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You’ve just finished producing, mixing, and mastering your new song. What’s next?
You might be thinking about planning an independent release (read more on my strategies for that here). But before you spend tons of time on an indie release, you might want to submit your song to a few record labels who have more resources and marketing knowledge to promote your music.
Over the past few years, I've worked with several independent record labels of varying sizes on single-song deals. Some of these deals have been largely successful (my song Willow Tree landed almost 3 million streams on Spotify). Some of them haven't.
I've created a list below of some of my favorite record labels to work with, and have weeded out the ones you shouldn't bother pitching your song to. These record labels have the marketing strategies to help your new song reach new audiences. Out of the ten record labels below, I’ve worked with four of them on my own releases (NCS, Lowly Palace, Frequency, and Magic Music). I've fully vetted and approved them based on my experience working with them.
Side note - this list is geared heavily toward labels releasing music in the pop and electronic genres.
So without further ado, here are 10 indie record labels you can submit your music to.
1. NCS
NCS (also known as NoCopyrightSounds) is one of the largest independent record labels, boasting an incredible 24 million subscribers and 6.5 billion views on YouTube. The label was founded in 2011. Their submissions process is highly competitive and can take up to two months for a response. In my opinion, it’s incredibly worth the wait if you land a single release with them. Willow Tree, a song I released with them in 2018, has reached almost 3 million streams on Spotify solely from their playlisting and marketing efforts. I collect a monthly paycheck from them and haven’t had any issues with late payments.
NCS accepts songs in several genres, including future bass, electronic, drum and bass, dubstep, house, and trap. One distinction to note: even though NCS stands for NoCopyrightSounds, it does own copyright on its releases and will ask artists for copyright ownership.
Submit HERE.
2. Monstercat
Monstercat is a Canadian independent electronic dance music record label founded in 2011. Several high profile DJs and artists have released music under this label, such as Marshmello, Pegboard Nerds, and Dillon Francis. With almost 7.5 million subscribers and a little under 2.5 billion views combined, Monstercat won't have any difficulty in helping your song reach new audiences. Monstercat accepts submissions in genres including future bass, electronic, drum and bass, dubstep, house, techno, trance, and trap.
Submit HERE.
3. Proximity
Proximity (formerly Pandoric Music) is an independent electronic record label. Founded in 2009, its most viewed video is a lyric video for DJ Snake and Justin Bieber's collaboration Let Me Love You. With almost 8.5 million subscribers and 3.5 billion views combined, this label definitely worth submitting your music to. Proximity accepts submissions in genres including pop, future bass, electronic, and house.
Submit HERE.
4. Lowly Palace
Lowly Palace is the brainchild of the massive YouTube collective, Trap Nation (with a YouTube following on par with NCS). I released a song called “Don’t You Know” with this record label in 2019, and the song has reached almost 250,000 streams on Spotify.
With 27 million subscribers, Trap Nation doesn’t seem to get as much traction as NCS on its releases. This may be due to the fact that they upload new song releases daily. However, for an indie musician, the record label still helps to secure an impressive stream count and provides music marketing you wouldn’t be able to find on your own. Lowly Palace accepts trap and future bass submissions.
Submit HERE.
5. Frequency
Frequency is an up-and-coming record label with more than 600,000 subscribers on YouTube. Known for supporting both well-known and unknown artists, Frequency releases music that is available for use on YouTube and Twitch without copyright concerns. In 2019, I released a song called "Hush" with this record label which reached roughly 40,000 streams. Frequency accepts pop and electronic submissions.
Submit HERE.
6. Magic Music
Magic Music is an independent record label based in New York. The founder, Jeff Liu, carefully curates his YouTube channel with trap and future bass releases. Magic Music has garnered over 2.5 million subscribers and 400 million views on YouTube. In 2019, I released three songs with this record label, all which reached roughly 50,000 streams on Spotify. Magic Music accepts only future bass and trap music.
Submit HERE.
7. BitBird
Bitbird is an independent record label and creative company based in the Netherlands. The label was founded in 2014 by San Holo, a Dutch DJ whose rise to prominence in 2016 hasn't gone unnoticed. The label boasts 200,000 followers on Soundcloud.
Website: https://bitbirdofficial.com/
Submit HERE.
8. KnightVision
KnightVision is a record label based in Amsterdam focusing on recording, production, songwriting, publishing and artist development. Since its conception in 2016, it has worked with artists such as Yellow Claw and The Union. KnightVision accepts pop and electronic pop music exclusively.
Website: https://knightvisionrec.com/
Submit HERE.
9. Chill Your Mind
ChillYourMind is a record label focused on curating a unique selection of beautiful and positive music. As of 2019, the label has garnered over 800,000 subscribers and more than 150 million streams on YouTube. Chill Your Mind accepts submissions in the deep house, tropical house, chill house, electronic pop, and chillpop genres.
Submit HERE.
10. Owsla
Owsla is an American record label founded by well-known DJ and dubstep producer Skrillex. Porter Robinson, Jack U, and Seven Lions are closely associated with this label. Submissions are highly competitive, so don't expect a response.
Owsla accepts submissions in a variety of electronic genres.
Website: http://owsla.com/
Submit HERE.
11. Red Bull Records
Red Bull Records is an independent record label dedicated to long-term artist development with a global perspective. Their mission is to provide artists with an environment to succeed, focusing efforts on artists that may not have thrived in the traditional industry. With a unique roster of artists including AWOLNATION, The Aces, Beartooth, FLAWES, and Twin Atlantic, they take pride in promoting musical diversity across a wide range of genres. Just like they sound - they're a subsidiary company of energy drink Red Bull.
Website: https://redbullrecords.com/
Submit HERE.
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Hope you guys enjoyed this list of record labels! If you have any of your own record labels to add to our list, please leave them in the comments below - I'd love to keep building on this post with your feedback.
Make sure to read my article HERE on how to choose a record label for your music.
Happy releasing!
Rosendale
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