Get Heard & Get Paid

Can I submit a Cover?

No. We only accept original material.

Can I submit more than one track?

Yes, please feel free to submit up to three tracks per issue. Please don’t overwhelm us by submitting more.

I submitted in the past but didn’t get accepted. Can I submit again?

Most certainly, we welcome you to submit again.

Do I keep the rights to my submission?

Yes, always. In the case your submission is accepted, you grant us non-exclusive rights to distribute and publish the track. As the copyright owner, you keep full rights to distribute/sell.

What does it mean that I grant Ramen Music "non-exclusive rights?"

It means that you can always and forever sell & distribute your track outside of Ramen Music. You retain ownership to your track. Unlike ye old typical record deal, you are the boss! You own the masters. However, if you submit the track and the track is accepted, you grant Ramen the right to publish and distribute the song and recording without restriction.

Basically, Ramen isn’t taking rights away from you or restricting your current or future use/sale of your track. We're in the business of helping you get heard and paid, not controlling your music.

What rights do I grant Ramen Music if my track is accepted?

If your track is accepted, you agree to grant Ramen Music non-exclusive and non-terminating (ie, forever) rights to publish and distribute your song and recording in digital format on ramenmusic.com.

Why do I have to grant you guys non-exclusive rights for eternity? Isn't that overkill?

If your track is accepted, it goes into an Ramen Music issue. This issue lives online. Subscribers go online to access the issue and listen to the music. We need to guarantee our subscribers that in 1 or 2 years from now, the issue is still available and they can still access your track.

Basically, as long as Ramen Music is around, we want subscribers to be able to have what they paid for: online access to our published music. We ask you for non-terminating distribution rights to ensure that there is an understanding that your track will live online at ramenmusic.com as long as we are in business. It cannot be pulled down at a later date. (We're most concerned with record labels; they sometimes ask newly signed artists to remove as much existing music as possible from the internet)

Remember, the rights are non-exclusive (you remain the owner), we pay you, and we distribute your music to our subscribers and beyond. We think that's a pretty fair deal.

If my track is not accepted, does Ramen keep any rights to it?

No. If we do not accept your track for publication in an issue, you do not grant *any* rights to us.

If accepted, will my track be altered in any way before publication?

We will master the track to be at the same average volume level as the other tracks in the issue. You will have the chance to review the track before it is published.

My track is on alonetone / soundcloud / bandcamp / myspace / last.fm, can I still submit it?

Yes! But please don’t send us tracks from 2005. We want new material, preferably 2010/2011.

What are you looking for as far as recording quality?

Short Answer: Do your best.
Long Answer: We love recordings made with decent quality microphones at good levels. We love it when detailed attention was given to the mix. The recording should NOT have the life squashed out of it by compressors/limiters in efforts to get the track louder.

Most common mix problems: Over-the-top heavy compression (when in doubt, lay off the stereo channel compressor entirely), annoying distortion/clicks that are clearly not an artistic choice, vocals being too quiet/soft in the mix (extremely common in the DIY world. Be brave, turn those vocals up!). We probably won't publish your "rehearsal room" recordings (think of a single microphone/recorder placed in a room with a full rock band). It's not hard these days to capture a good quality recording, so do your best!

Will I need to provide more info if my track is accepted?

Yes! We will need the original aif/wav file of the track, as well as provide some information about you and the song to include in the issue. There might be a bit of back and forth while we cook up a good story about you. Get ready to talk about yourself :)

When and how do I get paid?

After your track is accepted, we'll contact you regarding the original aif/wav file. We'll also ask you some questions for your artist/song profile. After we put the issue together and you have verified the track/writeup is to your satisfaction, we pay. Payment is normally sent right before the Issue is published. We prefer to pay via paypal. If you are anti-paypal, we can pay via bank transfer/direct deposit. Please note that some US banks charge fees for direct and international bank transfers.

I need to cancel or remove my submission. Can I?

To remove a submission, email
submissions@ramenmusic.com from the same email address you submitted from.

I'd to change / upload a new version of a submission!

Please do not email us music. Instead, submit a new version, then email us at submissions@ramenmusic.com to notify us of the new version.

When will I hear back from you guys?

Ramen releases issues every 2 months. It can take more than a month for us to make a final decision on your track, depending upon when you submitted. We’ll notify you by email. If we like your track, it’s probable we are waiting until a few weeks before issue launch to make a call on it.

Seriously, I’ve been waiting a month already, what’s going on?

See above. Don’t worry, we didn’t lose your submission or forget about it. We listen to every track at least handful of times. At least several people have probably heard your track. We tend to notify artists about a week or two after the submission deadline. If you submitted significantly before a deadline or right after an issue was released, it's possible you might wait an extra week or two.