TuneCore offering free distribution to TikTok

The promotion will run until 29 September and artists from around the world can upload one song onto TuneCore, which will then be made available to short-form video platform users for one year, with an option to continue. TikTok currently has about 500 million monthly active users. The normal price for uploading songs to TuneCore is $9.99 per song and $29.99 per album for the first year.

Since TuneCore started distributing to TikTok in October last year, the company says about 320 000 of its artists have distributed more than 330 000 releases to the platform, many of which have gone viral. In July, TuneCore's parent company, Believe, also signed a multi-year distribution and marketing agreement with TikTok.

“TikTok is proud to support independent artists and we’re excited to hear and see the creativity stemming from TuneCore artists participating in this promotion,” TikTok label partnerships manager Brandon Holman said.

TuneCore chief marketing officer Andreea Gleeson said: “TuneCore artists have a great track record on TikTok. The innovative platform has become an important destination for independent artists to gain exposure with global audiences.

“TuneCore’s independent spirit aligns perfectly with TikTok’s in supporting creative independence, with DIY musicians and short-form video creators coming together and producing engaging entertainment. With this promotion, we encourage artists to step forward, take a risk and get their music heard by new audiences, expand their fanbase and even go viral."

Some of the songs that were distributed to TikTok and gained traction include US hip hop artist Mr. 2-17’s 'Spaz', which has been used in more than 2.5 million videos created, and US pop group Sales’ single 'Chinese New Year’, which has garnered 2.1m views.

Meanwhile, TikTok also announced a global licensing deal with independent digital music agency Merlin in January. The app was downloaded more than 1.5 billion times globally on the App Store and Google Play, making it the world’s second-most downloaded app last year after WhatsApp.