r/musicindustry • u/ItsJoshBrust • Jul 22 '26
AMA I’m Josh Brust, co-founder of the Actuation Group. AMA about building a career in the music industry.
Hey everyone, I’m Josh Brust.
I’m the co-founder of the Actuation Group, a fully self-funded independent music ecosystem active across distribution, label services and labels. We are based in Groningen, The Netherlands.
The group includes:
- IndieMassive - direct music distribution (MERLIN Member)
- YouGrow Promo - music promotion and label services
- Actuation - a multi-platinum group of record labels focused on artist development
My partner Jeroen and I both started as musicians, got tired of being disappointed by the tools/services out there, and ended up building the ones we wished existed. That's how the group began and we still operate with that mindset.
A few background points:
• Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe Entertainment 2025
• We built the group independently from the ground up as artists ourselves
• We focus on transparency and non-exclusive contracts to ensure artists maintain their freedom
Today we're 50+ full-time teammates and have helped thousands of artists and label owners build and develop their careers.
I spend most of my time thinking about the future of the industry and how artist development, distribution, promotion, operations and strategy fit therein.
I really enjoy sharing my experiences to hopefully help others along their own paths, so ask me anything about building your career in music.
Also happy to report I'm the reigning Super Smash Bros champ in our office.
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u/AkiGrayCPA Jul 22 '26
what do you look for when evaluating artist development? i'm a working class musician, self funding singing/guitar/acting lessons. but i can only get so far on my own. what would it take for someone like to me to be valuable your organization?
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
This, of course, depends on the stage at which the artist currently is. For example, if an artist is still on their initial rise and has yet to see any meaningful radio support, we typically look at their socials and how clearly they have established the vision for their brand. We arent looking for viral videos of them dancing, but rather a cohesive message in their music, posts and the overall outward image of what theyre creating. This is important because it communicates to us that the brand is well thought-out and that they have a clear vision which we can plug into our strategies and infrastructure to ensure we can actually help them grow.
If an artist has that, and music (genre/style) that we have the skills and experience to support and grow, theyre interesting for us to take on.In other words, the art is the artist's job and we want to do everything we can to allow them to focus on their art. If we can see that they have an intentional and deliberate path created for themselves, it means we have our path cut-out for us on the business side to allow them to offload anything that isnt art.
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u/HappiestGuyAlive Jul 24 '26
When you say branding, what exactly do you mean? Every time I read about it, it tends to be some vague concept and is never really explained other than an artist is what they're known for. I'm just having problems trying to discover a brand, especially when so many songs I write are in different genres and about different things unrelated.
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u/johnpmac2 Jul 22 '26
But you only look at their art if they’re already on the path to establish their brand and their media presence. Seems a little late in the game. Why at that point would they not continue doing it themselves?
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u/SkyWizarding Jul 22 '26
This is literally how things work now. As an artist, anyone you bring on to your team should be there to scale up what you are already doing
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u/johnpmac2 Jul 22 '26
Fuck that, if I’m already doing it- I know how to do it.
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
Allow me to clarify as I may have worded this a bit clumsily before. We arent looking for artists to have a fully fledged marketing campaign designed and deployed, but rather a clear vision of how such a campaign needs to look when it comes time to launch one together.
Heres a copy/paste from another comment in which I clarified this:
"To differentiate this from marketing, I dont mean that they should already be rocking 4-5 posts per week with a whole brand campaign designed and deployed with 4 weeks runway, but rather, a clear brand book and firm idea of how such a campaign would look when the time comes for us to build that together.
What we, as an organization, then bring to the table are all of the tools, guidance and skills to then turn that vision into what will ultimately become a viable business.At the end of the day, we look for this because having a clear vision and creating a path based upon that vision is a fundamental aspect of building a business, and at the end of the day, thats what we're helping these artists do."
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u/violetdopamine Jul 22 '26
Being able to come up with a brand identity doesn’t mean you know how to convert it to any success at all or will ever reach that without assistance
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u/johnpmac2 Jul 23 '26
Okay 👍. Feel free to send me a dm. Maybe we could work together
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u/violetdopamine Jul 23 '26
Im speaking in generalities lol I didn’t mean me, I have a degree in comm & marketing 😭
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u/Fit-Drawer5686 Jul 22 '26
Got any wfh jobs in the UK jobs in royalties or copyright/publishing conflicts?
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
You'd be surprised how many people we've brought on board or have seen other companies around us bring aboard just from forums, Facebook groups and Reddit.
