Given that that album was independent, there was likely no advance and Ocean’s Boys Don’t Cry would have shouldered the $500,000 or so cost of making the release. Since Ocean released the album independently, sources close to the situation said that he could bank between $5 to $7.50 per equivalent album sold ( Blonde retails on iTunes for $9.99). A representative for Ocean could not be immediately reached for comment.Īpple, meanwhile, pockets a quarter of Blonde ’s list price while taking on marketing costs. Without a major label, Ocean stands to earn more than double from the record, which was released exclusively onĪpple Music and iTunes, than he would have done had he still been signed to Def Jam, based on FORBES’ calculations.Īdvances aside, in-demand artists signed to a major label-especially those who write their own songs-can typically earn between $1.50 to $2.00 per album sold.

Blonde sold 276,000 equivalent album units since its release last Saturday release, according to Billboard. The decoupling has had tremendous financial implications for the 28-year-old singer.

Why are frank ocean albums late