Doesn't services like Spotify make that easier? AFAIK while you need a distributor and can't just upload your stuff like you can on Youtube, there's a bunch of

Doesn't services like Spotify make that easier? AFAIK while you need a distributor and can't just upload your stuff like you can on Youtube, there's a bunch of them that seem to give the artists everything. If the artist choose to go with a label that takes their royalties, that's on them. If they do it because they want the visibility and services, that has a cost. Music is a field where a lot of people do it just for fun, and it's quite saturated. Supply (as in diversity of products) way outweigh demand.