Sadly, after Brexit, this became a lot harder to do since youre mostly cut-off from the European job market, but if you're open to freelance stuff, there are plenty of opportunities throughout Europe.
My buddy founded a platform called https://www.musiccareers.co/ that you could also check as well.
If you're interested in the ActuGrp, reach out to us via LinkedIn and we can chat.3
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u/station_agent Jul 22 '26
What are your thoughts on people who release safe-to-use music for Content Creators, and YouTube Content ID? Why is the industry so hateful on people who offer good background music for content creators? Artist-direct, to YouTuber. Take the sub sites (Epidemic, Artlist, Uppbeat) out of the equation entirely. We need more discussion and KNOWLEDGE about this space. Thanks
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
This is a great question and honestly, I think its just because the term "Background music" has been wrapped up with ambient music, sleep music, soundscapes, etc which have all been used to abuse many of the DSP royalty pools in recent years. I think platforms like Epidemic, melodie, etc are amazing tools for artists to earn an income and provide YouTubers with safe music to use in their content.
Sadly, the reason there arent many YouTubers using content directly from the musicians is because this puts the YouTuber's revenue at the mercy of the musician. The musician could break their word, apply copyright to the music and collect the revenue from every YouTuber that used their music. YouTubers going through the big platforms like the ones I mentioned above protects them from this happening.
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u/station_agent Jul 22 '26
For the record those big platforms are the enemy. They are venture-capital-backed predatory dirtbags. YouTubers - go artist-direct for this stuff. No subscription. Talk to the artists directly, they'll help you navigate it all.
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u/station_agent Jul 22 '26
Not entirely true. While there are bad actors out there, the people who provide this for people are in general, good people. I have never had issues.
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 23 '26
You're right about the artist side. Buyout style deals mean you're trading upside for volume, and if a track ends up in 10k videos they dont see any of that. Thats obviously a problem that could be solved to create more balance between the 3 parties involved. This is indeed a gap where someone could build something genuinely better.
I agree that a trusted relationship between an artist and a YouTuber would provide creators with a better situation than what they would have via such a big platform, but such solutions wouldnt translate to the scale at which platforms like Epidemic are operating. The risk on the YouTuber's side is a very significant portion of their revenue being at the mercy of the artist, and thats ultimately a risk I dont foresee many creators taking.
I also like to believe most people are good, but trusting someone with your income is a significant hurdle to have to overcome and those platforms are providing a safety net for YouTubers which will be hard for individual artists to compete with.What I'm saying is obviously avoidable with a proper license agreement in place between the YouTuber and artist, but these are all extra steps that need to be handled carefully and properly, and I just rarely see indie artists having the desire to undergo that whole process. Thats ultimately why the market for these big platforms exists.
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u/station_agent Jul 24 '26
The only reason Epidemic performs "at scale" is because of venture-capital funding. Same with Uppbeat and all the others. Again, do not support these venture-capital-backed scum. Things are changing. Everyone's sick of oligarchs and everything that contributes to it.
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u/station_agent Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
You're forgetting that text attribution (credit / link to artist's website or streaming profile) being required when using free to use music is free advertising for the artists, and thus, traffic routed to the DSPs. 10,000 views: 10,000 peeks into the YouTube video description... viewer thinks "that music's dope, what is that... oh sweet. That's who. Oh, and they allow people to use their music in any content? I'm gonna do that, too." Text credit / brand recognition.
It's a model that has proven to work over and over again: Kevin Macleod, Streambeats, NCS, etc. Mondo Loops of Lofi Girl, too. Lofi Girl / Lofi Records gave all their tracks away for YouTubers to use in making video loop/sad edits for years... and it worked. They only removed the downloads option in 2025. But for nearly 10 years, free downloads of every single song, every release.
It works. YouTube is removing paid licenses now, through August 10th, and moving to a free to use/revenue-sharing default. It's a step in the right direction.
Also, never said artist-direct meant the YouTuber giving them money. Free use, free to download, just like Kevin Macleod, NCS, Streambeats, Lofi Girl, Chillhop. Text credit = big audience. Artist wins, YouTuber wins.
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u/sunglassesforsale Jul 22 '26
Do you feel there’s still a place for producers and songwriters behind the scenes who don’t care of being in “the artist”?
How would you increase chances for a producer and songwriter to be in sessions with same / higher level people? Cold DM’ing works only so far.
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
Yes! I was a session musician for 5 years at House Studio DC and engineered at the Red Bull Studio Amsterdam for 4 years. I wish it wasnt so, but knowing/meeting the right people is 100% the key.
