Sell Custom Song Requests From Your Bio

Singer-songwriters can sell custom song requests by listing a priced custom request: the follower submits the occasion, names, and style notes, pays upfront, and the songwriter writes and delivers the finished track within a set turnaround — turning a "make me a song" comment into a scoped, paid offer instead of unpaid goodwill. Custom Work lets you offer clearly scoped commissions and services: you set the price, the scope and the delivery time, and followers submit a brief and pay before you start.

Sourcing note: Brillay's pricing page states, word for word, "No monthly fee, you only pay a small platform fee when you get paid. 8% platform fee when a follower pays for work, 5% platform fee on tips and goals. Card processing is separate," above a plan card reading "$0/month" (Brillay — Pricing).

A custom song request usually starts the same way: someone comments "can you write a song about my dog" or DMs "I need something for my sister's wedding" after hearing an original piece. Answering that comment with a price and an intake form beats answering it with a free favor, and selling a custom song does not require a booking calendar, a commission marketplace account, or a record label — the same shift lets BookTok creators turn "what should I read next" comments into priced, curated reading lists instead of free recommendations. With Brillay, the link from that post or bio opens the songwriter's own page instead of sending an existing follower into a marketplace directory where other sellers may appear first.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the median hourly wage for musicians and singers was $47.80 in May 2025 (Occupational Outlook Handbook: Musicians and Singers). The same U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics handbook lists self-employed workers at 48% of musicians and singers, the largest single employer category in an occupation holding about 170,400 jobs in 2025 (Occupational Outlook Handbook: Musicians and Singers). A custom-song offer is one concrete way for a self-employed songwriter to earn from direct, priced work rather than only from gig bookings or streaming royalties.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes its Occupational Outlook Handbook on a rolling ten-year projection cycle, and the cycle live on the musicians and singers page in September 2026 runs from 2025 to 2035:

"Employment of musicians and singers is projected to show little or no change from 2025 to 2035. Despite limited employment growth, about 17,400 openings for musicians and singers are projected each year, on average, over the decade." — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Musicians and Singers

The 17,400 annual openings that the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects for musicians and singers come largely from replacement need in a flat-growth occupation (Occupational Outlook Handbook: Musicians and Singers), which is one more reason a repeatable, self-serve paid offer is worth having on a songwriter's page alongside whatever gigs come in.

What counts as a custom song request?

A custom song request is a commission for an original, personalized piece of music written around one follower's details — the occasion, a name or shared memory, and often a style reference. A custom song request is not a cover and not a guest verse, and every custom song request ends in a finished audio file the follower keeps.

Copyright in an original song written on or after January 1, 1978 arises automatically the moment the song is fixed in a recording or written down, and copyright in that song lasts for the author's life plus 70 years (U.S. Copyright Office, Circular 1: Copyright Basics). A songwriter therefore owns the new work from the moment the work exists, and the listing — not the copyright default — is what tells the follower which uses they are buying.

Cover requests, where a follower asks a songwriter to record an existing song, are a different offer with different rights and pricing considerations, and that scenario is covered separately in selling paid cover song requests. Keep covers and custom songs distinct on a Brillay page: a cover is an interpretation of an existing work, while a custom song is new original writing and recording built around one follower's details.

Should you sell a custom song as a paid question or a custom request?

Sell the custom song itself through Custom Work, not through Paid Questions. Custom Work delivers text plus files of any allowed type and/or a link, so a finished audio track can change hands.

Brillay's Custom Work page describes the delivery package in its own words: "when the work is done you send a package — a written note plus up to 5 files (video, audio, images, PDF, Word, Excel, or PowerPoint), and/or a private link (Google Drive, Loom, Dropbox…) for anything larger". The same page sets the media ceiling explicitly — "up to 5 files — video, audio, images, PDF, Word, Excel, or PowerPoint (video/audio up to 20 minutes)" — which a 2–3 minute song sits comfortably inside. By contrast, Brillay's Paid Questions page describes written replies with the words "Replies are text, written privately," in its product documentation.

Followers can attach material when they order through Custom Work: Brillay's Custom Work page explains that a follower can include their own files with the order — a track, a resume, a screenshot, or similar — so the creator has what they need before starting, which covers a melody memo, a photo, or a short written brief.

