SoundCloud’s Post

SoundCloud has just rolled out a new feature that allows artists to sell merch directly on their platform, featuring products from artists like Wiz Khalifa and Denzel Curry. This move couldn't have come at a better time, as the frustration over low streaming rates continues to mount in the music industry. It's well-known that a significant portion of artists' revenue comes from tours and merchandise. By integrating merch sales into streaming platforms, artists can potentially see bigger payouts directly from their music streams. SoundCloud will pay 100% of profits of merch sells back to the artists. Do you think other platforms like Spotify TIDAL and Apple Music will follow suit by offering physical and digital merch options to improve artist payouts? This could be a game-changer for how artists monetize their content in the streaming era.

📈 The stock value of D2C models are bullish and major players are loading up at the top. 📈 Empire's partnership with Bandcamp underscores the growing significance of the D2C model in the music industry. Historically, Empire has focused on distribution deals with major artists who often dominate radio airplay. By collaborating with Bandcamp, a platform tailored for independent artists, Empire is expanding its reach and embracing the diverse needs of the music ecosystem. Why This Matters: 🎶 Rising D2C Trend: The D2C model is gaining momentum as artists seek more control over their careers and direct engagement with their audiences. This trend is evident as major industry players, like Empire, invest heavily in D2C strategies, recognizing its peak potential and long-term value. 🎶 Strategic Shift: For Empire, known for working with high-profile, radio-friendly artists, this move represents a strategic shift towards a more inclusive approach. By embracing Bandcamp's indie-focused platform, Empire is acknowledging the growing influence of grassroots artists and the importance of supporting diverse musical talent. 🎶 Market Adaptation: The recent partnership reflects how major players are adapting to market changes, driven by digital transformation and evolving consumer preferences. The success of D2C platforms like Bandcamp highlights a shift towards more personalized and direct artist-fan interactions. 🎶 Future Implications: As the music industry continues to evolve, the integration of major labels with independent platforms could lead to innovative business models and new revenue streams. This collaboration may inspire other major players to explore similar partnerships, further blurring the lines between independent and mainstream music. What are your thoughts?

Breaking News: SoundCloud Revolutionizes Music Industry with Game-Changing Merch Store In a move set to disrupt the music industry, SoundCloud has announced the launch of a new merch store that allows artists to keep 100% of the profits! This bold initiative has the potential to transform the way artists monetize their brand and connect with fans. What does this mean for artists? Unprecedented creative control: Artists can now design and sell their own merchandise, with complete autonomy over the products and profits. Maximized earnings: By keeping 100% of the profits, artists can significantly boost their revenue streams and invest in their craft. Deeper fan connections: The merch store provides a new channel for artists to engage with fans, foster loyalty, and build a community around their brand. Why is this a game-changer? Empowering artists: SoundCloud's move acknowledges the value of artists' intellectual property and creative input, giving them the recognition and rewards they deserve. Disrupting traditional industry models: By cutting out intermediaries and allowing artists to retain full control, SoundCloud is challenging the status quo and paving the way for a more equitable music industry. Unlocking new revenue streams: The merch store opens up fresh opportunities for artists to diversify their income and reduce dependence on traditional record deals or streaming royalties. What can we learn from SoundCloud's innovative approach? The power of artist-centricity: By prioritizing artists' needs and interests, SoundCloud is demonstrating a customer-centric approach that can be applied to various industries. The importance of adaptability: SoundCloud's willingness to evolve and experiment with new models shows the value of staying agile in a rapidly changing landscape. The potential for social impact: By empowering artists and promoting creativity, SoundCloud's initiative can have a positive ripple effect on the music industry and beyond. Share your thoughts on SoundCloud's merch store and its implications for the music industry. How can this model be applied to other creative fields? Let's discuss! Tag artists, industry professionals, and innovators who can contribute to the conversation. #SoundCloud #MerchStore #ArtistEmpowerment #MusicIndustry #Innovation #Creativity #RevenueStreams #ArtistCentricity #Adaptability #SocialImpact

