The latest edition of our Spotify for Artists Masterclass – a virtual event series for artists – focuses on a very important topic: how artists make money on Spotify.

Camille Hearst, Head of Spotify for Artists, shared an update on our renewed focus on artist monetization and building revenue streams for artists beyond royalties. She discussed the many ways for artists to monetize on Spotify today – merch, ticketing, and direct fan support – and previewed the exciting new products we’re testing to help artists connect with their biggest fans and generate additional revenue.

Bryan Johnson, Head of Artist & Industry Partnerships International, also joined to break down the latest numbers on streaming royalties from our Loud & Clear refresh.

Watch the full video broadcast below, and read on to learn more about each topic:

Merch

We know merch is a big business for artists and a huge part of fan culture. That’s why we’ve partnered with Shopify – so you can list and sell your merch on Spotify, creating a virtual merch table on your artist profile. In the video above, we cover why Spotify is a great platform to move your merch, how to connect your Shopify store to your artist profile, and examples of artists successfully using the feature to sell merch today.

Ticketing

Another way to earn on Spotify is by promoting your ticketed events – whether virtual or IRL. During the Spotify for Artists Masterclass, we outlined how to make sure your events are listed with our trusted ticketing partners and shared all the places on Spotify your shows get promoted, including your artist profile, a dedicated in-product hub (just search for “Concerts” on Spotify to find it), and personalized emails and notifications to fans.

Fan Support

We’re excited to share we will soon be renaming our popular Artist Fundraising Pick feature to Fan Support to better reflect how more than 200,000 artists are using it today – to receive direct monetary support from fans in the form of tips and fundraising.

Fan Support will continue to be a key way for artists around the world to receive support (through Cash App, PayPal.me, and other platforms) and raise money for important causes (through GoFundMe). You can set yours up on your artist profile by connecting one of our payment or fundraising partners through Spotify for Artists.

Future Opportunities and Live Audio

More than 400 million fans worldwide already connect with artists and their music on Spotify, and we think it can be an even more powerful place for artists to monetize. We’re investing in brand new experiences that allow you to interact directly with your biggest fans, deepen their engagement with your music, and power new revenue from Spotify. To start, we’re exploring live audio using our app Spotify Live.

One new experience, which we’re currently testing, is exclusive live audio rooms hosted by artists with their top Spotify fans. In these intimate spaces, artists can celebrate a special musical moment like a new release and earn revenue by selling merch, promoting concert tickets, and receiving tips and donations – all inside the room. We’re learning about the best ways artists can engage and earn in this new format, and even seeing positive early signals on streaming impact long after the event is over.

We’re currently testing with a select group of diverse artists and fans, including Elohim, who spoke about the experience. Hear more from her in the video above, and if you're interested in helping us test this exciting product, you can sign up here.

Loud & Clear

Last month, we refreshed our Loud & Clear transparency initiative with 2021 royalty data and a host of new educational features. It’s easy to get lost in the big numbers, so we focused on breaking down what those numbers actually mean for artists like you. How much are individual artists generating on Spotify? How many professionally aspiring artists are there on Spotify? What types of artists are finding financial success? Bryan Johnson guides you through the site section by section, highlighting the top takeaways for artists.

Check out the video above to learn more, and click here or follow our video podcast to see past Spotify for Artists Masterclasses. Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to build new ways for artists to earn more money and build sustainable businesses on Spotify.