If Apple’s a technology company in the music industry, why
If Apple’s a technology company in the music industry, why can’t somebody in the music industry make technology?
Will.I.Am, the frontrunner of the popular band Black Eyed Peas, said these exact words back in the day. Finally it looks like someone heard him. There’s a new decentralized music-sharing protocol called Audius on the market, which will ensure that artists get full control over their intellectual property and that there is a platform for them to share their music with their fans and engage with them.
Brainchild of musician Ranidu Lankage and co-founders Roneil Rumber and Forrest Browning, this platform could change how music industry controls artists and their music. How often have artists complained about exploitation and unfair practices in the music industry? More times than we care to count. It seems like this platform can put their woes to bed and give them an advanced technology that claims to be musician owned. The platform will be based on blockchain technology and it will function in a manner quite similar to Souncloud.
The project has already raised a hefty $5.5 million in a Series A funding round which was spearheaded by General Catalyst and Lightspeed Capital. General Catalyst, founded in 2000, is an American venture capital firm which invests in early stage projects and so does Lightspeed Capital, which is based out of California. Investors included Kleiner Perkins, 122West, Ascolta Ventures and Pantera Capital.
The startup has a star studded team of advisers which include the likes of BitTorrent chief architect Greg Hazel, Augur co-founder Jeremy Gardner and musician 3LAU, among others. 3LAU’s association with this project comes as no surprise considering the world’s first blockchain powered music festival is his brainchild.
He said:
Artists need decentralized models for music sharing, and a stake in the platforms they contribute content to. Blockchain allows Audius to do this with tokens and decentralized voting-based governance so artists have a say in how the platform evolves. It’s a very elegant model and one which, as an artist, I find immensely attractive.
No release date has been announced yet but fans are already anticipating the launch of this platform that could change the face of the music industry.