DistroKid, the popular music distribution service, has revealed a new direct-to-fan merchandise platform called Direct, launching in October 2025. The new platform will allow independent artists to sell customized merchandise featuring their album artwork through personalized online stores, without surrendering any portion of their sales revenue to DistroKid. Instead, artists will pay a flat $6 monthly fee for access to the service, which handles all production and shipping through an on-demand manufacturing system.
Direct represents a significant expansion of DistroKid’s offerings beyond its core music distribution services, which already help artists get their music onto major platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and TikTok. The platform, currently in beta testing with select artists, will be fully integrated with DistroKid’s existing dashboard, creating a unified hub where musicians can manage both their music distribution and merchandise sales. This integration provides a streamlined approach to artist branding across multiple revenue channels.
The move positions DistroKid as a direct competitor to Bandcamp, which has long offered merchandise sales tools for independent musicians and recently launched its own subscription service called Bandcamp Clubs. DistroKid’s approach differs significantly in its pricing model—while many platforms take a percentage of sales, Direct allows artists to keep 100% of their merchandise revenue, paying only the monthly access fee regardless of sales volume. The company currently handles 30% to 40% of new music releases globally for over 2 million artists. This addition to DistroKid’s offerings helps musicians create diverse income streams that are increasingly essential for sustainability in today’s music industry. Unlike platforms such as Spotify and Tidal that focus primarily on streaming revenue, Direct enables artists to develop royalty alternatives through physical merchandise sales.
For independent artists, the platform eliminates significant barriers to merchandising, requiring no upfront inventory costs or logistical headaches. After artists upload their artwork, DistroKid manages all aspects of production, packaging, and shipping, with items printed on-demand after customers place orders. This system mirrors DistroKid’s artist-friendly approach to music distribution, where musicians pay $24.99 annually for unlimited uploads while retaining all streaming royalties. The service maintains its focus on tech-driven distribution while expanding into complementary revenue streams for artists.
The launch reflects the growing importance of direct artist-to-fan relationships in the music industry, providing musicians with additional ways to monetize their creative work and brand identity while maintaining control of their customer relationships and associated data.
