Biggest ever guide to Web3 music ecosystem (Part 1)
140+ companies and projects in music NFTs
The Web3 music scene is expanding rapidly. From a small and passionate group of crypto pioneers back in 2017, the space has grown into an entirely new music industry on the blockchain.
And it’s happening at light speed.
We created a seven-part visual map (with the help of community input on Twitter) to try and piece it all together in different segments. To my knowledge it’s the biggest and most comprehensive map of the ecosystem.
The first two sections go live today with descriptions of every platform and project listed. The full map will launch shortly afterwards.
Contents
Part1: Music NFT platforms and discovery tools
Part 2: Artist tools, protocols and music production
Part 3: Record labels and live events [coming soon]
Part 4: Fans, media and metaverse [coming soon]
Part 5: (A brief) history of crypto music [coming soon]
Part 6: Artists, DAOs and music projects [coming soon]
Part 7: Ones to watch [coming soon]
Let’s jump in.
Part 1: Web3 Music Platforms and Discovery
Curated Platforms
Most of the Web3 music activity right now happens on curated platforms. Artists have to apply to release a music NFT, or they are chosen by the founding team.
Sound.xyz - Sound is probably the most popular platform with drops from Snoop Dogg, Daniel Allan, San Holo, Alexander23 and Vic Mensa. The platform specialises in editions of 25 - 100 music NFTs priced at around 0.01 ETH - 0.1 ETH.
Catalog - Catalog focuses on exclusive 1/1s. The platform is slightly more open to curation by inviting select members of the community to onboard artists.
Serenade - Drops on Serenade are eligible for the commercial music charts in the UK and Australia. The platform is the first to create a chart-compatible NFT which they launched with Muse’s Will of the People album.
Glass - Glass specialises in music video NFTs. It’s built on Solana.
OneOf - OneOf has a more commercial edge. The platform has hosted drops from Doja Cat, Pitbull and Biggie’s estate. OneOf is built on Tezos.
Gala Music - Gala Music is the main NFT platform for Snoop Dogg’s Death Row Records. It dropped Snoop’s Bacc on Death Row album NFT which reportedly sold more than $44 million.
Gamestop NFT - Not a natural home for music but there are consistently strong audiovisual drops here by established musicians.
SuperRare - The most respected cryptoart platform. SuperRare occasionally hosts audiovisual work by musicians and artists such as Lykke Li.
Nifty Music - Nifty Music was the launch platform for Violetta Zironi who has become one of Web3 music’s rising stars. It’s an artist incubator and launchpad.
RCRDSHP - RCRDSHP sells NFT ‘packs’ of music collectibles.
Supermassiv - Supermassiv is a relatively new platform with weekly NFT drops.
Limewire - The Limewire brand was recently acquired and reincarnated as a Web3 music platform. So far, however, there is minimal volume on the platform.
Royalty Share Platforms
NFT collectors can get access to future streaming royalties from major artists.
Royal - Royal is the largest platform of its kind, hosting drops from Chainsmokers, Diplo and Nas. Every NFT grants holders access to future streaming royalties. Royal is built on Polygon.
Anotherblock - Anotherblock has launched a string of impressive drops, offering streaming royalties in various commercial songs including The Weeknd’s Acquaintance, and Alan Walker’s Alone Pt. II.
Opulous - Opulous also gives holders access to streaming royalties from artists like Tyga.
Nebula - Nebula is a royalty-sharing platform focused on the hip hop market.
Discovery / aggregators / players
We’re seeing a rapid growth in Web3 music players, playlist creation tools and aggregators. Discover the latest music NFTs, create playlists, see what other people are collecting or plug in your wallet to stream your collection.
Futuretape - Created by Hype Machine founder Anthony Volodkin, Futuretape is a music player that aggregates music NFT drops from across various platforms and presents them in a playlist for discovery.
OohLaLa - OohLaLa is a website for creating playlists out of your NFTs. The team also curates different playlists based on mood, genre and popularity.
SpinAmp - A simple tool for making playlists and streaming the music NFTs straight from your wallet.
SuperCollector - SuperCollector shows you what collectors are buying in real time. You can also stream music from a particular collector or artist, and see what music NFTs are available to collect right now.
Web3 streaming
We’re a long way from recreating Spotify in Web3 but there are some platforms pursuing the concept.
Audius - Audius is a decentralized streaming service that claims to have 7 million monthly users.
Emanate - Artists can earn tokens via streams.
Blockchains
Where is most of the Web3 music activity happening?
Ethereum - Ethereum is still the dominant chain, home to Sound.xyz and Catalog. Gas fees are comparatively higher but long-term security and provenance of the NFTs is still unmatched.
