Blockchain Music Startup Raises $ 5.5 Million in Series A Financing
Audius, a community-owned, decentralized music sharing platform, said SoundCloud was responding to the $ 5.5 million Series A fundraiser by launching the first blockchain-based music sharing protocol . On August 8, 2018, the announcement revealed that the funding was led by General Catalyst and Lightspeed, with the participation of Kleiner Perkins, Pantera Capital, 122West and Ascolta Ventures.
Blockchain disrupts the traditional music sharing model
Audius describes himself as "a blockchain-based alternative to SoundCloud to help artists connect directly to fans and monetize their work." According to its developers, its protocol exists in perpetuity, owned and controlled by a decentralized community of artists,.
The platform aims to disrupt the traditional music sharing service model that some critics criticize for their perceived lack of control and transparency. Founder Ranidu Lankage is a Sri Lankan pop artist known for his platinum at age 19 with "Oba Magemai", a Sinhala hip hop single that has brought a new era of Sinhala pop music. After the release of his first commercially successful album under Sony Records, he chose to become independent in order to keep control of his work
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As part of its mission to strengthen artists' control over creative content, Ranidu and co-founders Roneil Rumburg and Forrest Browning have decided that blockchain technology can empower and re-create artists by solving the problem. the problem of centralization and transparency. Audius was the result of this venture and, in the meantime, to help artists with technology, Ranidu always finds time for occasional performances at international events such as Coachella and Ultra.
Audius Success Stories
Electronic Dance Music (EDM) artist 3LAU, who is also known for his knowledge of currency and music, is one of Audius' greatest successes. Speaking recently of his thoughts on Audius, he said:
"Artists need decentralized models for sharing music and an issue for the platforms they contribute to. Blockchain allows Audius to do so with tokens and decentralized voting-based governance so that artists have a say in how the platform evolves. It is a very elegant model and, as an artist, I find it extremely attractive. "
By using Audius, artists can connect directly with fans and distribute content without the participation of an intermediary. Like SoundCloud, they can create, maintain and use their fan base on the platform, the main difference being that their accounts are permanently stored on a blockchain without the risk of stopping a third party. The platform also gives artists a complete overview of who is streaming their content, where and when, all as part of a seamless real-time payment.
Audius currently has a consulting team consisting of Jeremy Gardner, co-founder of Augur, 3LAU, EDM superstar, Paul Veradittakit, partner of Pantera Capital, Bing Gordon, founder of EA, and Greg Hazel, architect leader of BitTorrent.