Sound, a web3 music platform, has raised $20 million in funding to support artists in earning a sustainable income throughout their careers.
The Series A funding round concluded in February and was led by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z). It also saw the participation of prominent figures like rapper Snoop Dogg, artist and producer Ryan Tedder, and Ashton Kutcher’s firm Sound Ventures.
Sound aims to disrupt the existing revenue models of web2 streaming services like Spotify or Apple Music. The platform allows artists to transform their songs into non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and directly sell them to fans. Since its beta launch in 2022, it has helped music creators generate $5.5 million in sales. Now, Sound is opening up to the public to help more artists earn a sustainable income from their creations.
David Greenstein, co-founder of Sound and a former product manager at streaming service Pandora, explained that while music subscription services have given listeners broader access to songs, they have also led to a decline in artists’ earnings. For instance, on Spotify, artists receive approximately $0.003 per stream.
Sound Receives Support from Artists to Revolutionize Music StreamingÂ
Following its successful $5 million seed round in 2021, Sound has attracted more backing from the music industry. Renowned rapper and NFT enthusiast, Snoop Dogg, has been vocal about the unfair compensation artists receive from popular streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music.
Snoop Dogg has taken action by investing in a blockchain-based platform that aims to cut out intermediaries and empower artists. The goal is to ensure that artists earn a fair share of the revenue their tracks generate.
Joining Snoop Dogg in supporting Sound is Atlanta-based rapper 21 Savage, among other investors who see the potential of this Web3 music platform.
The newly raised funds will be utilized to strengthen artist relations, enhance marketing efforts, and expand the engineering teams. Sound is gearing up to open its doors to the public, providing a transformative experience for both artists and music lovers alike.
Sound Challenges Big Music Streaming Platforms
According to David Greenstein, co-founder of Sound, the rise of music subscription services has had a mixed impact on artists. While it has made songs more accessible to listeners, it has also reduced artists’ earnings, as reported by CoinDesk.
Greenstein revealed that artists on Spotify earn around $0.003 per stream, which is quite low. However, he shared an exciting solution. Web3 technology enables direct payments for songs, allowing musicians to bypass intermediaries and keep 100% of their earnings.
Using platforms like Ethereum and Optimism’s layer two scaling solution, artists can upload their songs, turn them into on-chain assets called NFTs, and sell them for Ethereum (ETH). To make it user-friendly, artists don’t require fans to create a digital wallet; they can even support fiat payments.
Many artists have already embraced this shift in the music industry and are releasing their songs as NFTs. In a notable example, Web3 music platform Anotherblock converted one of Rihanna’s songs into a fractionalized NFT earlier this year.
