Pharrell Williams and i am OTHER have partnered with SoundCloud to hand-pick undiscovered artists for a compilation that will benefit Sweet Relief. (Image: SoundCloud)
SoundCloud, Pharrell Williams and i am OTHER have formed a partnership to showcase emerging talent handpicked by Pharrell from the SoundCloud community. The artists’ creations will be compiled in an album, and the compilation proceeds will go to two charities for musicians.
Pharrell announced the compilation via a tweet that said: “For our shared passion and vision for music, @i_am_OTHER and I are teaming up with @SoundCloud to discover the next creators. Starting today you can tag #SCxiamOTHER on your SoundCloud track for a chance to be featured on a compilation we’re working on.”
SoundCloud Announces $10M ‘Accelerator Program’
A mix of undiscovered artists will be specially curated by the musician and producer and presented on the SoundCloud platform. The selected artists will receive funding from SoundCloud’s recently announced $10M creator accelerator fund along with promotion and marketing support.
The album is a way of helping artists through the coronavirus crisis; The Soundcloud platform saw nearly a 50 percent surge in uploads in the past one month. Soundcloud recognizing the uncertain times and the difficulty in monetizing during this period announced certain measures to help the marketing process. SoundCloud is offering a 50 percent cut in its premium marketing services, the SoundCloud Pro Unlimited, a resource guide, and free sessions with its artists’ promotion team.
“We know the rise of the coronavirus has hit creators hard with a loss of revenue and work,” the company said, “but it has not stopped the proliferation of music and creativity on SoundCloud.”
An important new initiative by SoundCloud was a $15 million package indirect investment to support creators. Out of this, $5M will be for free promotional support to drive more plays on SoundCloud.
A new button has been created to get direct fan support through Kickstarter, Patreon, Bandcamp, PayPal and more.
A further $10M was set aside for artists through the “accelerator program” to support independent creators’ career growth.
The compilation, “SoundCloud Presents: i am OTHER, Volume 1,” will feature music genres, styles and sounds from across the global SoundCloud community.
Artists who want to submit their creations can:
- Upload their tracks to SoundCloud with the hashtag #SCxiamOTHER
- Pharrell, i am OTHER, and SoundCloud will review submissions and select a minimum of 10 tracks from independent, emerging artists to be featured on “SoundCloud presents: i am OTHER, Volume 1.” There’s no limit on submissions, so maximize your chances by giving multiple submissions.
- In addition to a spot on the album, selected artists will get the support of SoundCloud’s marketing services program and receive funding for upcoming projects from SoundCloud’s accelerator funds.
- Selected artists will be notified via SoundCloud by May 6, 2020.
The album proceeds will go to two charities— Sweet Relief and Help Musicians.
“We understand our efforts here are no match for the care providers on the frontlines of this global crisis. But we will continue to look for ways to support our global SoundCloud community, so you can keep sharing music we can all turn to in these challenging times, and long into the future,” said Kerry Trainor, CEO of SoundCloud during the announcement of the monetary program to help musicians and artists.
The “SoundCloud Presents: i am OTHER, Volume 1” album will be available on SoundCloud and distributed to all streaming services.
About SoundCloud
SoundCloud was founded in 2007 and is based in Berlin, Germany. It is the world’s largest open audio platform. SoundCloud is a digital platform that provides musicians and creative artists the best tools, services, and resources to build and grow their careers. It has to date hosted over 200 million tracks from 25 million creators heard in 190 countries.
