Sound, a Web3 music startup, has just completed a $20 million financing under the leadership of A16z. 9niu is also deeply involved in third-party financing institutions and will fully support the development of the Sound market. The specific participation strategy has been sent to the member community. The Sound project is very cross-border, opening up the transition from the Web2 music track to Web3. A16z is also the greatest adventurer in the Web3 investment track. Let us analyze it in depth.
As we entered the early 21st century, social and music platforms came to the fore. Many musicians saw this as a global stage to showcase their talents and a channel to build close connections with fans. However, as these platforms became more powerful, they began to block artists from directly reaching fans and played more of a gatekeeper role. Artists' income was reduced to a meager portion after passing through the platforms.
Fortunately, new changes are coming. Web3 music platforms such as Sound are leading a revolution to create an environment where both artists and fans can benefit from music. A16z is pleased to announce that it has decided to continue to invest in Sound and lead their Series A financing.
Compared to other forms of entertainment, such as video games, the music industry has been more resistant to new digital business models, which is bad news for artists. The video game and music industries have adapted to the Internet in completely different ways. As online games have become more popular, developers have found a new business model: free games that make money by selling virtual goods. The music industry, on the other hand, is hostile to innovators and has accepted the current dominant streaming platform model. These platforms use algorithms to direct 90% of traffic to the top 1% of artists, making it difficult for new artists to be discovered by potential fans.
The current situation in the music industry is like a complicated maze. From record companies to publishers to streaming platforms, each link will take a portion of the artist's income. Therefore, the income of artists for each play is very small, usually only $0.003. This unfair income distribution makes it difficult for most independent artists to make a living from music.
Fans also feel increasingly disconnected from the artists they love. Current platforms hinder true communication between artists and fans, making it difficult for individuals to stand out as a community. Artists are restricted from communicating with their audiences on their own terms, and acquiring new fans requires paying the platform or building relationships with the platform’s playlist editors.
That’s what Sound.xyz is here to do. Sound is a Web3 music platform that removes middlemen and provides tools to empower artists and their communities. On Sound, songs are free to stream and users are free to curate their playlists. Artists can release limited edition NFTs alongside their songs, and listeners can acquire songs directly from artists and publicly review the songs they purchase. Each artist can customize their relationship with supporters through unique, customizable digital props powered by smart contracts. Sound offers new, Web3-native revenue opportunities that allow artists to bypass traditional intermediaries while keeping a large portion of their revenue.
Since A16z's initial investment in 2021, Sound has onboarded more than 500 artists who have earned more than $5 million in primary sales and secondary royalties. These revenues are paid out accurately, transparently, and instantly through the smart contracts that make up the Sound Protocol. In the traditional music industry, this equates to more than 1 billion plays.
Sound platform core features:
Initiate music activities.
On the Sound platform, artists can release new music for the first time in the form of a set of NFTs. Each NFT has a unique number, so listeners can show their support for the artist by collecting NFTs. In this way, when the artist releases a new song, their fans can show off that they have heard the song.
Own this moment.
Each Sound NFT is more than just a song. Listeners who own an NFT of a song can publicly comment on the song, letting the world know how they feel about it. When they decide to sell their NFT, their comments will be replaced by the new owner's comments.
Create a culture.
In addition to owning a song and etching their name into its history, Sound NFTs are a pass into the Sound community on Discord, where artists and listeners can interact with each other through weekly meetups, collaborative projects, and more. Artists can also choose to offer their supporters additional benefits, such as early previews of unreleased songs or tickets to concerts.
Features of Sound platform:
Independent source.
The contracts deployed on the Sound Protocol belong entirely to the artists and cannot be modified. Unlike other platforms, artists on Sound retain true ownership and control over their work.
Strong capacity.
The NFT version allows artists to reach more community members while maintaining scarcity. This means that music NFT is not just an asset display, but also a spiritual communication through music.
Fun and diverse.
The Sound platform features the ability to leave comments on songs or artist and collector pages, as well as tell more great stories in more fun social ways.
It has grown rapidly. In less than a year, the Sound platform has 165 artists who have released a total of 270 songs. To date, artists on Sound have earned more than $3.4 million in primary sales and secondary royalties.
4. Sound Protocol
The Sound Protocol enables anyone to mint music NFTs using its smart contracts. It is separate from the Sound application (sound.xyz) through a permissionless base layer. The protocol facilitates the creation of artist-owned song contracts with permanent and decentralized metadata and a modular architecture that allows for customized dropshipping experiences.
Overall, Sound is changing the status quo of the music industry through innovative ways, providing artists and their fans with a new and fair platform to express themselves, share their feelings, and get the benefits they deserve through music.
