Who Actually Makes Money in the Music Business?

In this episode of the Music Business Newsletter with Matthew Rix, I read an email from an independent artist who’s doing a lot “right” but still doesn’t understand how anyone actually makes money in the music business.
He’s 29.
He’s been releasing music for five years.
He has 40,000 monthly listeners, songs with 500k+ streams, tours occasionally, sells merch, and licenses music for small projects.
From the outside, it looks like success.
From the inside, the numbers don’t add up.
Streaming barely covers costs.
Shows are inconsistent once travel is factored in.
Merch only works in the right rooms.
And every opportunity seems to come with another percentage taken off the top.
Managers.
Agents.
Distributors.
Marketing.
And the question that keeps nagging him:
Is the music itself ever supposed to be the main source of income?
Or is that just something artists are told early on?
In this episode, I break down:
• Where money actually comes from for independent artists
• Why “looking successful” doesn’t equal being sustainable
• When building a team makes sense financially — and when it doesn’t
• Why do so many artists survive on adjacent income
• How to avoid building a career that stays busy but never builds leverage
• What a realistic, grown-up music career actually looks like
This is a practical conversation, not about fame or blowing up, but about stability, clarity, and understanding the business before it’s too late.
Have a question about the music industry?
Go to https://MatthewRix.com. Include as many details as possible so the answer can help you and others in the same situation.


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