Where can I upload my mixtape for free?
Here are the top 15 sites to release a mixtape:
Select any of these sites, and get your mixtape hearts today!
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Every artist's dream is to get on the front page of YouTube.
Uploading music won't get you there, sadly.
Even though YouTube music is huge, unless a major platform like Vevo uploads your track then the post won't get there.
Don't worry - you can still gather new fans.
The trick is to get on suggested videos.
In order to get on suggested videos, you need to upload your mixtape track in a very specific way.
Best practices to upload your mixtape:
Do these steps, and you'll see insane results!
To rank your mixtape on a popular site like YouTube, your title is everything.
Name your mixtape as if it's a Spotify playlist.
Nobody knows or cares about you, to keep them interested they need a REASON to listen.
Music is subjective, but emotional responses generally aren't.
Why do users care to discover new music?
Users generally listen to mixtapes for these reasons:
There isn't really any other reason.
Every song on your mixtape should work toward accomplishing one of these goals.
This emotional response not only increases the song's worth in your mixtape - it leads to an engaged fan base.
The mixtapes with most downloads evoke an emotional response.
There is no campaign to force people to hear your stuff - no vote soliciting here!
Do you have a mixtape in the vault, waiting to be uploaded?
Just because it's 2024, doesn't mean people don't listen to mixtapes.
Free music downloads are a huge component of Hip hop and Electronic music.
Still... It is not as simple as you may think.
A lot has changed in the music industry, getting users to download your mixtape is not the same as before.
No worries, keep reading!
Since you're interested in mixtape growth - You'll find out who to upload mixtapes for free and build a fanbase!
By uploading multiple mixtapes in one cohesive theme, you will do much better.
Most fans prefer to hear the same song over and over.
Releasing great new music every time is risky, you don't know how fans will react.
Will this push your music career forward?
Will these be your top-voted songs?
Will this totally flop on me?
Every time you create music, you run these risks.
In the mixtape world, you do not run this risk.
Artists do not see streaming as a gateway to a music career in the past.
Unless you could sell a physical tape, your music was not worth anything to record label execs.
This untapped music space is what gave Lil Wayne the unique opportunity to upload his music with mixtapes for free.
This had double benefits.
Not only did his fans love him for releasing the mixtapes for free, but it also helped him with sample issues.
The original beats used did not have sample clearance from composing artists.
Normally, an uncleared song will get artists sued ASAP!
That was not the case with Lil Wayne's mixtapes.
Since Lil Wayne did not charge a dime. There were no damages/missed earnings that the mixtape created.
Check Lil Wayne's mixtape below! 👇
Lil Wayne released his Dedication Mixtapes all under the same theme.
He simply kept uploading the same style of the cover art on all the sites, then referred to his personal site.
Since he did not use a large budget to push his mixtape music, making the mixtapes similar in branding will practically market itself.
This is a marketing plan that's proven to work.
Copyright is extremely important in music legalities.
That said, mixtapes are somewhat invincible in the music business though - you will not get in much trouble.
Soundcloud is practically built for mixtape promotion!
Get our free ebook on music releases to crush it as a musician!
The top music artist mixtape's search results are pretty high!
These tracks are often not found on other Streaming platforms.
Your most popular site to release a mixtape as an independent artist is Soundcloud.
You don't need to release the songs appropriately to get a mixtape there!
If you release a larger themed mixtape, it may be worth it to make additional content as well.
Usually, you will have a digital mix of different track elements. Sample clearance does not matter as much.
Mixtape sites are dead for the most part - so is the download.
Hope I didn't burst your bubble.
This is because streaming sites such as Spotify made almost every free mixtape accessible.
Most artists and DJs use websites such as Distrokid to upload full-scale albums.
The main difference between an album upload and a mixtape album is that the album is registered.
Artists are legally eligible to collect royalties!
On SoundCloud, you can get away without registering music, but other sites make it a requirement.
Now that iPhones can access music from these streaming websites 24/7, there is no reason to release mixtapes.
Why should fans download mixtapes without compensation, when you can profit from an album download instead?
This philosophy permanently changed the way free mixtape downloads are seen in the music industry.
Right now you must use Youtube and Spotify to upload mixtapes legally.
In the past though, Independent artists would use peer-to-peer sites like Napster.
Napster was a great way for fans to discover music.
You could easily get found online through a single mixtape upload.
Registered users would download hundreds and even THOUSANDS of songs from these sites!
Mixtape downloads were more common because computers were pretty damn crappy.
Streaming mixtape music used to be extremely heavy on your internet speeds.
Instead, registered users would simply download the mixtapes.
DatPiff is an incredibly simple mixtape promotion site.
Don't let the non-visually appealing layout fool you - this mixtape site used to have the most traffic!
All you need to do is to upload your track, and then users can discover you.
You could create a free account on DatPiff, and then release your mixtape in 20 minutes!
These early 2000s mixtape sites offered a unique opportunity for an independent musician.
Here you can push for more exposure and build a music career.
A hip-hop mixtape would perform much better on this site, it was niched down - but not a bad thing if you were a rapper.
Hip-hop publishing was laxer in those days.
Most major releases were sold with a physical tape so the online free mixtape world was largely left alone.
DatPiff had a target audience that bought the physical CDs as well!
Sure, there were bootleggers but it was not a large issue.
This CD economy allowed other artists to run a marketing plan and profit!
Most listeners currently don't.
Trying to self-promote your own mixtape is kind of corny.
This is because people come for the hip-hop experience - not for you to blast your name 24/7.
DJ Khaled can do it, but it won't work for you.
Artists and DJs should focus on creating the best listening experience ever - it makes users come back!
Upload good stuff!
Many artists don't take visuals seriously.
It separates amateur artists and true song professionals.
But they care about the MUSIC.... Why should that matter?
Look at this visualizer by Kanye:
See, good graphics keep the person watching.
You only need to capture their attention for about 15 seconds with visuals, then the song can take effect.
Having unprofessional artwork will reject most potential Listeners.
Regardless of which mixtape site you use - only one thing is important.
You MUST link every song on your account back to your music site.
Your ad campaign success relies on this!
See, without a music website then running Facebook ads to a target audience is tough!
Facebook ain't free.
You'll have to burn hundreds of dollars until your ad account has the right data to reach your target audience.
Thankfully, there is a free solution to this issue.
On your mixtape site account, just hyperlink to your artist site rather than social media.
This way, you can capture that person via Facebook pixel.
Websites that have this can run an incredibly simple music ad campaign for these individuals!
See, the one kind of promotion that can work with a mixtape is to submit to blog websites.
Compared to other websites, mixtapes are almost free to access.
Artists can put it up for free, and fans can access it for free.
Because of this, you won't be able to monetize easily.
That isn't a huge issue though, rather than learning stream royalties you can sell merch/products.
When you submit to blogs - they link back to your personal websites.
Here, you get new people to your artist website - then sell!
Here are the best items for music artists to sell:
Use a site like Shopify or Wix to get this set up.
Your artist site is everything!
It’s time you get your exposure and listeners up - playlisting by Boost Collective has been trusted by 50,000+ artists worldwide.
It’s easy: Search your song, get on playlists, and track your campaign.
What’re you waiting for? Tap in - and get added to playlists in 24 hours.
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