Patronage-first streaming for independent music
Stream independent music, directly fund the artists who make it, and know exactly where your money goes. No fractions of pennies. No middlemen taking the rest.
£10 of every £18 Patron subscription goes straight to artists. Always.
How it works
Follow for free, or become a Patron or Champion. Your subscription comes with a monthly stream allowance — and a fixed amount committed to artists before anything else.
Every stream pays the artist directly at a real rate — not a rounding error. Stream on the web or in the subTotem app, wherever you listen.
Didn't use your full allowance? The remainder doesn't vanish into a platform's pocket. It's redirected to the artists you choose, as direct patronage.
Where the money goes
Most platforms hide the split. We publish it. This is the totem — your subscription, stacked from the bottom up, with artists holding up everything else.
At the end of the month, any unstreamed allowance is redirected to artists as direct support. You decide how it's shared.
Split across everyone you played, in proportion to your listening. Your most-listened artists get the most support.
Everyone you played gets the same share.
Choose a handful of artists to back, every month.
All remaining support goes to a single artist.
Plans
Connection, not a demo
£10 goes to artists
£12 goes to artists
Prices include VAT. The amount that goes to artists is fixed and comes out first — before VAT, PRS songwriter licensing (paid on the streams you actually play) and payment processing fees are accounted for. Whatever's left after that is the platform's share, and it's reinvested. Subscriptions, payments and account management all happen here on the web — the subTotem app is for listening, discovering and chatting, nothing else.
Why we exist
subTotem Ltd is run as a reinvestment business. Profit doesn't leave the music — it goes back to the artists who make it. Here's exactly where it goes.
Direct funding for the people making the music — recording, gear, travel, the costs that usually come out of an artist's own pocket.
Paying artists properly to play, and backing the grassroots venues and nights that give independent music somewhere to happen.
The muscle a label provides — promotion, distribution and release backing — offered as a service. You keep 100% of your rights. We just help you reach further.