True Source Entertainment
True Source Entertainment is a Nashville-based independent music services company founded in 2009, providing label services, publishing administration, distribution, sync licensing, and rights management to independent artists and select legacy clients.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersNashville, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What True Source Entertainment does
True Source Entertainment (TSE) is a Nashville, Tennessee-based independent music services company founded in 2009 by Joshua Caleb Smith. Operating as a private LLC with 1-10 employees, TSE delivers a broad portfolio of services spanning label services, brand services, record label operations, music publishing, distribution and marketing, custom production music, sync licensing, digital publishing, and rights management. The company's customer base is primarily independent artists, supplemented by select higher-profile clients including Naomi Judd and Steve Wariner, and operates its own label roster that includes Olde English Records.
TSE's revenue model is fee-for-service across multiple music industry verticals rather than a single product or platform. Distribution and admin infrastructure is assembled through third-party partnerships rather than proprietary technology: AudioSalad handles distribution, Sentric administers publishing, Synesthesia Media Group supports sync activity, and dostuff, Savoir, and 800pgm extend marketing and production capacity. Catalog reach is amplified by upstream/downstream relationships with Universal Music Group (distribution), Pandora (streaming), and CBS Films (sync placement into film/TV).
The company has continued to extend its operating scope. In May 2025, TSE announced it would manage Drishti Records, extending beyond its own roster into third-party label management. TSE has not disclosed external funding rounds, proprietary AI/ML capabilities, or a unified technology platform; the business model relies on founder-led execution, partner integration, and client relationships within the Nashville music ecosystem.
True Source Entertainment firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- True Source Entertainment
- Legal name
- True Source Entertainment LLC
- Website
- https://truesourceent.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- True Source Entertainment is a Nashville-based independent music services company founded in 2009, providing label services, publishing administration, distribution, sync licensing, and rights management to independent artists and select legacy clients.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
True Source Entertainment industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Music Production & Label Services
- NAICS
- Music Publishers (512230), Music Publishers (51223), Record Production and Distribution (51225)
- SIC
- Phonograph Records & Prerecorded Audio Tapes & Disks (3652), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741), Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Music Rights Administration & Royalty Processing (Admin, Accounting, Statements) (MPAIAKAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Sync Rights Representation (Pitching, Clearance, Negotiation) (MPAIABAF), Custom Music & Original Score/Composition (MPAIALAD), Music Supervision Services (MPAIALAB), Creator Music/SFX Asset Libraries & Licensing Platforms (MPACABAM)
Keywords
Where True Source Entertainment is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Nashville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
True Source Entertainment business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Label Services: Creative production services for labels and artists including recording, mixing, mastering music, branding, photography, video, graphics, and catalog management.
- Brand Services: Custom music for campaign use, full creative asset creation, and campaign management for branding purposes.
- Record Label Operations: Working with artists to promote and distribute their music through the label.
- Music Publishing: Publishing administration services and licensing opportunities for artists and clients.
- Distribution & Marketing Services: Media distribution for all major media outlets, PR, marketing and campaign management, including playlist placement and programming.
- Custom Production Music: Project specific music creation and production, with hundreds of independent songs cataloged.
- Sync Services: One stop servicing for all synchronization needs.
- Digital Publishing: Publishing for streaming and online services.
- Visual and Media Rights Management: Rights management for music and media.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
True Source Entertainment product offering
Product offeringCore offering
True Source Entertainment (TSE) is a Nashville-based media company providing record label, music publishing, and creative production services. The company offers Label Services (recording, mixing, mastering, branding, photography, video, graphics, catalog management) for labels and artists, Brand Services (custom music for campaigns, full creative asset creation, campaign management) for companies, and a hybrid artist model that lets independent musicians access label-quality services without requiring a full record deal.
Product overview
True Source Entertainment (TSE) is a Nashville-based media company offering a comprehensive suite of music and entertainment services. The company operates as a hybrid model combining record label services with independent artist support. Core offerings include Label Services (recording, mixing, mastering, branding, photography, video production, gfx, catalog management), Brand Services (custom music for campaigns, creative asset creation, campaign management), Record Label operations (artist promotion and distribution), and Music Publishing (administration and licensing). Service modules include Distribution & Marketing (media distribution, PR, playlist placement), Custom Production Music, Sync Services, Digital Publishing, and Visual and Media Rights Management. The company was founded in 2009 by Joshua Caleb Smith.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Label Services Comprehensive solutions for labels and artists including creative production (recording, mixing, mastering), branding, photography, video, graphics, and catalog management. Aimed at record labels and independent artists seeking label-quality support.
- Brand Services Curated services for branding, including custom music for campaign use, full creative asset creation, and campaign management. Targeted at companies and brands needing music and creative content for advertising and promotional use.
- Record Label Operations Working with artists to promote and distribute their music through industry channels, including partnership-managed sub-labels such as Drishti Records. Targeted at roster artists on the TSE label.
- Music Publishing Administrative publishing services and licensing opportunities for TSE's roster artists and external clients, leveraging the Sentric publishing-administration platform.
- Distribution & Marketing Media distribution to all major media outlets (streaming platforms), plus PR, marketing, and campaign management, with playlist placement and programming services. Targeted at independent artists and label clients.
- Custom Production Music Project-specific music creation and production, drawing on a catalogued library of hundreds of independent songs. Targeted at brands, agencies, filmmakers, and other content creators needing original music.
- Sync Services One-stop servicing for all synchronization needs, handling music placement in film, television, advertising, and other visual media. Targeted at film/TV producers, ad agencies, and content creators.
