SoundCloud is where millions of artists share music. It's excellent for discovery, building an audience, and getting your tracks in front of new listeners. But when artists use SoundCloud's private link feature to share unreleased demos with labels or collaborators, they're using a feature that wasn't the platform's primary purpose.
Let's compare SoundCloud to Gatefolded specifically for private music sharing.
What SoundCloud Does Well
To be fair, SoundCloud is great at what it's designed for. The platform excels at public music sharing and discovery. If you want to build an audience, get discovered through algorithms and reposts, or engage with a community of listeners and creators, SoundCloud works.
The embedded player is widely recognized. The mobile app is solid. Integration with DJ software and other tools is strong. For public releases, it's a legitimate platform.
The Problem With SoundCloud for Private Sharing
Private links on SoundCloud are a secondary feature, not the platform's primary focus. When you share a "private" SoundCloud link, several things happen that work against you.
Your Profile Is Still Visible
When someone clicks your private SoundCloud link, they land on a page that shows your profile, your other tracks, and your follower count. If you're sending a demo to a label, they might click around and see unfinished work, old tracks you'd rather they didn't hear, or a low follower count that undermines their first impression.
A private share should be about the music you're sharing, nothing else.
Limited Privacy Controls
SoundCloud's private link is just that: a link. Anyone with the URL can access it. There's no password protection, no email verification, no way to limit who listens or how many times. If the recipient forwards your link, you won't know.
SoundCloud Pro offers a few more controls, like download disabling and scheduling, but true access management isn't part of the platform's DNA.
Terms of Service Concerns
SoundCloud's terms grant the platform broad rights to use uploaded content. While this is standard for social platforms, it means your unreleased demos exist on infrastructure you don't control, under terms that allow the platform significant latitude.
For publicly released music, this tradeoff makes sense. For unreleased work you're trying to protect, it's worth considering whether SoundCloud is the right place for it.
The Listener Experience Isn't Ideal
Listeners who don't have SoundCloud accounts will see sign-up prompts and ads. The interface is cluttered with recommendations, trending tracks, and platform features that have nothing to do with your music.
When an A&R clicks your private link, you want their attention on your music, not on SoundCloud's suggested tracks.
Basic Analytics
SoundCloud tells you play counts, but that's about it for private tracks. You can't see who listened, how much they heard, or whether they came back. For public tracks, the analytics are decent. For private sharing where you need to know if a specific person engaged with your music, the data isn't there.
How Gatefolded Approaches Private Sharing
Gatefolded was built specifically for the use case SoundCloud wasn't primarily designed around.
Clean, Focused Presentation
When someone accesses your Gatefolded link, they see your music and nothing else. No platform branding, no recommendations, no other tracks unless you want them there. The focus stays on what you're sharing.
Real Access Control
Password protection, email allowlists with verification, expiring links, and play limits. You decide who can access your music and for how long. When a label passes on your demo, you can revoke their access with one click.
Detailed Listening Analytics
See exactly who accessed your share, when they listened, how long they played each track, and whether they came back. Know the difference between someone who opened your link and someone who actually engaged with your music.
Your Terms
You control your music. No platform algorithms, no AI training clauses, no concerns about where your unreleased work lives.
When SoundCloud Still Makes Sense
Use SoundCloud when:
- You want public discovery and algorithmic reach
- You're sharing released music with an established audience
- You want engagement features (comments, reposts, likes)
- Integration with DJ software matters to you
SoundCloud is a legitimate platform for public music sharing. The issue isn't that SoundCloud is bad. The issue is that using it for private sharing means accepting limitations that purpose-built tools don't have.
When Gatefolded Makes Sense
Use Gatefolded when:
- You're sharing unreleased music with labels, press, or collaborators
- You need to control who can access your tracks
- You want to know if specific people actually listened
- Clean presentation without platform clutter matters
- You want to revoke access after sharing
The Bottom Line
SoundCloud is built for public discovery. Private links exist, but they're not the core product. Using SoundCloud for private sharing means accepting compromises in privacy, presentation, and analytics.
Gatefolded is built specifically for private sharing. If that's what you need, use a tool designed for it.