Polygon - Polygon is probably a close second, utilised by Royal, Decent, Serenade and others.
Solana - Solana has a growing music community thanks to Nina Protocol and Glass (video NFTs).
Flow - Flow is a more centralized option for mainstream use-cases, used by Ticketmaster for its commemorativeNFTs.
Tezos - Tezos has always had a strong, active art ecosystem. Early signs of a similar trend developing in music. OneOf is built on Tezos.
Arweave - Arweave is a “permaweb” storage blockchain. It’s used by most of the big platforms including Sound.xyz.
Near and Algorand - Some signs of experimental activity on Near and Algorand.
Part 2: Artist Tools, DIY Protocols and Music Production
Open Protocols and DIY for artists
Although curated platforms dominate the landscape, we need more open tools for artists to create music NFTs and fan experiences on their own. The ‘protocols’ allow artists to create their own NFTs and drops.
Zora - Zora is the heart of the creator economy. Artists can create NFTs of songs and videos. Developers can build new music applications on top of it (e.g. FutureTape and Catalog are built on Zora).
Sound Protocol - Built by the Sound.xyz team, Sound Protocol will allow any artist to drop an NFT. Developers are also building music apps here.
Decent - Another open protocol with tons of no-code tools for artists to build and host NFT drops.
SONA - SONA is a new protocol currently in beta. It is designed to be fully open to all artists.
Nina - An open protocol on top of Solana.
Lens - Lens is a social protocol but we are increasingly seeing music NFTs created here.
Catalog Protocol - The Catalog team is currently developing a new protocol.
Neume Network - Open source infrastructure that crawls music metadata across Web3, allowing developers to build on top of that metadata.
Tools for artists
These tools can help artists take things to the next level. Embed NFT drops on your website, create revenue splits for collaborators, analyse data or supercharge your marketing.
Bonfire - Bonfire is a ‘drag and drop’ NFT template so you can host an NFT drop on your website.
Manifold - The industry standard platform for creating your own NFT drops and custom smart contracts.
Tellie - Tellie allows you to create a token-gated community or gated access to content.
Fuel - Fuel is ‘Shopify for NFTs,’ allowing you to create a storefront for your NFTs. They are working on some very large music partnerships.
Showtime - Showtime just launched a very cool Spotify integration. Pre-save a track on Spotify and get a free NFT.
0xSplits - Allows artists and platforms to split revenue from NFT sales instantly. Used on Sound.xyz and many others.
Mirror - A Web3 blog platform similar to Medium. You can also launch crowdfunding here and allow your fans to collect your blog posts.
CreateOS - CreateOS is building a wallet specifically optimised for the music industry, designed for use by record labels, artists and music professionals.
Reveel - Allows complex revenue share for record labels and artists.
Laylo - Allows artists to send notifications and updates to fans and collectors in real time.
Hey Mint - No-code tool to launch an NFT project including allowlists.
Bello - A data analytics tool to learn more about your collectors.
Soundpickr - Data analysis on music NFTs.
MusicOS - MusicOS is building a platform for fans to listen to music with added social elements such as following friends, artists and other collectors.
Async Music - Create music NFT drops including generative music.
Vault - Artists can create a ‘vault’ of bonus content while fans can purchase keys to unlock it.
.RECORDS - A new domain name service for musicians and music companies. Own yourbandname.records.
Music production and interactive beat players
Web3 is opening new ways to create music collectively, share samples and interact with NFT beat players.
Arpeggi - A Web3 DAW and community-sourced sample packs.
Secret Garden - An interactive beat player created by the Capsule House NFT project team. Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda is an advisor and featured artist.
SPORES - An interactive remixer and beat player built on Zora. Created by Kanye West and Rihanna producer Keyon Christ.
Endlesss - A collaborative music making app. Super fun and playful.
Everwave - A collaborative music production platform built on Solana.
StemsDAO - Music stems from high-profile artists are minted to the Polygon blockchain. Artists can remix them.
That’s all for Part 1.
I’ll be back soon with the rest of Web3 music map, featuring record labels, artists and a little crypto music history.
What is Ziggy Ziggy Music?
The home of Web3 music discovery. Coming soon:
Daily videos
Playlists
Editorial
Written and curated by musicben.eth - leading Billboard’s Web3 music coverage.
Disclaimers
This map was curated by me along with input from the community via crowdsourcing on Twitter. However, it’s still just my reflection and is not exhaustive. I am not an investor in any company or project listed here, but I do own NFTs from many of the platforms mentioned, including Royal, Sound.xyz, Zora and Decent.