- Visual and Media Rights Management Rights management services for music and media content, supporting client catalogs with tracking and administration. Targeted at labels, publishers, and rights holders.
Companies that use True Source Entertainment
Customer profileNamed customers31 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
True Source Entertainment technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
True Source Entertainment partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Universal Music Group (UMG)coreUMG logo appears in the 'Friends and Partners' section of TSE's website, indicating a distribution and licensing partnership relationship for music content.
- PandoracorePandora logo appears in the 'Friends and Partners' section. TSE has placed music on Pandora's Tunesmith's and Troubadors playlist. Their Piano Libre release reached over 2 million streams on Pandora.
- Drishti RecordscoreTSE manages Drishti Records and releases multiple artist projects through this label including Joshua Caleb Smith releases, Noise Floor's 'Missed Calls in Mono', and meditation music projects. TSE announced managing Drishti Records in May 2025.
- CBS FilmsminorCBS Films logo appears in the 'Friends and Partners' section, suggesting a working relationship for film-related projects.
- 800pgmminor800pgm logo appears in the 'Friends and Partners' section, indicating a programming/distribution partnership.
- dostuffminordostuff logo appears in the 'Friends and Partners' section.
- SavoirminorSavoir logo appears in the 'Friends and Partners' section.
- Olde English RecordsminorCollaboration between Olde English Records and True Source Entertainment for Joshua C.S.'s 'Milk & Honey Tapes' releases.
- Seth Atkins HoranminorGrammy-winning music engineer collaborated with Joshua C.S. on 'Milk & Honey Tapes' project.
- Home & Community Inc.minorNon-profit organization that runs the Play it Forward Nashville program. TSE's Joshua Smith is co-creator of Play it Forward. The program benefits Nashville flood disaster relief and community causes.
- Sarah Dale (True North Entertainment)minorSarah Dale of True North Entertainment co-produced Play it Forward Nashville video with Joshua Smith of TSE.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
True Source Entertainment competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Stem (Hitco Entertainment): Distribution and label services platform providing transparent royalty splits, marketing support, and analytics to independent artists. Stem serves the same indie artist segment TSE targets with distribution and ancillary services.
- AWAL: Independent label services and distribution platform offering artists label-quality services without traditional record deals. AWAL's hybrid artist model directly parallels TSE's core value proposition of flexible, modular label services for independent artists.
- Create Music Group: Music publishing, distribution, and rights management company serving independent artists and labels with integrated services. Create's combination of publishing administration, distribution, and label services closely matches TSE's full-stack offering.
- Position Music: Independent music publisher and label specializing in sync licensing, custom music, and trailer music for film and TV. Position Music's emphasis on sync and custom composition directly parallels TSE's sync services and custom production music catalog.
- Songtradr: Sync licensing marketplace and music rights platform enabling rights holders to license music for film, TV, advertising, and gaming. Songtradr competes directly with TSE's sync services for placement opportunities and rights representation.
- Marmoset: Sync licensing platform representing independent artists and catalogs for placement in film, TV, advertising, and digital content. Marmoset competes with TSE's sync services for indie artist placements and catalog representation.
- Kobalt Music: Music publishing administration and label services platform offering rights management, royalty processing, and distribution for independent artists and labels. Kobalt's integrated publishing-and-services model mirrors TSE's combination of publishing admin with creative production.
- Sentric Music: Music publishing administration platform serving songwriters and publishers with rights management and royalty collection. Sentric is explicitly a TSE technology partner, making it a direct comparable for TSE's publishing administration business.
Broad incumbents
- DistroKid: Large-scale music distribution platform serving independent artists with low-cost subscription distribution to major streaming services. DistroKid operates at a vastly different scale than TSE but competes in the same indie distribution value chain.
- APM Music: Established production music library serving film, TV, and advertising with an extensive sync catalog. APM competes with TSE's cataloged production music and sync services but at significantly larger scale and catalog depth.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
True Source Entertainment social profiles
Digital presenceTrue Source Entertainment financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
True Source Entertainment leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
True Source Entertainment funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
True Source Entertainment M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about True Source Entertainment
What does True Source Entertainment do?
True Source Entertainment (TSE) is a Nashville-based media company providing record label, music publishing, and creative production services. The company offers Label Services (recording, mixing, mastering, branding, photography, video, graphics, catalog management) for labels and artists, Brand Services (custom music for campaigns, full creative asset creation, campaign management) for companies, and a hybrid artist model that lets independent musicians access label-quality services without requiring a full record deal.
Is True Source Entertainment a public or private company?
True Source Entertainment is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was True Source Entertainment founded?
True Source Entertainment was founded in 2009. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is True Source Entertainment based?
True Source Entertainment is headquartered in Nashville, United States, in the North America region.
How does True Source Entertainment make money?
Nine revenue lines are on record. Label Services are the primary driver. The others are brand Services, record Label Operations, music Publishing, distribution & Marketing Services, custom Production Music, sync Services, digital Publishing and visual and Media Rights Management.
Who are True Source Entertainment's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Stem (Hitco Entertainment), AWAL, Create Music Group, Position Music, Songtradr, Marmoset, Kobalt Music and Sentric Music. Broad incumbents are DistroKid and APM Music.
Does True Source Entertainment have an API?
No public API is recorded for True Source Entertainment.
What industry is True Source Entertainment in?
True Source Entertainment's product category is Music Production & Label Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAIAKAD, Music Rights Administration & Royalty Processing (Admin, Accounting, Statements), with a secondary code of MPAIABAF, Sync Rights Representation (Pitching, Clearance, Negotiation). Its NAICS code is 512230 and its SIC code is 3652.