We're not exactly experts in this area (oh to be a newly launched venture!), but we hope that someday there will be money for artists and the systems that support them. However an important step to getting there is understanding how the heck anyone manages to make any $$ these days in the first place. Future of Music Coalition has been talking for over a decade about the music industry, the policies that impact it and the ways for artists to move forward and do things like have health care even if they don't have one of those standard old 9-5ers. They've launched a survey in order to gather information about how musicians make money from music as part of their Artist Revenue Streams project.

Here's a snip:

Artist Revenue Streams (ARS) represents the first time a US-based organization has conducted a research project that examines musicians’ revenue streams across all genres and roles. The results could provide musicians, the media and the music community at large with a comprehensive analysis of how musicians are being compensated in the digital age.

The project engages with a wide range of musicians, including jazz artists, Nashville songwriters, session musicians, touring rock artists, hip hop emcees, classical composers, and artists experimenting with direct-to-fan strategies through three research strategies: in-person interviews; financial case studies; and a wide-ranging online survey.

You can take the survey here.

Listen to Jean Cook from FMC talk about the survey on WNYC.