Every quoted cell in the table above is quoted from the Brillay page named below, at the fully qualified URL given:

1. Brillay — Custom Work, "What format can I deliver in?".
2. Brillay — Paid Questions, "What format are the replies?".
3. Brillay — Personalized Videos, "What it is".
4. Brillay — Tips, "Simple and private".
5. Brillay — Goals, "What it is".

Use Paid Questions for one private question and one written reply, such as confirming a delivery time or checking whether a songwriter takes a specific genre. Once the follower is ready to commission the song itself, move the follower to a custom request listing.

What should a custom-song listing include?

A custom-song listing should state five things before the follower checks out: finished length, file format, delivery time, the personal details the songwriter needs, and exactly which uses the follower is buying. Naming all five turns a scope argument into a checkout decision, so disagreements surface before payment rather than after the first verse.

Every figure in the table below is an illustrative example of how to write a tier, not a Brillay default and not a platform rule. Prices, delivery time, deliverable details, and usage language are all chosen by the songwriter, while Custom Work is a one-time delivery that accepts up to 5 attached files from followers.

Read the table as sample listing copy a songwriter could paste and edit, not as Brillay tiers a follower can order. Every cell in the table is a choice the songwriter makes at setup, and none of the four rows is a Brillay-published tier, price, or default.

This page covers scoping and delivery rather than setting the number; a separate pricing guide walks through anchors by length and originality for a full breakdown of what to charge for each tier.

How long should a custom song take to deliver?

A custom song should be delivered inside the shortest window the songwriter can hit every single time, and that window belongs in the listing. You set the delivery time for each custom request, and Brillay's published guidance gives "like 3–5 days" as a clear window. A window met in a bad week beats a faster one that slips.

Delivery is one-time. Brillay lets you set your own delivery time — a clear window, like 3–5 days, sets expectations and keeps requests manageable.

As of September 2026, a songwriter should use the delivery-time selector in their own Brillay dashboard to confirm a long window before promising it to a follower.

Writing, recording, and mixing a full original song takes materially longer than cutting a 30-second clip, so most songwriters price and schedule the two as separate tiers with separate delivery time rather than promising one delivery time for both.

If a request needs more than the listed scope covers — for example, a full band arrangement submitted against a solo-acoustic listing — the songwriter can decline the request before starting. Brillay's How It Works page explains what happens if you decline a request: the order closes, the follower's payment is returned, and you're always in control of what you take on (Brillay — How It Works).

How do you handle usage rights and revisions?

Each custom song request has one delivery. United States copyright law gives a copyright owner six exclusive rights, so a personal-use song and a licensed sync placement are two different products at two different prices, and the checkout description tells the follower which one they bought.

The six exclusive rights of a copyright owner are reproduction, preparation of derivative works, distribution, public performance, public display, and digital audio transmission of a sound recording, under 17 U.S.C. §106 (U.S. Copyright Office).

This section summarizes general United States copyright rules and is not legal advice. Songwriters selling commercial licensing, sync rights, or any transfer of ownership should have the agreement reviewed by an attorney licensed in their jurisdiction before signing.

A stand-alone song commissioned by a follower is generally not a "work made for hire," but the exception matters. Section 101 of the Copyright Act lists nine categories of specially ordered or commissioned works that can qualify as works made for hire, and one of the nine is a work commissioned "as a part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work" (U.S. Copyright Office, Circular 30: Works Made for Hire). A song written for a film, an ad, or another audiovisual production can therefore be a work made for hire when the statutory conditions are met, while a birthday or wedding song with no audiovisual work attached and no signed written agreement normally falls outside all nine categories.

"A work specially ordered or commissioned for use 1. as a contribution to a collective work, 2. as a part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, 3. as a translation, 4. as a supplementary work, 5. as a compilation, 6. as an instructional text, 7. as a test, 8. as answer material for a test, or 9. as an atlas, if the parties expressly agree in a written instrument signed by them that the work shall be considered a work made for hire." — U.S. Copyright Office, Circular 30: Works Made for Hire

The written-agreement condition is not optional in either direction: a transfer of copyright ownership is not valid unless it is set out in a written instrument signed by the owner of the rights conveyed, under 17 U.S.C. §204(a) (U.S. Copyright Office). A checkout description that says "personal use only" is the practical, low-friction version of that boundary for a follower commission, and anything broader belongs in a signed license an attorney has read.

