The tool
The Independence Path
The free, guided route from “I have songs” to “I collect every dollar, own every master, and grow an audience nobody can take away.” 15 concrete steps — each one ends in a done thing. Progress is saved on your device, no account required.
Every independent career starts here.
Own your rights
Every song registered, every royalty stream switched on.
Find out in 2 minutes which royalty streams you're not collecting.
ASCAP or BMI collect your performance royalties — radio, venues, streaming.
The MLC pays US streaming mechanicals. Unregistered money sits in the black box.
Distributors usually register only the recording owner. The featured-artist share is yours to claim.
Settle the percentages the day you write — not the day it blows up.
Release it right
Music live everywhere, masters in your name.
Keep your masters and ~100% of royalties. Compare the six big ones.
Work back from release day — distributor lead time, pitch window, pre-save.
Spotify for Artists + Apple Music for Artists: your data, your pitch button.
Know your money
You can price any deal and read any statement.
Your streams: independent vs 50/50 vs label deal, side by side.
Why an advance isn't free money — the formula that traps platinum acts.
Handle the labels
You can evaluate any offer without fear.
Four questions → your path: independent, hold leverage, or sign safely.
The clauses that decide everything, and the questions to ask out loud.
Paste a clause, get plain English — and which red flag it matches.
Grow what you own
An audience nobody can take away from you.
Owned audience over borrowed reach: the weekly loop.
Human discovery — your music on real people's profiles and tier lists.
How this works
Check each step off as you complete it. Your progress is saved in your browser only — nothing leaves your device, no account, no email. Each step links directly to the tool or guide that does that job with you: the royalty audit, the distributor comparison, the recoupment calculator, the clause decoder.
The cases in /cases are the why — documented proof of what happens when artists don’t control their rights or understand their contracts. This path is the how: the same knowledge, turned into action. Work through all 15 and no label offer, no streaming clause, and no contract language can catch you off guard.