HYBE’s -12% (YoY) revenue and -72.6% (YoY) net operating profit nosedives in Q1 are definitely headline numbers, but I find the -21.3% hit to its recorded music revenue more insightful. HYBE’s primary act, BTS, which, as Music Business Worldwide (MBW) indicates, is “arguably the largest K-pop group in the world,” has historically obtained unprecedented and consistent levels of fan activation and engagement. However, since its members are adhering to Korea’s mandatory military service, the super group will not be releasing new music until at least 2025. The reduction in HYBE’s recorded music revenue demonstrates the importance of distributing a constant flow of music (not just content) to your fans. For non-legacy acts, content, publicity strategies, and tours (HYBE nearly turning all of this into an art itself) will never be enough for an artist to achieve their maximum potential revenue per fan or engagement without releasing high-quality, innovative music in tandem. Since entertainment today is highly reliant on consistent artist-fan interactions, hoping your catalog captures the value from these non-music efforts (for most artists) can only go so far. The best artist-fan interaction will always be releasing authentic new music. Fortunately HYBE diversified itself by developing some of the other most popular K-pop acts in the world, but it’s interesting to see how a music hiatus from a single band can impact their bottom line. #music #kpop #musicindustry #entertainment #BTS #HYBE https://lnkd.in/gf2Kvn_N

🚀 Discover How Loop is Shaping the Future of Music 🎵 ✨ Empowering Independent Artists Loop provides tools and resources that empower independent artists to take control of their careers. Our platform allows artists to showcase their work, connect with fans, and earn more through innovative revenue streams like NFTs. 🔗 Revolutionizing Fan Engagement We’re changing the way fans interact with their favorite artists. With Loop, fans can own exclusive music assets, participate in unique experiences, and directly support the artists they love. This creates a deeper and more meaningful connection between artists and their audiences. 🎨 Innovative NFT Marketplace Loop’s NFT Marketplace is a game-changer. It allows artists to create, sell, and trade unique digital assets, offering fans a new way to collect and invest in music. This opens up new revenue streams for artists and exciting opportunities for fans. 🌍 Building a Global Community Loop is more than just a platform – it’s a vibrant community of music lovers, artists, and industry professionals. We’re fostering connections and collaborations that push the boundaries of creativity and innovation in the music industry. 💎 Transparent and Fair Compensation We believe in fair compensation for artists. Loop ensures that artists earn more from their work, with no hidden fees or unfair practices. This transparency builds trust and ensures that artists can sustainably grow their careers. 📈 Driving Industry Trends Loop is at the forefront of industry trends, from NFTs to direct fan engagement. We’re continuously innovating and adapting to ensure that our platform meets the evolving needs of artists and fans alike. Join Loop today and be part of the revolution that’s reshaping the music industry. Experience the future of music with us! 🌟 #Loop #FutureOfMusic #NFTMarketplace #EmpowerArtists #JoinTheRevolution

I remember when SoundCloud was first launched in 2008 and Kid Cudi posted the video for his new track Soundtrack 2 My Life not soon after. The platform didn’t gain traction until 2012 when it began growing rapidly. What made the platform unique was its early concept of personalisation based on individual artists and various genres, as opposed to mainstream music. Fast forward 16 years and we have platforms like Fortnite and Roblox that have evolved beyond one-off virtual concerts. Musicians are now deeply integrating into these virtual worlds to promote albums and engage new fans. Musicians, inspired by consumer brands, are now creating custom experiences in virtual worlds rather than simply replicating physical concerts. This approach aims to engage gamers and fans more deeply and for longer periods. Alan Jenner Bonita Wong Mei He Patrick H. Khánh Hoàng https://bit.ly/4bqQFJt #Digitalmarketing #Digitalaudio #Advertising #Music

The idea that superfans are important isn’t new: tech maven Kevin Kelly’s ‘1000 True Fans‘ essay was widely read and shared within the music industry back in 2008 for example. Since then the excitement (or hype) around trends ranging from crowdfunding to short-video to NFTs has often been driven by the desire to super-serve superfans. Meanwhile, specific fandoms like the BTS Army, Swifties and the Beyhive have shown how powerful they can be – online and IRL. Kyncl’s comments raise the prospect of two different approaches from major labels in this new wave of superfan-focused activity. Warner Music Group’s plans for a ‘superfan app’ already have a prominent example to follow: South Korean music firm HYBE`’s Weverse app, which has more than 10 million monthly active users. The second approach is a superfan layer that sits on top of existing streaming services. This is what Universal Music Group has been talking about in the early months of 2024. “Focusing on superfans is really important. Most sources conclude, based on the definition of the market and what constitutes a superfan, that maybe 15% to 20% of music listeners are in this category,” said UMG’s digital boss Michael Nash at our recent Music Ally Connect conference. “So, you now have hundreds of millions of subscribers, and maybe 20% of those subscribers are the market for a ‘super premium’ tier at a higher price point. We’ve tested different product configurations [for that] and we’re excited about what we might be able to develop with our platform partners.” Nash went on to suggest that features including “everything from early access to forms of premium content, to digital collectibles to fan badging and gamification modification of the fan experience [and] access to artists] could be part of these tiers. Read Our Full Analysis Here: https://lnkd.in/envWmbMe #SuperfanApp #MusicInnovation #WarnerMusic #musically #musicnews #readmore

