YouTube has launched a suite of new tools designed to help artists better connect with and monetize their most dedicated fans, the company announced at its Made on YouTube event on Tuesday (September 16).
“Today you’ve heard how we’re building tools that bring creators and their passionate communities together…. And when we talk about passion, there’s no community more powerful than music,” said Lyor Cohen, YouTube’s Global Head of Music, during the event.
The features include new release countdowns and album pre-saves on YouTube Music, plus exclusive video and merch drops for top fans.
The new release countdown and pre-save feature allows artists entering their album release cycle to create anticipation around upcoming releases.
When artists drop a premium music video or visualizer track, fans can click to pre-save the upcoming album, triggering automatic notifications on release day.
“We wanted to eventize the new release,” explained T. Jay Fowler, Sr. Director of Product Management for Music/Podcasts at YouTube, speaking with MBW in an exclusive interview following the announcement.
“At the moment that they announce their release, we start a countdown there on their official artist channel. Users can see exactly when it’s going to be there.”
Fans who participate in these countdown moments will receive badges they can display on their profiles and share off-platform, recognizing their status as early supporters.
YouTube is also experimenting with exclusive merchandise offers for top viewers, building on its existing merch integration. The feature allows artists to schedule specific merchandise drops during live moments like premieres and after parties.
“One of the things that artists had said to us was, hey, wouldn’t it be great if we could actually do merch drops in the middle of those moments?” Fowler said.
“The shared moment of being together and listening to something for the first time in a shared cultural moment is something that I think has been missing for quite a while from the music space.”
The company is testing how to define “top viewers” across different artist sizes. “Some artists have modest audiences, and so we don’t want to leave them out of being able to recognize their top fans,” Fowler noted. “We started with a very, very small calculation, so it’s a relatively exclusive club.”
Additionally, YouTube is rolling out “just-for-fans video drops” that will allow artists to reward their most dedicated supporters with exclusive video content, sharing special messages.
The features are currently being tested with select artists, their managers and labels in what YouTube calls a “trusted tester” phase before broader rollout.
The merchandise pilot will initially launch in the US only, with expansion to other English-speaking markets and then globally expected sometime next year.
New release countdown and pre-saves on YouTube Music will be available in the coming weeks, while just-for-fans video drops will arrive for artists early next year. YouTube began testing exclusive merchandise offers for top viewers earlier this year and plans to expand the program.
“YouTube is a holistic ecosystem. And while we are building music-specific fandom features, we are also bringing YouTube’s vast investment in creator-to-fan, and fan-to-creator tools and experiences to music artists.”
T. Jay Fowler, YouTube
The launch comes as the music industry increasingly focuses on monetizing superfans, with streaming services and labels seeking new revenue streams beyond standard subscription fees.
YouTube, which revealed on Tuesday that it has distributed more than $100 billion to creators, artists, and media companies over the past four years, is positioning itself to compete more directly with platforms like Spotify in cultivating artist-fan relationships.
When asked how YouTube’s approach differentiates from rivals in the market, which have been investing heavily in their own superfan initiatives, Fowler emphasized YouTube’s broader ecosystem advantages.
“YouTube is a holistic ecosystem. And while we are building music-specific fandom features, we are also bringing YouTube’s vast investment in creator-to-fan, and fan-to-creator tools and experiences to music artists,” he explained.
“These features span from posts, to fan communities, comments, to name a few. These experiences are also deeply woven into surfaces across mobile, desktop and living room and work across all formats from Shorts, to long form videos, to audio.”
Looking ahead, Fowler said the company is focused on refining the current offerings before expanding further. “Right now we’re focused on fine-tuning these latest fan features and then we’ll expand our work with artists and their teams to broaden participation,” he said.
“The unveiling of these new products should actually be viewed as a growing collection of fandom features, which will continue to expand over time.
“As an example, an eventized album release could include pre-saves, launch countdown timer, a scheduled YouTube Premiere for the fans to come together and experience the release for the first time, together.”
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