343 The Pre-Streaming Revenue Model: Dollars Before Pennies
The Unstarving Musician
Most independent artists release their albums everywhere immediately—Spotify, Apple Music, every streaming platform. But what if that's backwards? Ezra Vancil sold his last album exclusively to his email list for an entire year before releasing it to streaming platforms. His new album? He's using a hybrid approach: limited streaming presence while keeping the full album direct-only. The math is stark. One direct sale at $10 nets you $8-10 after platform fees. To earn that same amount from streaming, you need 20,000-25,000 plays. If your average listener streams your...
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342 What I Learned in 2025
The Unstarving Musician
Welcome to 2026. In the last episode, I shared what I'm grateful for and the personal questions I'm sitting with. Today, I'm sharing the strategic side: what I learned in 2025 that changed how I work. Six concrete lessons from running this podcast and newsletter, plus 300+ conversations with independent musicians and creative professionals. Some of these lessons were uncomfortable. Some contradicted what I thought I knew. A few are still unresolved—I'm learning in real-time. If you're trying to build something sustainable as a musician or creative professional, there's...
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341 Gratitude, Growth, and What I'm Learning (Holiday Edition)
The Unstarving Musician
Every year, I write up a gratitude list. This year, the list came easily - but it's mixed with what I'm learning, because growth and gratitude feel connected right now. In this holiday edition, I share what I'm grateful for in 2025: 31 years of marriage, the Unstarving Musician community, my health, and the accidental connections that turned into real relationships. But I also talk about the harder questions I'm sitting with about work, stress management, and what "making it" actually means. If you're dealing with the tension between strategic thinking and creative joy,...
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340 How to Conduct a Personal Royalty Audit and Recover Missing Money
The Unstarving Musician
Most independent artists have thousands of dollars in unclaimed royalties sitting in four separate collection systems—and a four-year window to recover this money before it's redistributed to major labels. In this episode, I break down the systematic framework for conducting a personal royalty audit. You'll discover why being registered with ASCAP, BMI, or SESAC isn't enough, and learn about the three additional systems most artists don't know exist: SoundExchange for digital performance royalties, publishing administration services for worldwide mechanical collection, and the...
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339 Missing Royalties: Revenue Recovery Strategies with Amani Roberts
The Unstarving Musician
Independent musicians leave significant money on the table—not from lack of talent, but from unclaimed royalties and overlooked revenue streams. Amani Roberts, music business educator and author of the USA Today bestseller "The Quiet Storm," reveals the specific registration gaps costing artists thousands of dollars annually. In this conversation, Amani breaks down the four major royalty collection systems most artists fail to use properly: PRO registration for public performance royalties, SoundExchange for digital performance royalties, publishing royalties through services like...
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338 Jesse Flores – Distribution Partnerships And Strategic Planning For Independent Artists
The Unstarving Musician
Distribution partnerships can make or break an independent music career, but most artists don't understand what separates a good deal from a bad one. Jesse Flores, VP of Artist and Label Partnerships at Intercept Music and former Senior Director at Virgin Music Group, shares insider knowledge from over 20 years negotiating deals with major artists and independent labels. In this conversation, Jesse reveals the specific factors distributors evaluate when considering partnerships, the most common contract mistakes artists make (including the advance trap that costs artists future revenue), and...
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337 Ezra Vancil – Business Systems: From Marketing Day Job to Sustainable Music Career
The Unstarving Musician
After 10 years with the same band and launching his own label, Ezra Vancil has learned that sustainable music careers require business systems—not just passion. In this conversation, he reveals the productivity frameworks he's borrowed from his marketing day job and how they've transformed both his creative output and family dynamics. → subscribers get Ezra's complete "Music Career as Business System" framework + his pre-release strategy that sold an album for a full year before streaming. Key Topics Discussed The "fear as compass" approach that guides his creative decisions Why he...
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336 Community Collaboration: Turning Your Fanbase Into Creative Partners Without Losing Artistic Control
The Unstarving Musician
Can your community become a creative collaborator without turning your art into committee-designed mediocrity? In this solo episode, I explore proven frameworks for involving your audience in the creative process while maintaining complete artistic control. You’ll discover how Amanda Palmer uses early-stage feedback on Patreon to gather emotional responses (not technical critiques), how British singer-songwriter Lynz Crichton turned her entire EP creation into a 90-day collaborative project with her email and social media communities, and how Imogen Heap invited fans to contribute raw...
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335 Music Revenue Through Community - Moving Beyond Streaming
The Unstarving Musician
Music revenue diversification is essential for independent artists, but how do you actually monetize your community of superfans? This follow-up to episode 333's community-building strategies explores the practical side of turning deep fan relationships into sustainable income that goes beyond streaming pennies. Emerging direct-to-fan platforms like MySeat (highlighted by Dave Cool, formerly of Bandzoogle) allow artists to create branded mobile apps with multiple revenue streams - subscriptions, merchandise, live events, auctions, and exclusive content. Real case studies break down...
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334 Musician Podcaster Bree Noble – From Kitchen Recordings to Industry Authority
The Unstarving Musician
As a musician podcaster who has built multiple successful shows over the past decade, Bree Noble represents what's possible when artists embrace podcasting as both a creative outlet and business tool. In this conversation, she shares her evolution from recording in her kitchen to becoming a recognized industry authority featured in Forbes. Bree reveals the technical and logistical challenges she faced transitioning from Women of Substance streaming radio to becoming the speaking host of a podcast. She discusses why she wishes she'd front-loaded more episodes before launching and shares...
info_outlineWelcome to 2026. In the last episode, I shared what I'm grateful for and the personal questions I'm sitting with. Today, I'm sharing the strategic side: what I learned in 2025 that changed how I work.
Six concrete lessons from running this podcast and newsletter, plus 300+ conversations with independent musicians and creative professionals. Some of these lessons were uncomfortable. Some contradicted what I thought I knew. A few are still unresolved—I'm learning in real-time.
If you're trying to build something sustainable as a musician or creative professional, there's value in seeing what worked, what didn't, and what I'm still figuring out.
Topics Covered:
- Newsletter-first architecture: Why the newsletter became the business and the podcast became newsletter growth infrastructure
- How better questions in guest submission forms filter for quality and save time
- Why systems don't kill creativity—they enable it by removing decision fatigue
- Content gating creates better value through a clear hierarchy (free vs. premium)
- Guest quality compounds; guest quantity doesn't—one excellent guest beats three mediocre ones
- The tension between strategic thinking and creative joy, and the warning signs to watch for
- The shift from SEO optimization to conversion optimization in episode descriptions
- What "sustainable" actually means when building a creative business
This is the first episode of 2026. If you're balancing creative work with business thinking, wondering how to structure systems without losing spontaneity, or defining what success looks like on your own terms, this episode is for you.
Scheduling Note: Next episode will be in three weeks (buffer break for content creation). After that, we resume the normal every-two-weeks schedule.
Show notes at UnstarvingMusician.com.
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Resources
The Unstarving Musician’s Guide to Getting Paid Gigs, by Robonzo
Dreamhost – See the latest deals from Dreamhost, save money and support the UM in the process.
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