Understanding Hope
Hope is the platform's engagement currency. You earn it by listening, liking, and curating — and spend it on governance, exclusive content, and platform features. Here's exactly how it works.
Hope Value
Hope value rises with platform activity. With 0 active listeners and 0 total streams, each Hope is worth $0.0100.
What Is Hope?
Hope is Tonal's way of rewarding you for being an active member of the community. Unlike traditional streaming platforms where your engagement is invisible, Tonal turns every listen, like, and curated crate into tangible value you can spend.
Hope is not a cryptocurrency or real-world currency. It's a platform-native reward system — free to earn, spendable on platform features, and designed to amplify your voice in the community.
How to Earn Hope
Listen to a Track
+1Every track you play earns you 1 Hope. Discovering new music pays off — literally.
Get a Like on Your Track
+2When a listener likes your track, you earn 2 Hope as the artist. Better music = more Hope.
Create a Crate
+5Curate a crate (playlist) of tracks and earn 5 Hope. Share it with the community for even more reach.
The Tier System
Your Hope balance determines your tier. Tiers gate what you can spend Hope on — Novice can only earn, while Moderate and Expert unlock the full marketplace.
Novice
0 – 99 HopeEvery new user starts here. Earn Hope by engaging with music — listening, liking, and creating crates. You can't spend Hope yet, but every action builds your balance.
Moderate
100 – 499 HopeYou've proven you're an active member of the community. Spending unlocks — use Hope on governance votes, exclusive crates, radio boosts, and collaboration suggestions.
Expert
500+ HopeThe highest tier. Full marketplace access including Artist Spotlights. Your voice carries the most weight in governance votes thanks to your sustained engagement.
How to Spend Hope
Once you reach Moderate tier (100 Hope), you can spend Hope on platform features. Each item has a Hope cost and a minimum tier requirement.
Governance Vote
Cast a vote on a pending platform feature proposal.
Collaboration Suggestion
Suggest a collaboration between two artists you love.
Exclusive Crate Unlock
Unlock a premium curated crate from a top curator.
Radio Station Boost
Boost a radio station's visibility for 7 days.
Feature Proposal
Submit a new feature proposal for the community to vote on.
Artist Spotlight
Feature an artist on the discovery page for 24 hours.
Ready to spend your Hope?
Go to MarketplaceStaking Hope on Tracks
Staking is a way to support tracks you believe in. When you stake Hope on a track, that Hope is locked and contributes to the track's Belief Score — a visible metric of community confidence.
The total staked weight on a track, displayed as a badge on track cards.
Tracks with higher community stake weight get priority in the payout pool.
Approved curators' stakes carry a 3× multiplier, amplifying their impact.
Important: Staked Hope remains locked in the stake. You can un-stake to retrieve it, but the Belief Score decreases accordingly. Staking does not change royalty percentages — it's an additive priority signal, not a royalty claim.
Tips for Maximizing Your Hope
Listen actively
Every track you play earns Hope. Use the Discover feed and Radio to find new music while building your balance.
Curate crates
Creating crates is the highest-earning action at 5 Hope each. Share them to the Community Crates feed for visibility.
Engage as an artist
If you're an artist, every like on your tracks earns 2 Hope. Upload quality music to maximize passive earnings.
Stake wisely
Staking Hope on tracks you believe in boosts their Belief Score and payout priority — but Hope stays locked in the stake.
Don't rush to spend
Spending unlocks at 100 Hope (Moderate tier). Earning is easy — be patient and your balance will grow naturally.
Participate in governance
Voting on proposals only costs 10 Hope and shapes the platform's future. Your voice matters.
Start Earning Today
Every listen, like, and crate brings you closer to unlocking the full Tonal experience. No purchase required — just engage with the music you love.