Swedish music distributor Amuse has closed a $15.5m Series A financing round co-led by Lakestar and Raine Ventures.
The capital will be used to expand operations in Europe and the US for the firm that dubs itself ‘the world’s first mobile record company’.
Founded in Stockholm in 2015, Amuse provides a free music distribution service that allows new talent to deliver music to major music services like Apple Music, Spotify and Deezer.
One hundred percent of royalties go to the artist, who can track progress daily and see how people are listening and downloading their music through its app.
Amuse uses the data to analyze music consumption and listening habits and identifies promising rising talent.
It signs artists through licensing deals rather than traditional contracts.
The company was co-founded by will.i.am, and Edgar Berger, the former Chairman and CEO of Sony Music International, joined its board in 2017.
Diego Farias, co-founder and CEO of Amuse said: “The way music is produced and consumed has dramatically changed, but traditional labels have not.
“Amuse is redefining the label deal and democratizing the discovery process.
“lakestar and raine ventures will be strong supporters in helping us to build on our success in Sweden and change the music industry for the better.”
diego farias, amuse
“Amuse is redefining the label deal and democratizing the discovery process, providing a sustainable solution to this problem.
“We couldn’t ask for better partners in Lakestar and Raine Ventures.
“They will be strong supporters in helping us to build on our success in Sweden and change the music industry for the better.”
“We are very excited by Amuse’s vision to reinvent the traditional record label with technology and data, analogous to how our portfolio company Spotify reinvented music distribution.”
Dharmash Mistry, Lakestar
Dharmash Mistry, General Partner at Lakestar, said: “We are very excited by Amuse’s vision to reinvent the traditional record label with technology and data, analogous to how our portfolio company Spotify reinvented music distribution.
“Diego and his team have reimagined every step of the A&R process from inverting the commercial model to be artist-friendly and discovering new musicians to changing how individual songs are marketed.
“After their early success in Sweden, this investment will help roll out the model across Europe and the US.”
Amuse was founded by executives from Spotify, Universal Music and Warner Music including Farias, Christian Wilsson, Jimmy Brodd, Andreas Ahlenius and Guy Parry.
The company’s board of directors also includes Jörg Mohaupt, who is a former Warner Music Group board member.
Gordon Rubenstein, Managing Partner at Raine Ventures will join as a board observer.
He said: “We are thrilled to partner with Amuse to build a unique and transformational platform for emerging artists.
“This next phase of growth will bring Amuse’s groundbreaking technology and label services to artists globally, and we look forward to supporting the team by leveraging our deep networks in the media and entertainment industries.”
Music Business Worldwide