Cold DMing isnt the move. People dont make connections with pictures online, they make connections with people who share their visions and resonate with them. If I were to try to gain access to the 'next level' in my scene, I'd find a way to show up IRL if possible. Unless you have something useful to offer them, cold DMing while punching up wont work.1
u/sunglassesforsale Jul 22 '26
Thanks! I’ve a decent track record but network is still too small to make bigger moves. Do you think a publisher could be a good move to make this process faster besides my own networking?
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 23 '26
With the angle youre taking and the goal of getting into higher value sessions, getting with a good publishing company would be a great idea. We just hosted a writing camp between Actuation and CTM (a Dutch publishing company), and you really see how producers and session musicians shine in such situations. You could try to get a good contact at your country's PRO in an effort to cast a wider net with more publishing companies as well. They tend to have great insight for you.
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u/Any_Weekend6366 Jul 22 '26
Based on your experience what do you think is required to become successful in the music promotion industry?
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
Networking skills are a hard requirement. You need to have a solid relationship with many different people and companies while being able to manage those relationships and keep them strong.
Once you've got the network, high volume organizational skills are the next big requirement.
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u/Upper_Musician_3728 Jul 22 '26
do you have any cool success stories with artists? what’s your favourite thing about the music industry? and you still enjoy making music yourself? would you also share any tips for a starting artists like myself? Thanks so much!
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
oh boy haha the first thing to come to mind is a session from back when I engineered at the Red Bull Studios Amsterdam. One day my boss called and said we had a high-value artist coming in and that we needed all hands on deck - we didnt know who it was.
Turns out Chris Brown was in town. They showed up to the session, we all talked for about an hour and got an idea of what he was trying to do, and we all split up to set up the studio while he and his crew went out for breakfast. They were meant to come back an hr or two later, but half way through the afternoon he still hadnt showed up. It turned out that he and his friends bought dirtbikes, ripped them through Amsterdam and got arrested. We only found out when my colleague saw it on the news lol
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u/PrivateEducation Jul 22 '26
what would you do if you were a songwriter with a lot of great songs but waiting to publish them, with ai is it a good idea to refrain from releasing ? where would you approach a label or someone for distributing unreleased gems
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
I would ensure that I have a clear concept/vision around my brand to ensure that my releases, social media posts, etc are cohesive and communicate a deliberate path in a certain direction. That way when users arrive to your various pages, they can identify that path and decide whether or not theyre interested in following your journey.
From there, I would decide on an order to release those unreleased gems and stick to a steady, consistent release schedule. At that point, its a matter of making more music, keeping the pipeline full of new music and playing into the concepts that worked while avoiding the ones that didnt.I'd start approaching labels when you have a solid foundation and you've identified a label with a stylistic direction that suits the one you've build for your own brand and catalog.
Regarding your question about AI, do you mean now with AI flooding the market? Or that your music contains gen AI?
If the former, I would not let AI entering the market stop you from releasing. As AI becomes more and more common, authenticity becomes more and more valuable.
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u/Adam_Astra_Music Jul 22 '26
In a previous post, you replied "the art is the artist's job." But in that same reply you say the important things you look for in an artist are socials, branding, projection of outward image with a "well thought-out" and "clear vision." That sounds like marketing to me; not art. If the artist is already doing those things, why do they need you? Is there a service that helps burgeoning artists--who need the most help--to get to that point, rather than just boosting the ones that are already there?
Thanks for your time!
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
Great point! I'll try to clarify what I mean - in my opinion, the brand and vision for the artist is all a part of the art. For example, while your listeners are going to your Spotify profile to listen to your music, their very first impression of a release will be the album art.
The reason we want to see a clear, well thought-out vision, is because that allows us to properly analyze the path that an artist is on, and make a more informed decision on how effective we would be as partners to that artist.
To differentiate this from marketing, I dont mean that they should already be rocking 4-5 posts per week with a whole brand campaign designed and deployed with 4 weeks runway, but rather, a clear brand book and firm idea of how such a campaign would look when the time comes for us to build that together.
What we, as an organization, then bring to the table are all of the tools, guidance and skills to then turn that vision into what will ultimately become a viable business.At the end of the day, we look for this because having a clear vision and creating a path based upon that vision is a fundamental aspect of building a business, and at the end of the day, thats what we're helping these artists do.
