Launched in June by TuneCore and our parent company Believe, the “Signed By” program has benefited over 340 artists around the world. That means artists who release their music through TuneCore and are identified as rising stars are eligible to be signed by industry-leading digital music distribution and artist development company, Believe.
We’re thrilled to be giving artists in our community the opportunity to work directly with Believe to take the next steps in their music career. When artists start to gain traction, TuneCore is able to seamlessly upstream them to the appropriate support system, whether that’s Believe Label and Artist Solutions (L&AS), Artist Services, or its house of labels including Nuclear Blast, Naïve, All Points, Groove Attack, PIVTL Projects and more. We’re proud to be the only digital music company who has a system like this in place, where artists work within one transparent ecosystem and maintain ownership of their masters and creative control throughout.
Aiming to showcase artists who’ve already been “Signed By” Believe, we caught up with Nashville-based pop-punk rocker, Charlotte Sands. The blue-haired, Gen-Z beloved singer-songwriter first joined TuneCore in 2014, but didn’t end up releasing her first single until 2020. Since then, her music has blown up across social media platforms, capturing the attention of millions of viewers on TikTok and over 550,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. Now wIth Believe behind her, Sands is poised to take her career to the next level.
“Believe has empowered me as an artist by supporting and amplifying my creative choices instead of questioning them or trying to change them,” Sands confided. “They trust in my decisions and support my vision no matter how strange or unrealistic it may seem at the time.”
Speaking on her growing success from the “Signed By” program, Sands went on to say that the transition from TuneCore to Believe revealed to her that “a team of hard-working, creative people can change the entire projection of your career and have a really positive effect on the quality of the content you’re putting out. It’s hard to do everything by yourself, and it’s especially hard to do it all well, which is why being a Believe artist has been such a great experience.”
Sands’ most influential collaborators are her fans. The Massachusetts-native takes time to consistently connect and engage with her followers, asking for opinions on upcoming projects and campaigns, as she empathizes that making music is a “collaborative and inclusive process instead of just being one-sided.”
“I am constantly overwhelmed by the love and support I receive and it only motivates me to work harder while also giving me a sense of validation and security in the music I’m making, which can be hard to come by in this industry,” she told us.
Her advice for other aspiring artists looking to be elevated into the “Signed By” program? Be authentic and unapologetic. Sands confessed that when she began making music she struggled to create content that felt genuine, and found her stride once she released her viral hit “Dress” as a defiant response to the negativity surrounding the Vogue cover in which Harry Styles wore a gown.
“Stop caring what other people think. I spent so much time trying to please people and create music they would like that I completely lost touch of why I was making it in the first place. [When] I decided to stop caring about people’s opinions of me, my career shifted almost immediately… If you work your ass off, treat people with respect, and make art you’re proud of, the rest will fall into place.”
Now, she urges other artists to capitalize on their unique qualities and use their voice: “Standing out as an artist can be really difficult, but the more content you create and release into the world, the easier it is for listeners to connect with you, which turns into a bigger audience and, in turn, attracts the attention of larger companies, labels etc.”
Gearing up to get back on the road with live performances, Sands is most eagerly anticipating meeting her newfound fans from across the globe. “I’m looking forward to being able to play shows in front of larger audiences and having the privilege to experience it all surrounded by a team of friends that have been here since the very beginning.” First up on her schedule is the 2021 Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee.
Stay connected with Charlotte Sands via Instagram & TikTok, and check out her new music on Spotify.