Why Is This Audius Track Locked? (A Padlock Explains Gated Songs)

(disclosure: i’m an artist on Audius, so i’m not a neutral party. this explains what the lock means; it isn’t financial advice.)

the short version: most Audius tracks have no lock at all — you press play and they stream, free, no wallet. when a track does show a little lock, it means the artist chose to gate that one, and most of those locks open for free (just follow them) or with a card. only a rare kind needs crypto. i’d know. i’m the lock.

most tracks don’t have me on them

most of what’s on Audius isn’t locked by anything, and that’s the part people forget. no me, no wallet prompt. you find a track, you press play, it plays. that’s the default, and it’s most of the catalog.

so if you’ve been bracing to “unlock” Audius before you can hear any of it, you don’t. the front door is open. i only show up on specific tracks, when a specific artist decides to put me there.

when you see me, i’m a choice, not a toll

i’m not the platform charging you at the door. Audius didn’t bolt me on. an artist did, on one track, on purpose.

maybe it’s an unreleased song they’re handing to the people who follow them. maybe it’s something they’re selling. maybe it’s a thank-you for the fans who hold their coin. i’m a setting an artist flipped, track by track. not a tollbooth the whole place runs through.

the kinds of lock, and what opens each

i come in a few types. friendliest first:

• the follow lock. the most common one, and it’s free. follow the artist and i open. that’s the whole price: a follow.
• the tip lock. send the artist a small tip and i open. it goes straight to them.
• the buy lock. the track is for sale. the artist sets a price, and you can pay it with a card (it sorts out the rest behind the scenes) or with crypto if you’d rather.
• the collectible lock. rarer. the track opens for people who hold a particular collectible, and holding one means having a crypto wallet.
• the coin lock. rarer still. the track is for an artist’s superfans, the people holding their coin. this is the one corner where opening me really does mean crypto.

look at the shape of that list. the locks you’ll meet are mostly the free one and the buy one. the crypto-only locks sit at the far end, and they’re the exception.

the honest part

i’m a lock, so let me be straight about the locked stuff. a lock that bluffed about what’s behind it would be a bad lock.

yes, some tracks need a wallet to open — the collectible and coin ones. that’s real, and it’s fair to know going in. but it’s a small corner of the catalog, set by individual artists for their superfans, not a wall around the music. and i’m not going to tell you to buy anyone’s coin to get past me. what’s behind me is a song, not an investment. how you feel about the rest is your call.

for almost everything you’ll want to hear, i’m not even there. where i am, i’m usually a follow away.

so press play

open Audius and scroll. most of what you pass won’t have me on it at all — press play and it plays. when you do meet me, check which kind i am before you assume the worst. odds are i open for free.

there’s a track playing in the corner of this page right now, and there’s no lock on it. that’s the default. i’m the exception.

Resources

• Audius availability & gating settings — the official rundown of every lock type
• still bracing for a wallet? do you need crypto to listen to Audius?
• new here? what Audius is