360 Deals Explained: When They Work and When to Walk
For Artists
Mar 15, 2026
A 360 deal gives a record label a percentage of your income beyond recorded music, typically including touring, merchandise, sponsorships, and sometimes publishing. Labels take 10-30% of these revenue streams in exchange for larger advances and broader promotional support. Whether this trade-off makes sense depends entirely on what the label actually delivers.
How 360 Deals Became the Default
The 360 deal became the industry's default contract structure after streaming reduced what labels could earn from recordings alone. Labels needed new revenue sources. Artists needed bigger marketing budgets. The compromise was a deal where labels share in everything you earn.
But a 360 deal is not inherently good or bad. The math either works in your favor or it does not. That depends on what percentage the label takes, what services they provide, and whether you could build those revenue streams yourself.
This guide breaks down how 360 deals compare to other record deal structures, what is negotiable, and how to evaluate whether signing one makes sense for your career.
What a 360 Deal Covers
A traditional record deal covers only recorded music: albums, singles, and the royalties they generate. A 360 deal expands that scope to multiple revenue streams.
Standard Revenue Streams and Label Cuts
Revenue Stream | Typical Label Cut | What It Covers |
|---|---|---|
Recorded Music | 80-85% of net | Album sales, streaming royalties, sync placements |
Touring | 10-25% | Ticket sales, VIP packages, tour merch |
Merchandise | 15-30% | All branded products sold outside of tours |
Sponsorships | 10-20% | Brand deals, endorsements, partnerships |
Publishing | 10-25% | Songwriting royalties (if included) |
Not every 360 deal includes all these categories. Some labels only touch touring and merch. Others want a piece of everything. The specifics matter more than the label name on the contract.
Active vs. Passive Participation
Labels often justify 360 percentages by claiming they will actively develop each revenue stream. Ask for specifics. Will they book your tours or just collect a cut of tours you book yourself? Will they manufacture and distribute merch or simply take a percentage?
A label taking 20% of touring while providing tour support, routing, and festival connections is a fundamentally different proposition than one taking the same percentage while you handle everything alone.
When the Math Works in Your Favor
The financial question is straightforward: does the label's involvement generate enough additional revenue to offset their cut?
The Break-Even Calculation
If a label takes 15% of your touring income but their promotional reach increases your touring revenue by 40%, you come out ahead. If they take 15% and revenue stays flat, you gave away money for nothing.
Example scenario:
Pre-deal touring income: $50,000/year
Label takes: 15% of touring
Post-deal touring income: $80,000/year (label's promotion drove the increase)
Your take before the deal: $50,000
Your take after the deal: $68,000 (85% of $80,000)
Net gain: $18,000/year
Run this calculation for every revenue stream in the deal. If the label cannot explain specifically how they will grow each stream, their percentage is a tax on your work, not an investment in your growth.
Artists Who Benefit Most
360 deals tend to favor artists who need what labels historically provide:
Emerging artists who lack infrastructure to tour nationally or produce merch at scale
Genre artists where label relationships with radio, playlists, and press directly affect commercial success
Artists prioritizing speed who are willing to trade equity for faster career acceleration
Artists Who Should Think Twice
The structure works against artists who already have momentum:
Established touring acts who built their live business independently
Artists with strong direct-to-fan sales through Bandcamp or Patreon
Artists with existing brand partnerships who do not need label introductions
What Is Actually Negotiable
Everything in a 360 deal is negotiable until you sign. Labels start with their standard template. Your job, with your attorney, is to push back on every point that does not reflect reality.
Percentage Reductions
The percentages in the table above are starting points. Artists with competing offers or existing revenue regularly negotiate touring cuts to 5-10%, merch cuts to 10-15%, and sponsorship cuts to 5-10%.
Carve-Outs and Exemptions
You can often exclude specific revenue streams. Common carve-outs include pre-existing sponsorships you secured before signing, publishing income covered by a separate publishing deal, and revenue below a threshold (e.g., the label only participates once touring exceeds $100,000/year).
Performance Triggers
Tie the label's participation to their actual contribution. If the label commits to spending $500,000 on marketing but only spends $200,000, their 360 percentages should decrease proportionally. Get this in writing.
Sunset Clauses
Negotiate for 360 percentages that decrease over time. A label might take 20% of touring in year one, 15% in year two, and 10% in year three. This rewards the label for early investment while preventing them from collecting the same rate indefinitely.
For context on how contract terms work broadly, see Music Business Essentials. Understanding your copyright position before entering any deal negotiation is also worth the time.
Red Flags in 360 Structures
Some terms signal that a label wants to extract value rather than create it.
High percentages without corresponding services. A label wanting 25% of touring while providing no tour support, booking help, or routing is taxing revenue they did not help create.
Vague "marketing support" promises. "We will support your brand partnerships" means nothing without specifics. Get commitments in writing: dedicated staff, minimum spend levels, concrete deliverables.
Perpetual terms on non-music revenue. Your recorded music being tied to the label for 7 years is standard. Your merchandise revenue being tied to them beyond the deal term is not. Ensure non-music participations end when the contract ends.
No audit rights on 360 streams. You need the right to audit the label's accounting on all revenue streams in the deal, not just recorded music. Without this, you have no way to verify you are being paid correctly.
Alternatives to 360 Deals
The 360 structure is not your only option. Knowing alternatives gives you negotiating power even if you ultimately sign a 360.
Alternative | How It Works | Trade-Off |
|---|---|---|
Modified 360 ("270" or "180") | Fewer revenue streams included | Less label investment, more independence |
Distribution-plus deal | Distributor provides some label services without 360 cuts | Less support, more ownership |
Traditional record deal | Covers recorded music only | Smaller advances, you keep all other revenue |
Staying independent | You build your own infrastructure | Slower growth, full ownership and control |
For artists building independent careers, the question is not "Can I get a deal?" but "Does this specific deal provide something I cannot build myself at a reasonable cost?"
How to Evaluate a Specific Offer
When a label presents a 360 deal, run through this framework before responding.
Step 1: Document your current revenue. Know exactly what you earn from each stream the label wants to participate in. This is your baseline.
Step 2: Ask the label for specifics. How will they grow each revenue stream? What have they done for similar artists? Can you talk to those artists?
Step 3: Run the break-even math. For each stream, calculate whether the label's projected growth exceeds their percentage take. Be conservative. Labels overestimate their own impact.
Step 4: Negotiate protections. Build in performance requirements, audit rights, sunset clauses, and carve-outs that protect you if the label underdelivers.
Step 5: Get independent legal review. An entertainment attorney who regularly negotiates label deals will catch terms you miss. The cost of a few thousand dollars is a fraction of what bad terms cost over a 5-year contract.
Frequently Asked Questions
What percentage do labels take in a 360 deal?
Typically 10-30% of non-music revenue. Touring falls around 10-20%, merch 15-25%, sponsorships 10-20%. All percentages are negotiable based on your position.
Can I negotiate a 360 deal down to fewer streams?
Yes. Many artists exclude specific revenue streams or negotiate carve-outs for pre-existing income. Labels frequently accept modified terms rather than lose a signing.
Are 360 deals standard for new artists?
Most major label deals today include 360 elements. But indie labels and distributors frequently offer alternatives. New artists have more options than the major-label narrative suggests.
How long do 360 deal terms last?
Participation typically matches the record deal term, usually 3-7 years with album options. Negotiate clear end dates on every stream, especially non-music revenue.
Read Next
Know Your Numbers:
Every deal is math. Orphiq's artist management platform helps you track your revenue across streams so you can evaluate any offer against your actual baseline, not guesses.