Two years investing in music royalties: ANote Music review

Music royalties as an alternative investment are still relatively unknown to many people. In this article, Bruno, a French investor who joined ANote Music two years ago, shares his journey: from his first discovery of music royalties to his current strategy. His unfiltered review of two years on ANote Music covers both the appeal of music as an asset class, where the platform could still improve and why it has become a meaningful part of his portfolio diversification.

Table of contents

• The beginning: a diversification opportunity
• Why music royalties, and why ANote Music
• Two years in: the experience and the strategy
• A word for new investors
• Looking ahead

The beginning: a diversification opportunity

Bruno is 36, based in the south-west of France, and works as an independent IT professional, teaching in engineering schools and consulting for companies. He has been investing for about fifteen years, mostly in equities, and real estate. At some point, he started looking beyond those two asset types.

He looked at crypto and blockchain, but was sceptical of assets lacking underlying value. What he was looking for was something that combined a rational, measurable dimension with something more personal: what he calls a coup de cœur (heartfelt) element.

He first came across music royalties through a YouTube video and the concept stayed with him. He tried a different platform, but he wasn't convinced, so he kept looking. Finally, after reading positive reviews about ANote Music, he decided to sign up with a small amount — money he was prepared to lose if things didn't work out.

"The more time passed, the more my confidence grew, and my investment grew with it.”‍

Why music royalties, and why ANote Music?

For Bruno, the appeal of music royalties sits at the intersection of logic and emotion. "There's a rational side, you can quantify it, and there's an emotional side you don't really find in other asset classes”, he says. Unlike equities, where you're evaluating a balance sheet, here you're also asking: Is this artist still active? Still touring? Does this song still resonate with people?

He also values the low correlation from traditional markets. By investing in catalogues listened to across the world, he sees a natural form of geographic diversification not tied to a single country or economy. Although he explains that he’s still early in his experience with this asset class, his instinct is clear:

"I tend to think music won't collapse in an economic crisis because people will continue listening to music.”

For him, if that holds, it makes music royalties even more compelling from a portfolio diversification standpoint.

Why choose and stay with ANote Music?

What convinced Bruno to commit to ANote Music came down to four things: the catalogues, the auction system, the interface, and the team.

First, he appreciates that ANote Music focuses on established catalogues with a revenue track record, diverse in geography, in genre, and in artist profile. "The catalogues are very high quality", he says, and for him that was one of the first things he noticed.

The auction system also stands out. On other platforms, he explains, listings work like concert tickets: a fixed price, a fixed time, and if you're not there in the first few minutes, you've missed your chance. ANote Music's approach gives him something he values as an investor: the ability to position at the price he's willing to pay, on his own terms.

"If it goes too high, you can stop, but usually you can still get a position.”

Then there's the platform itself. As a naturally curious investor, he appreciates the clean interface and the detailed documentation provided, allowing him to research types of rights, revenue sources, and how rights duration varies by country. He finds this data accessible and makes sure to consult it before every new listing. Two years in, he describes the overall experience as reliable and, in his own words, "at once very intuitive and working well.”

Finally, something he feels is really valuable about the platform is the human side of the experience. Even though he hasn’t encountered any specific problems, he stays in regular contact with the team through the different channels. For an asset class that can feel unfamiliar, or even a little daunting, that proximity matters more than people might expect.

"The support, the community, the team in general — they're genuinely warm. You're close to the people, there's a real good energy, and they help you solve problems. You don't find that everywhere. And it counts for a lot when it comes to reassuring people about an asset type that can sometimes feel a bit atypical.”

Two years in: the experience and the strategy

Bruno describes himself as an active but not hyperactive investor. He reviews his portfolio roughly once a quarter, assessing performance and deciding whether to rebalance. He keeps two types of positions: core catalogues he holds out of genuine affinity, and a more flexible layer he adjusts depending on performance: reinforcing what is outperforming, exiting what isn't meeting his expectations.

"Every quarter or so, I review the performance of my portfolio and rebalance depending on what happened over the period. And if there's nothing to rebalance, I don't.”

For him, music royalties represent a genuine opportunity for portfolio diversification within an alternative allocation. Today this investment represents around 20% of his overall portfolio, which he moves across asset classes depending on market conditions.

His overall experience has been positive. When a catalogue doesn't perform as expected, he sees it as a normal part of market behaviour and takes an observer position rather than acting hastily. Also, for him there is the emotional dimension that plays a role: sometimes, if he genuinely likes the music, a catalogue still means something to him regardless of the numbers at a specific moment.

When asked about areas for improvement, Bruno raises two points. The first is clearer tax guidance for French investors, which he sees as one of the main barriers in his network. The second is deeper visibility on the duration of rights within catalogues. He understands it's genuinely complex: within a single catalogue, each song can carry a different expiration date, and that granular information may not always be available even to the platform. But for an investor trying to project into the future, it would, in his words, "be a big plus.”

A word for new investors

When Bruno talks about ANote Music to people around him, the concept lands immediately. He has a tangible, real-life example he's used more than once to explain what he invests in: a Lindsey Stirling vinyl he won through the platform. "Friends come to my house and when they ask me about it, I tell them: I'm an investor, so when Stirling plays a concert or gets played on the radio, I earn a little money”. Stirling's songs feature in one of ANote Music's catalogues, the Peter Hanna Violin Selection.

Most people don't doubt the concept. They're simply more comfortable with institutions they already know. Registering on a platform that they've never heard of feels like a big leap. His advice to anyone hesitating is simple: go and talk to the team. 

"I keep insisting on it, but the welcome you get on ANote Music is genuinely different. They're polite, clear, and they explain things well. I think that alone can break down the barrier for people who are hesitating.”‍

He also suggests starting with an amount you're comfortable treating as a learning experience, and letting things develop naturally from there.

Looking ahead

In five years, Bruno expects to still be on ANote Music. The allocation may shift, but his intention is to stay invested for the long term. He's genuinely curious to see how the platform grows — more catalogues, more users, more liquidity — and believes ANote Music has a strong foundation to build on.

On whether music royalties will become a mainstream asset class, he's confident the direction is positive. The concept resonates with people the moment they hear it. 

"The market is there. It just needs trust to come with it, so people feel ready to take the step." 

As for himself:

"I'll be there in five years, that's for sure.”‍

Want to read another investor's experience? Read Jean-Denis's five-year journey investing in music royalties on ANote Music. 

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To find out where Bruno started, discover the catalogues directly on the platform:

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Disclaimer: Nothing in this article constitutes investment advice. Always consider your own circumstances and risk tolerance. Historical data does not predict future performance and should not be taken as financial advice. Like all financial opportunities, music royalties carry risk. Catalogue performance can vary, and there are no guaranteed returns. Always review historical data and platform information carefully before investing.