DOT BLOCKCHAIN MEDIA (“DotBC”) and NYC-based independent artist STOLAR have announced the successful release of a DotBC track into the music supply-chain via MEDIUM and an accompanying video. As part of his Raw Emotions project (which celebrates its one year anniversary this month), Stolar’s song “Forget and Feel” was stamped onto a Hyperledger Sawtooth blockchain last October, watermarked with a link to the blockchain registration, and delivered successfully to all major Digital Service Providers via DotBC’s digital distribution partner FUGA.
This marks the first successful delivery of a DotBC-encoded audio file into the music ecosystem, ensuring that song-writing, performance, and other relevant ownership data is forever attached to the audio file itself. The relevant ownership information (metadata) for “Forget and Feel” was first bundled and stamped onto the DotBC blockchain. Then, a DotBC URL was created to display the public-facing information that had been recorded on the blockchain. The audio file was then watermarked with this URL before delivery to online stores.
Whether a user downloads the track from iTunes, streams on Spotify, or uses the track behind user-generated content on YouTube, the watermark (and therefore Stolar and other contributors’ rights) is always present. Importantly, the information updates when ownership changes are made, ensuring that the most current and accurate data is available quickly.
Michael Morrison, CEO and founder of Groundwork Management, says that: “When we first heard about Dot Blockchain Media at Groundwork Artist Management, we were excited about the solutions it offers to detangle the jungle of digital royalties for our artists. Our artist Stolar, besides being a songwriter and performer in his own right, is also an independent songwriter for other big names like Aloe Blacc, Train, and Hall & Oates. We were thrilled to take the first steps with Dot Blockchain Media to test and prove that it is possible to link ownership data to audio files permanently and record changes over time. It’s a step that is absolutely vital for artists and management teams of all sizes to assure proper payments are possible.”
Ken Umezaki, CEO of DotBC, stated: “We founded our company with a mission to modernize how rights data and songs move through the digital world by leverage existing 21st century literate technology. We also needed to include a way to track changes to the data in an organized and authoritative way that multiple users can broadcast to the music ecosystem and supply chain simultaneously and quickly. “Forget and Feel” represents a great real-world example of how we can get there. We are grateful to Stolar and our partners for working with us and will continue to work with artists and businesses to accomplish our mission.”