Cmac (co-founder #1) composes every day. He's got hundreds of songs collecting digital dust. I (co-founder #2) challenged him to release one every week. He quickly realized that registering everything everywhere takes hours away from making music. That sucks.
This is the reality for all independent musicians.
We want to get registered, played, credited, and paid for everything that we're owed. To do that, there's a lot of places to login and enter data. The most important ones are:
- Distributor
- Writer's PRO
- Publisher's PRO
- MLC
- SoundExchange
- Copyright
There are at least 65 metadata records for every song (and that's just if there is a single writer and you performed everything), and if some are skipped or mistyped...
You have to do this every time... correctly. If the metadata isn't entered exactly right, credits don't happen, and payments get held or lost.
Do you even know what an ISWC is? Or an IPI? A neighboring right? Yah, we didn't either.
So WHY is monetizing music such a complex process?
The answer is frustratingly simple. The system is built by corporations for corporations. The less we collect, the more they make.
But we know that less typing = more music. So... we built ONCE.
Upload your song. Answer a few questions. Click send. ONCE.
We Are The World
We want a world where creators control their shit and have the tools to share it. Where it's cheap and easy to get registered, played, credited, and paid. ONCE is for creators. It's for us. Independent musicians only. (If you have a label or pub deal... totally cool. But this isn't for you.)
With A Little Help From My Friends
We got tired of dealing with the mess of registration and monetization. We want to have a fair chance to get paid to make our music. We want to retain control of our art. We don't want to be beholden to corporations who just want to control everything so they can make more money for themselves.
Should I Stay Or Should I Go
Subscribe or not... we don't care. We just want you to win. You can do all this yourself. We'll tell you how. No strings attached. You own your own shit.
I Did It My Way
Your music (and metadata) belong to you, period. ONCE stores all your info in a blockchain you control, and no one else can hold it hostage. It's always yours, as it always should be. Every dollar counts.
I Get Knocked Down, But I Get Up Again
Tools shouldn't get in the way of art. That's why ONCE is good, fast, cheap, easy and fun to use. We're a small team. Shit's gonna break early on, and we'll fix it and keep rocking. Join us and help make it better.
Fight The Power
We want everyone to not just GET paid, but to know HOW they get paid. Ask ONCE anything about registration and learn how it all works. Yes, the entire system is built by corporations for corporations, so our team of experts downloaded their brains into ONCE so that you can learn all this shit.
I Won't Back Down
We are 100% transparent. We are building ONCE in the open. We'll make mistakes, it'll be stressful, we'll keep writing, and it will get better. JUST LIKE MAKING MUSIC. We've been in the sausage factory of the music business. We're undoing the bullshit so you have control. All our policies and fees will be transparent, fair, and as close to zero as possible. We want you to make money before we do.
Mo Money Mo Problems
We are 100% supported by YOU. We didn't take money from the music industry. We aren't MBAs or PhD's. WE ARE MUSICIANS. ONCE is the cheapest, easiest, and most direct way for us to get our shit out into the world... correctly. We're striving to cut out all the middlemen (and their fees) and pass every dime we can on to you. Every dollar counts.
The Long Run
We're not chasing funding. Our goal is to be cash-flow positive from day one, and to grow steadily through word of mouth. We won't spend your money on advertising or fancy offices. We'll spend it on getting you paid.
Play To Get Paid
Join the co-founder presale. Get lifetime membership. We'll try to put it in the bank and build off the interest. If we can pull this thing off without touching the money, we'll give it back to you. Every dollar counts.
Let Me Clear My Throat
We believe in good shit with cool people and cool shit with good people. We love music and we're in this together.
WE WILL NEVER TAKE MONEY FROM THE RECORD LABELS, they've taken enough money from us.
You will ALWAYS own all of your own data and access. PERIOD.
If ONCE ever shuts down, we will release our code open source so that creators will always have a good, fast, and cheap option to get registered, played, credited, and paid.
We're playing the long game. Creators deserve to have control of their art. Every second counts. Every dollar counts.
- F. Reid Shippen
ONCE is the AI music distributor built on these principles — distribute Suno music, keep 100% of your royalties, and your tracks stay live forever. Every AI release also funds the Artist Compensation Fund.