how to make money reviewing songs on stream
quick answer
You make money reviewing songs (or any other submitter content) on stream by charging either to submit or to skip the line. Most hosts keep submissions free and let submitters pay to jump the queue. Nero handles the payments and the queue, so all you have to do is listen or watch and give your take.
If people already want your opinion on their music, you can charge for it. That's basically the whole model: a submitter pays, you listen on stream and give them your honest take. Creators have earned over $6M on Nero doing exactly this, and our top hosts make $20-40k a month. You don't need a whole production for it, just a link and your phone and a computer.
keep it entertaining and get to every song
You don't need a perfectly pitched offer to submitters. Plenty of hosts just say "send me your music" and it works fine. What actually matters is that the stream is fun to watch and you get to every song. Submitters paid to be heard, so play the song, react honestly, say what you'd change, and move on. Be direct, but remember they paid for your attention.
Good reviews also make good clips. For active hosts we clip and distribute the best moments ourselves, so a strong review keeps working for you after the stream ends.
pick a pricing model
There are really two ways to do it. Most hosts keep standard submissions free and charge for skip, super skip, and throne. That's the best option while you're growing, because nobody gets locked out and the people who really want to be heard pay to move up.
The other option is charging for every submission. That works when you already have more demand than you can get through, or when your feedback is specialized enough that people expect to pay for it.
Nero supports both, and you can switch between sessions without redoing anything. Set your tier prices, add any add-ons, and go.
post before you go live
This is the one people often skip (but costs them the most!). Hosts who announce the stream on Instagram and TikTok before they go live make way more than hosts who just show up. Post the day before and again an hour before, say what you're reviewing, and drop your Nero link.
Submitters need time to find the link, pick a song, and pay, so the announcement is what gets the first submissions in before you've even gone live. A full queue at the start of the stream is also what makes people pay to skip.
raise prices when the queue fills up
When the queue gets ahead of you, raise your skip and throne prices. You can change prices mid-stream and you should, that's the whole point of the tiers. Pause the queue if you need to catch up, and close it when you're done.
key takeaways
- Charge to submit or to skip the line. Most hosts keep submissions free and charge for priority.
- Announce the stream on Instagram and TikTok before you go live. It's the biggest difference in what a session makes.
- Keep it entertaining and get to every song.
- Nero handles payments, order, and submitter emails so you only have to review.
- Raise prices mid-stream when the queue fills up.