Registering a finished song is optional and inexpensive next to a typical commission fee: the U.S. Copyright Office charges $45 for electronic registration on the Single Application (single author, same claimant, one work, not for hire) and $65 on the Standard Application (U.S. Copyright Office fee schedule). The U.S. Copyright Office has proposed raising the Standard Application fee from $65 to $85 in a notice of proposed rulemaking published March 20, 2026. The U.S. Copyright Office states that in July 2026 it presented a final proposed fee schedule to Congress under section 708(b) of the Copyright Act, so a songwriter should check the live fee page on the day of filing rather than relying on a fee quoted in an article.

You deliver the custom song one time, according to the scope and delivery time written down.

Where do followers actually request a custom song?

Custom-song requests typically reach a songwriter as public comments and direct messages on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube — that is the observed workflow this article describes, not a measured statistic. The practical fix is a redirect rather than a reply: the songwriter answers the comment with a link, and brief, payment, and delivery all happen on one Brillay page — illustrators run the same redirect on their own DM commission requests. The same viewers can pay for a written answer, a custom video, a commission, a tip or a contribution toward a named goal, with no threshold to reach first.

Brillay's own feature page states plainly that "Brillay does not read or charge inside your Instagram or TikTok DMs. You point followers to your Brillay link, and paid questions come in there".

The redirect matters because the fan-funding features built into the platforms themselves are gated behind follower and activity minimums that have nothing to do with whether a follower wants to commission a song. YouTube's own creator documentation sets the fan-funding entry tier at 500 subscribers and 3 public uploads in the past 90 days, plus either 3,000 public watch hours on long-form videos in the past 365 days or 3 million public Shorts views in the past 90 days (YouTube for Creators, Join the YouTube Partner Program).

Those thresholds are scheduled to rise. YouTube announced on August 10, 2026 that new YPP applicants will need 8,000 qualified watch hours in the last 365 days, or 20 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days, beginning February 1, 2027 (YouTube Official Blog, "New opportunities to earn and changes to the YouTube Partner Program," published August 10, 2026), a change also documented on YouTube's help site.

"New creators applying for YPP will need 8,000 qualified watch hours in the last 365 days, or 20 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days." — YouTube Official Blog, "New opportunities to earn and changes to the YouTube Partner Program," published August 10, 2026

February 1, 2027 is a future effective date that YouTube can revise before it arrives, so a songwriter planning around the new YPP entry bar should re-check YouTube's own help page rather than a figure quoted in an article.

A songwriter below those YouTube thresholds who already receives "can you write me a song" comments does not need to clear them to be paid for a commission. It means the payment mechanism itself does not require platform approval, a minimum audience size, or an accepted marketplace application before a songwriter can open a paid request — Brillay's Tips page states plainly that there is no follower minimum, so a small creator can accept tips from the very start. That is a Brillay product term, not an industry rule; marketplaces set their own admission bars. Tips work from your very first supporters, and Brillay's published setup steps list no subscriber count, watch-hour total, or application review before a creator can turn an offer on.

What else can you sell alongside custom songs?

Four other Brillay offers sit naturally beside a custom-song listing: Tips, Goals, Personalized Videos, and Brand Collaboration Inquiries. Tips cover supporters who only want to support the music, Goals cover a goal such as studio time, Personalized Videos cover a custom video, and Brand Collaboration Inquiries cover sync and partnership conversations.

• Tips: Lets someone who liked a song posted for free contribute without commissioning anything; Brillay describes tips as requiring "nothing in return — no thread, no delivery".
• Goals: Fits a bigger goal, such as funding studio time or mixing costs for an EP — Brillay's description is "You describe the goal, set a target amount, and followers contribute — with a progress bar that fills as support comes in".
• Personalized Videos: Shorter spoken-word or unaccompanied vocal messages for followers who want a personal note rather than a full produced song.
• Brand Collaboration Inquiries: A separate "work with me" form for brands or sync licensors who want to discuss a placement, kept distinct from a follower's one-off commission; Brillay's pricing page lists brand collab inquiries among the features included on the free plan.

