?!
Solution: Horus Music doesn’t have a minimum. You sell $3.00 worth of music, you’re paid $3.00 (but you’re going to make more than that, right?!). For a frame of reference, TuneCore acts more as a bank. You don’t receive money automatically. Rather, you withdraw the amount you need. There are minimums or fees with TuneCore (except when transferring via PayPal).
And just a little icing on the cake: no extra charges for pre-releases, ISRC’s, barcodes, Digital Booklets, YouTube Content ID (on our free package) which are all charges you’re starting to see from bigger distributors.
Final Take
If you’re living in England, I think you’ve got to try Horus Music. That’s because of that one-on-one connection. You and your mates could take a weekend trip and actually meet the people helping you. That’s an awesome thing!
But something you need to remember is that no matter which music distributor you choose to partner with, it’s up to you to sell it. A great product will sit on the shelf without a good salesman. And if you’re an aspiring singer/songwriter, I can help.
Tad Bit About Me
Hi, I’m Harrison Welshimer, a kid from Wyoming who fell in love with music instead of the oil patch. After spending two and a half years in Denver, Colorado, I found the group that I enjoyed working with most: beginner singer/songwriters.
What if you could learn how to write your first song and make money from it using an easy, step by step approach?
Starting September 1st, 2015, you can learn how at MusicMunch.com. Good luck and see ya there!
