Web3 business Chapel has acquired Bristol-based music and creator smartlinking startup Amplify.link. The post-acquisition business – now named Amplify – will use web3 innovation to bring together and empower artists and creators to thrive in the modern world, giving them the ability to create long lasting income from live gigs- after the gig’s are over, using DeFi (decentralised finance instruments powered by blockchain technology).
They’re combining the power of NFTs and DeFi 2.0 to create a permanent yield for an artist and venue after the gig has finished. Amplify will allow fans to directly invest in a gig and share the yield with the artist, promotor, and venue.
The music industry is currently worth £33 billion globally, yet artists only see on average 12% of the profit, with the remaining 88% taken by streaming services, record labels and other middlemen. Amplify, with Web3 technology, has the power to create whole new revenue streams for artists and creators to take home
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Netflix eats up 15% of global downstream traffic, almost as YouTube and TikTok combinedAmplify aims to bring Web3 into the music mainstream, enabling them to not just survive but thrive in today’s world. Already Amplify.link offers smart linking and marketing tools to allow artists and creators to connect and monetise their fans more effectively, and with the introduction of Web3, they can not only earn from these relationships in new ways, but own their data and build strong communities too.
Through this acquisition, Amplify’s powerful network of backers now includes Snoop Dogg and Deadmau5 (both investors in Europe’s largest Web3 venture fund Outlier Ventures), and some of Web3’s most prominent thought leaders such as Silly Tuna and Maxstealth.
The disruption to the live music industry that the pandemic caused will hopefully never have to be repeated, as the Metaverse grows and the options for experiencing music grow. Web3 offers unparalleled opportunities for artists and creators, and Amplify is offering its community the chance to be at the forefront of this new world, one where everyone can benefit equally.
Join the Amplify Discord community here to have your say in their journey and be on the ground floor of the Web3 music revolution.
Irfon Watkins, CEO, Amplify commented:
“Amplify is leading the way in helping emerging and established artists get fairly paid for their work. Amplify.link was an obvious fit for Chapel, our perspectives are aligned and we are both on the mission to democratise the music industry. I firmly believe that Web3 is the future for the music industry, DAOs will become a standard part of the industry & DeFi will become much more frequently used. As a result independent artists will be able to thrive, the struggles we saw in the pandemic from the cancellations of live music would not have as much of a catastrophic effect on their income, thanks to DeFi and advances in the Metaverse.”
Ian Matthews, Kasabian & Chief Music Officer at Amplify commented:
“Web3 will have a huge role to play in the future with the music industry. It will open up a whole new realm of possibilities in the way artists are rewarded for performing both live shows and within virtual events. Having worked as a musician most of my life I am well aware of the constant financial pressure that comes with the job, so I’m excited to head-up a project that aims to make it far more financially viable to work and survive in the industry. The last couple of years in particular have been hard on the sector, affecting not only musicians, but also small venues and promoters alike. At Amplify we want to bring financial balance to the entire music industry at a time when it’s needed more than ever, and be able to offer the opportunity for those who work within it, particularly the artists who breathe life into it, the ability to reclaim control over their income through expressing their art. ”
Sam Bates, CMO at Amplify commented: (Formerly CEO Amplify.link)
“We are now part of a seriously talented and experienced wider family, whose expertise can be drawn upon to help us build the company we’ve always dreamed of. We wholeheartedly believe this is the right move for our team and community, who we are certain will benefit massively from this. Web3 tech will allow us to reward artists and creators for using our tools and participating in our community directly, whilst opening up even more ways for artists to grow their communities, reward fans and earn more doing what they love.”
About Amplify.link
86,000 artists and creators currently use the platform to engage with their audience, 30% of which are located in the US. 9% are based in the UK, with the next most common locations including South Africa, Canada and Nigeria.
Over 19 million unique fans have used a link via Amplify.link, it has been used in every country apart from North Korea. Currently the most active users of Amplify’s marketing tools are Gen Z, with the 18-24 age range making up the majority at over a third (33%).
Amplify.link has helped grow the profile of several well known artists. Darkoo used the platform to support her track and music video, Gangsta, now with over 25 million views on YouTube and went on to sign a record deal with Atlantic Records. American rapper and actor Joey Bada$$ also used Amplify.link to help grow and engage with his audience.
About Chapel
Long-time friends and collaborators, Irfon Watkins, DOVU, TAPMYDATA, Partner at Outlier Ventures, and Ian Matthews, drummer in KASABIAN wanted to combine their experience and remodel the live entertainment business model through a community-owned, not for profit, DAO.
After buying a near-220-year-old Chapel in Irfon’s home village of Llanwrtyd Wells, they started thinking about what a music venue and its community would look like in the future.
How can a physical space and metaverse space complement each other? How might they harness Web3 innovations such as DeFi and NFTs to keep rewarding all gig participants long after the gig finishes?
