Pop Music
Addison Rae Says Record Labels Paid Her Just $20 for TikTok Posts
Before she was a chart-climbing pop artist with millions of fans, Addison Rae was a college student at Louisiana State University, making TikTok videos—and earning a shockingly low paycheck for it. On a recent episode of The New York Times’ Popcast, she reflected on her early days navigating the influencer world as the music industry began to recognise TikTok’s promotional power. According to Rae, some record labels were paying her as little as $20 via PayPal to promote songs through short dance clips.
“I actually remember getting little brand deals from labels paying me to post when I was in college,” Addison Rae said during the 80-minute sit-down. “They jumped on that really fast. I was like, ‘Oh, this is really interesting’—that the music industry was really leaning on it.”
But the money wasn’t great. When host Jon Caramanica guessed Addison Rae was making hundreds of dollars per post on TikTok, she quickly corrected him. “A hundred bucks?! I wish. It was probably like $20,” Addison Rae laughed. “I actually remember being like, ‘Holy sh—, $20!’”
And it wasn’t precisely through official channels. “It was actually really sketch,” Rae admitted. “I was like: ‘Did the $20 hit the PayPal yet?!’”
At the time, Addison Rae was just one of many young creators and influencers unknowingly shaping a new music marketing model—one that would later become an industry standard. Her honesty sheds light on how major labels quietly leveraged influencer culture for cheap promotion before TikTok music became the powerhouse it is today.
Fast forward to 2025, and Addison Rae is no longer just a face on a screen—she’s a certified pop act. Her self-titled debut album dropped via Columbia Records on May 30 and includes singles like “Diet Pepsi,” “Aquamarine,” and “Fame is a Gun.” The 12-track release aims to solidify her place among fellow TikTok-to-pop success stories, including Tate McRae and PinkPantheress.
Although the early brand deals were “sketchy,” Addison Rae’s TikTok influencer story highlights how social media has completely transformed the process of discovering and marketing stars. What started as a $20 side hustle has evolved into a full-fledged music career backed by one of the world’s largest music labels.
Addison Rae’s rise—from being underpaid and overlooked to owning her narrative—isn’t just a personal success story. It’s a case study in how creator culture reshaped the music industry, often to the creator’s detriment—until they took control of the mic.