I am happy to announce our venture, RCADE, alongside my co-founders Edward Quintero and Jacob Tucker. Our WHY: 38% of all music on TikTok is user-modified (slowed, sped up, mashed up, etc) and garner billions of plays in different media around the internet. There is currently no efficient way to monetize this trend at scale, and rightsholders are leaving billions on the table. One way to attack this is by creating more robust content ID, but this does not capture the full value created by allowing fans to edit copyrighted music. Another way is to integrate effects-based tools into DSP's. This would necessarily have to be very limited in terms of features and utility. It also does not capture the full value that we believe co-creation can bring to rightsholders. The better way is to create a platform enabling UGC that monetizes remixes through creative mechanics and thoughtful economics. We are pursuing the third strategy. Here's how it works: 1. Artists upload their music in stem format (specifically vocals, melody, drums, and bass). If stems are not readily available, they may use our integrated stem-separation tool. 2. Artists set price and availability (scarcity) of their stems. 3. Fans browse the stem marketplace and use our simple creation tool to experiment with different stem combos, add filters, adjust pitch/speed, et al. 4. When a fan decides on a stem combo and effects customization, they can choose to create the new song by purchasing the selected stems. 5. The finished remix a) goes into our own streaming ecosystem for others to hear and b) can be shared to social media (and eventually more digital/virtual spaces). 6. Finally, both rightsholders AND the fan creator receives royalties when/where the music is heard and a monetizable event occurs. Additionally, we are actively building our toolkit for virtual worlds. Unlike current text-prompt based creation tools, our model lends itself perfectly to gaming, AR, VR, etc. We are implementing v1 of music creation in UE5 (demo on site). This project has been under wraps for a while because we have been honing and refining our strategy. The utilization of stems and creation of derivative works requires a nuanced approach and careful consideration of the music industry's inherent complexities. The plan is to prove our product alongside artists open to new technologies and want a new way to monetize their music. If you are/know of an artist who might be interested in participating, please reach out. I will be posting more about the steps required to bring this idea to life soon. Check out our website for more info, demo videos, and to sign up for the waitlist. If you have questions or want to learn more, drop me a line.

MIDiA's latest analysis highlights a significant shift in the recorded music market, with expanded rights now accounting for a substantial $3.5 billion in revenue. This 10% market share is primarily fueled by artists monetizing their brand beyond traditional music sales. 🚀 Key takeaways: - Expanded rights include areas like merchandising, live performances, and brand partnerships. - These rights offer artists diverse revenue streams, crucial in a digital age where music sales alone are not enough. - It's a sign that the music industry is evolving, with artists becoming multifaceted entertainment brands. 💡 What does this mean for the industry? - Record labels need to adapt, offering more holistic deals that encompass these rights. - Artists are increasingly business-savvy, requiring teams that can navigate multiple revenue channels. - There's growing importance on building and maintaining a strong, versatile brand as an artist. In an era where digital content rules, the ability for artists to leverage their brand identity has never been more critical. This shift is not only redefining success for individual artists but also reshaping the strategies of record labels and industry stakeholders. 🌟 For creatives and marketers, understanding the potential of expanded rights is crucial. Whether it’s developing new business models or crafting innovative campaigns, the integration of music into broader entertainment packages is now a key driver of value. Talenzy recognizes the importance of aligning brand strategies with these evolving industry dynamics. As the fan economy continues to grow, we're here to help artists and businesses tap into these emerging opportunities, crafting narratives that resonate in this new landscape. #MusicIndustry #BrandMonetization #ExpandedRights #FanEconomy #ArtistBranding