Ticketing and concert discovery platform Songkick has raised $15m in additional funding from Len Blavatnik‘s Access Industries.
It takes Access’s total investment into the company easily up over $25m.
Access led a $16m funding round in the business when Songkick merged with ticketing company Crowdsurge in June last year, then pumped a further $10m into Songkick in December.
The new $15m round is helping Songkick expand its West Coast office, as well as hiring a New VP of Product, Lydia Goldberg and a new VP of Design, Lee Martin.
Songkick has worked with artists including Metallica, J. Cole, Mumford and Sons, Pixies, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Paul McCartney, Adele and more – and says its technological solution can help artists and managers reduce secondary ticketing ‘scalping’ at their shows.
“We’ve always been focused on aligning with artists and connecting them directly with their fans,” said Matt Jones, chief executive of Songkick.
“The biggest myth in live music is that ticket scalping is somehow impossible to prevent, but with the right focus and the right tools, these issues can be solved, and Songkick is at the leading edge of solving them.
“Through our technology we’re reducing scalping, giving real fans a better chance of getting tickets to the shows they’ve waited so long to attend, and generating more revenue for artists along the way.”
“Through our technology we’re reducing scalping, giving fans a better chance of getting tickets to shows.”
Matt Jones, Songkick
During the year since its merger, Songkick has expanded its artist ticketing and discovery businesses, now ticketing in more than 60 countries around the world and reaching more than 12 million fans every month.
In addition, Songkick has integrated its discovery platform with leading media and streaming services including Spotify, Pandora, MTV, CMT and Soundcloud.
Lee Martin, who has worked closely with some of the world’s biggest artists on revolutionary digital marketing campaigns including Foo Fighters, Little Dragon, Carly Rae Jepsen, Slipknot, and Cut Copy, will now manage the company’s visual design team as its new VP of Design, based in New York.
Lydia Goldberg, formerly product director for Zoopla, one of the UK’s leading property websites, also joins the team as its new VP of Product, based in London.
While at Zoopla, Goldberg built the company’s product function from the ground up and led the integration of multiple digital products.
“The disappointment that fans experience when they’re unable to see their favorite artist perform live can be very disheartening,” Goldberg says.
“Songkick has always been focused on ensuring that fans are able to see the artists they love perform, and in this role I’ll be focusing on product innovations that will empower artists to engage with their fans in even more enriched ways.”
Nick Fishbaugh, previously senior director of global music partnerships for Shazam, recently joined Songkick’s business development team in Los Angeles, expanding its West Coast presence.
Fishbaugh will report to Stephen Glicken, who was recently promoted to VP of Business Development for the company and will be responsible for expanding Songkick’s reach and partnerships with artists on a global scale.Music Business Worldwide