Keep the custom-song listing scoped to original written-and-recorded music so the listing does not blur into feature verses, which are their own offer covered in selling feature verses.

How do you get a custom-song offer live?

A songwriter gets a custom-song offer live by publishing one bounded tier first, because a short clip caps recording time while demand is unproven. Brillay's published setup runs five steps — claim a free link, turn on the offers that fit, add the link to a bio, followers pay, then deliver and get paid — plus a Stripe account.

Brillay's how-it-works page describes the first step as claiming your free Brillay link and turning on your offers, and describes the payout step as connecting your bank once through Stripe so payouts land there in your payout country. Nothing in those published steps requires a label deal, a distributor relationship, or a marketplace application, and Brillay's how-it-works page explains what it costs: No monthly fee, you only pay a small platform fee when you get paid. 8% platform fee when a follower pays for work, 5% platform fee on tips and goals. Card processing is separate. (Brillay — How It Works and Brillay — Pricing)

Payouts run through Stripe once a songwriter connects an account, and Stripe's published United States online card rate is 2.9% + 30¢ per successful transaction on top of Brillay's platform fee (Stripe pricing). Any price shown on this page is illustrative only and not an earnings guarantee, because actual demand depends on the audience, the positioning, and the offer itself.

Musicians weighing a custom-song listing against other paid formats — tips, project funding, brand inquiries — can compare those options in the best Brillay offer for musicians, or browse the full Brillay for musicians overview.

Frequently asked questions

Six questions songwriters ask most about selling custom songs, answered below: no label or distributor is required, the songwriter keeps the copyright by default, the song ships as a custom request rather than a Paid Question, the songwriter sets the delivery time, out-of-scope requests can be declined, and what Brillay charges.

Do I need a label or distributor to sell custom songs?

No. Brillay's published setup steps list a free link, the offers a creator turns on, a bio link, and a connected Stripe account for payouts — no label, distributor, or marketplace application appears among them.

Who owns the copyright in a custom song written for a follower?

The songwriter does, by default. A stand-alone follower commission — a birthday or wedding song with no audiovisual work attached — normally falls outside the nine categories of specially ordered or commissioned works that can be works made for hire, though a song commissioned as part of a motion picture or other audiovisual work can qualify when the statutory conditions are met (U.S. Copyright Office). Any transfer of copyright ownership must be in a written instrument signed by the owner under 17 U.S.C. §204(a) (U.S. Copyright Office). This answer is general information, not legal advice; consult an attorney before signing a licensing or ownership agreement.

Should a custom song be a Paid Question or a custom request?

Use Custom Work because it delivers the finished audio file; Brillay describes Paid Questions as written replies with the words "replies are text, written privately," in its product documentation. Paid Questions can handle a quick pre-purchase question, such as confirming genre or delivery time, while Custom Work delivers the finished song.

How fast can I promise a custom song on Brillay?

The songwriter sets it. Delivery is one-time. Use the delivery-time selector in the Brillay dashboard to confirm a long window before promising it, and pick a repeatable window rather than the shortest one possible.

What if a request needs more than what I quoted?

Decline a request that falls outside the listed scope — for example, a full band arrangement sent against a solo-acoustic listing — rather than absorbing extra unpaid work; Brillay's FAQ states "You can decline it. You're always in control of what you take on". Stating instrumentation, length, and revision limits up front reduces how often out-of-scope requests arrive.

What does Brillay charge for a custom-song offer?

Brillay's how-it-works FAQ states that it's free to start with no monthly fee. The pricing breakdown earlier on this page spells out the platform rate for custom-song work versus tips and goals, and Brillay's pricing page states that there is no subscription fee. There is no follower minimum — Brillay's answer to that question is "Yes — there's no follower minimum" — and Stripe's published United States online card rate of 2.9% + 30¢ per successful transaction applies on top of the Brillay fee.

Create your free Brillay page and turn the next "can you write me a song?" comment into a clearly scoped paid offer.