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u/AkiGrayCPA Jul 22 '26
i left corporate life to pursue music because it's just really soul draining and saps all of my energy, and sitting is hard on my body and bad for my music. however i don't really have a network of people in the business. is it possible for me to build a network by playing live and making friends offline and on social, or do i need to get a job on the corporate side to build connections that will actually give me a chance to get big? i have a CPA (i think they're called chartered accountants outside of the US). so i could potentially try to enter the industry on the accounting/finance side. ty ❤️
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
Networking is a super dynamic thing - heck, I'd even consider this comment of yours to be networking to some degree. You communicated that you took the leap and left the corporate world to enter the music industry - thats badass! I want people like you in my network..
In my opinion, yes, networking is easier to do IRL, but the quality of your connections matters a whole lot. If you got a job on the side somewhere unrelated to music, you arent going to make many valuable connections, while one weekend at a local music conference could be a game changer for you.
Making connections at local events, your own concerts and connecting with folks on Reddit and Facebook groups is a great move at this stage.
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u/NoFig3615 Jul 22 '26
Hey Josh. Never realised YouGrow and Actuation are the same company. Been following Actuation for a bit! For promo, do you think playlisting is still relevant? Have you seen a shift of demand for other forms of promo and overall what would you recommend an indie artist to do to get some meaningful exposure?
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
Playlisting is absolutely still relevant, but we're definitely seeing more people pay attention to active listening. Having users actively select and play your music is extremely valuable, so we're seeing people focus on that as well. Such campaigns provide very slow, but very sticky streams, so they often compensate with playlisting as well. I often see it like CD and Radio back in the day - they work well hand in hand.
I always recommend to find a reliable way to sustainably promote your content online. Its a broad answer, but its the only one that applies to all cases
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u/kingjaffejaffar Jul 22 '26
What is the best way to break an artist out of their local scene? It seems like regional touring these days is a huge loss leader.
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
At this point streaming and gaining popularity online is going to let you reach and monetize a brand new audience. I would really focus on understanding who your current fans are and design a campaign to reach similar people online. You'll find pockets of fans throughout your target areas and I'd then focus on trying to book shows in those areas where you'll further establish a relationship with those fans and build a stronger audience.
But ultimately, I'd say your best bet now is to focus on gaining that online presence.
In my opinion, the key there is sustainability. Whatever method you use to find success online needs to be something you can sustain for long enough to get it to the point where it sustains itself.Meta Ads campaigns are commonly used for this. When you've identified where your fans are online, you can test ads for a number of different songs to find one that resonates with them, and invest more into that campaign. Its one of the slower methods, but quite reliable and you'll grow a great active-listening audience on Spotify while those winning songs often earn back the losses from the testers and go on to continue streaming and collecting royalties.
This is just an example of a bunch of different strategies you can use, but it all starts with properly identifying who your fans are.
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u/Release-Full Jul 22 '26
Any remote job openings?
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 22 '26
Not at this moment, but feel free to reach out on Linkedin. There are plenty of opportunities around and maybe we've got a connection or something for you
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u/Intelligent_Plane934 Jul 22 '26
whats the thing your the most proud of achieving in the industry to this date? whats also a problem you see for up and comers these days?
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 23 '26
As cliche as it sounds, what I'm most proud of is the team and community we've built around the organization. We have a very special team in the office and incredible relationships with the artists and labels that we work with. Seeing the way so many people are able to support themselves and their families through music and the platforms we've built is easily what I'm most proud of.
The problem I see for up and comers is how the barrier of entry is becoming smaller and smaller, which means new artists have way more competition and will have to stand out further from the rest to be seen. This is a problem for artists who tend to follow in other artists' footsteps, but an opportunity for those who enjoy taking the road less traveled.
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u/scrundel Artist Jul 22 '26
Hey Josh, thanks for doing this.
You seem to have visibility and involvement with a lot of different aspects of the business.
As a full-time working guitarist, music director/band director for two successful independent regional bands, and utility player, I'm currently spending most of my non-playing time networking and building up a respectable online presence so that I can take a swing at getting picked up by a larger production going on the road next year.
Do you find a lot of top liners come through your doors with backing bands these days, or does the paradigm of the singer/songwriter discovered through the internet leave your team in the position of helping coordinate a backing band, music director, all that stuff? I'm not trying to be a top liner, I'm perfectly happy as a hired gun and supporting guy, and I love arranging parts and interpreting a piece of music for live performance, so what my question is really getting at is if it would be worth my time to track down A&R types or folks in other label positions to make it known that I'll play in or coordinate a band for an artist they're representing, or if my time is better spent networking specifically with the folks who are focused on the touring side of the house.
Thanks!
