2019-07-30

Are you at the starting line or the finish line?

By Derek Sivers

New clients would often ask me, “How much does the average artist on CD Baby sell?”

Some people would take our posted sales figures and divide(dəˈvīd) them. $85 million paid, divided by 250,000 available albums(ˈalbəm) =(equals) $340 per album.

The numbers are right but the answer is wrong because it groups together two completely different approaches.

For some artists, releasing their music is like the starting line in a race(rās). The gun(gən) goes off! They work it! They spend hours a day pushing, promoting, and selling — reaching new people by any means necessary(ˈnesəˌserē).

For those types the average income, through my one little store, was $5000. Fifty of them earned over $100,000 each.

But for many artists, releasing their music is like the finish line in a race. They’ve always wanted to record and release their music. They did it. It’s done. They send it to friends and family, and glow(glō) in the compliments(ˈkämpləmənt). Their efforts are basically(ˈbāsik(ə)lē) finished — either because they’re satisfied(ˈsadəsˌfīd), or because they assumed the world would just flock(fläk) to it automatically(ˌôdəˈmadiklē).

For those types the average income was $20.

New clients who asked about the average were trying to predict(prəˈdikt) how well they would sell. But it depends on which approach you want to take.