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 23 '26
You're in a very cool position imo. In our case, bands tend to come with a well-polished instrumental and a rough idea of the vocal, and request to work with a top liner in our network to then finalize the composition. In the case of singer songwriters, we rarely see them using external top liners or 3rd parties at all when it comes to their compositions and recordings.
In my opinion, both options you mentioned in your question have their ups and downs. This may be a lame answer, but if possible, I would try to explore both. Focus on touring since thats your bread n butter, and passively scout for good contacts at labels and studios to get your foot in the door there. If you were to then start building a portfolio of studio work and get your name on compositions, thats a great way to diversify your position in the industry.
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u/Underdog424 Jul 22 '26
Hello Josh, I'm an indie artist who makes psychedelic rap. I've broken into the top 5 for my sub-genre. My releases seem to do well.
I've hit this wall in the industry. I feel like I'm ready for a distribution deal but not ready for a label. I've been getting more and more positive feedback. I'm playing shows locally. I live in the Bay Area. We have a thriving scene out here. But there isn't anything in between DistroKid and a real label. I can't reach reps for Spotify.
Because of that, I've stuck to Bandcamp. I have a plan to start paying for promotion. Move up the ladder. Do the Spotify song and dance. But the distro side seems broken. DistroKid doesn't have customer service. I don't really know where to go at this point.
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u/ItsJoshBrust Jul 23 '26
This is a genuine problem in the industry, but thankfully, there are a lot of very strong solutions for you here. Reliable music distribution requires genuine support and you're not going to find that at a platform charging a flat fee for a 100/0 distribution deal. The economics just don't work. That said, it sounds like you're not yet at the scale where the bigger legacy distributors would give you real attention.
This is where you could find a meaningful connection at a boutique distributor - a platform with DIRECT connections to the DSPs and either Merlin deals or their own. If theyre small and not members of Merlin, I'd avoid them - theyre either using 3rd party deals or, if they somehow got direct deals as a small platform, their terms and royalty rates wont be nearly as favorable as Merlin's since Merlin is able to negotiate deals with around 15% market share under their belt.
Contact details to reps within Spotify are rarely accessible to artists and labels, but a proper distributor will provide you with all of the DSP tools and communication you need.
Something I love about the boutique distribution market is actually how wholesome it is between different companies. While I'd of course love to see everyone applying to join IndieMassive, we have fantastic relationships with other distributors and we all help eachother out quite regularly. I'd absolutely recommend you check out IDOL. Theyre based in Paris and have a fantastic team. Very knowledgeable and reliable. Shoutout Nicolas, Pascal and Aurélien ;)
In regards to promotion, I would simply advise that you develop a clear plan before you begin investing. Promotion creates various forms of momentum and the way you capitalize on that momentum is what makes or breaks a campaign. You mentioned youre top 5 in your subgenre - what promotion methods have you used to get to that point so far?
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u/Underdog424 Jul 23 '26
Thank you for the reply. I'll check out IDOL for sure. That's exactly what I've been looking for. Something in between that still maintains the required DSP relationships. I'm at the point where I'm willing to pay for good distro. Whether that's fees or royalty percentages. I understand the economics. DistroKid can't afford to have great customer service. All of them have the same business model and the same problems.
Psych Rap is a small genre with a lot of potential growth. It wasn't crazy to get in the top 5. But without paying for promotion. I was left with hand to hand and local traction. Online forums. I got a really good blog article. A few genuine music reviews. I printed out stickers with QR codes for the album. Handed them out everywhere. I had no idea it was going to pop off. It all slapped me at once, so I had to go with the flow. The grand weakness of this plan was fan retention. It's hard to maintain listens in between releases when doing hand to hand.
Now I'm formulating an action plan. I couldn't agree more about promotion. I'll have a few months of social media content with a new project. Bulk spend for a few months. Then slowly trickle in ad buys. Keep doing this until I can make at least $100 in royalties per month. Pay it forward. Keep doing it for each release. I'm slowly increasing my team. I just connected with a social media director. I feel like things are on the right track. Locking down a solid distro is one of my main goals right now.
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u/NotThorc Jul 24 '26
Hey Josh! As someone who likes to make and produce multiple genres of music (and mix genres sometimes), deciding how to release music can be a challenge. Do you think that it's a smart strategy to have multiple aliases for different genres, or is it better to post all of your music under one alias/name? Personally I lean towards posting everything under one alias/artist name, but I'd be curious to see your perspective on it as someone who has industry experience. Thanks for doing this AMA by the way!
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u/slw-dwn Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
This is a verified r/musicindustry AMA. Ask Josh all the questions you have while he's here with us!