Mixcloud, the audio streaming platform that’s fostering a global community for audio culture, has launched Mixcloud Select, a pioneering fan-to-creator subscription service that brings listeners closer to the creators they love. Listeners can subscribe to a Select creator’s channel to directly support them, and the music played in the shows they upload. Once subscribed, they can enjoy an enhanced listening experience that includes downloading shows to listen offline and viewing upfront tracklists.

Mixcloud offers listeners access to a unique collection of over 15 million radio shows, DJ mixes and podcasts produced and uploaded by over 1.3 million tastemakers and curators around the globe.

“Mixcloud Select is our pioneering move toward building a fair and sustainable ecosystem that works for audio creators, artists and listeners. We want to enable fans to get closer to the culture and communities they care about, while ensuring that everyone involved in the creative process is recognized and rewarded accordingly,” said Nico Perez, Co-Founder at Mixcloud.

Today, the first wave of Select goes live with 47 creators who have leveraged the Mixcloud platform to build loyal listener communities, covering a wide range of genres and scenes. Creators range from international DJs including Afrojack, Nicole Moudaber, Leftoand John Digweed to homegrown Mixcloud stars such as DJ Blighty and Low Light Mixes; independent radio stations Brooklyn Radio, Soho Radio and Red Light Radio; record labels Defected Records and Axtone Records; and curators Clash Magazine and Stamp the Wax.

With Select, audio creators are able to build an inner circle of fans and offer their subscribers a more rewarding experience, whilst earning revenue from their audio content. Mixcloud will collaborate with its first wave of creators to roll out additional new features, such as offering exclusive content and direct messaging with their subscribers. All creators can now register their interest in joining Select in the near future.

“There’s a lot of creative energy that goes into crafting a DJ mix, radio show or podcast in order to inspire listeners, and until now, these creators have been left out of the revenue mix. We’ve been working hard to design a model alongside the industry that recognizes the value these creators bring to the music ecosystem, and today we’re excited to share this with the world,” said Nikhil Shah, Co-Founder at Mixcloud.

Mixcloud Select uses a flexible channel-based subscription model that allows creators to set their own price, starting at 2.99 per month in local currencies ($/£/€). Creators receive a share of profits from their subscriptions, while the artists, labels and publishers played in their shows receive royalty revenue. Mixcloud’s proprietary content ID system identifies individual tracks and underlying rights holders, solving the major challenge of ensuring everyone involved in creating a piece of music is paid fairly.

Mixcloud has announced direct licensing deals with Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group, Merlin, Warner/Chappell Music Publishing, ICE (a joint initiative between PRS, GEMA, and STIM) and many others.

Perez adds: “Through building the Mixcloud community, we’ve identified a strong trend around loyalty and depth of engagement between listeners and their favorite audio creators. These fans can now take the next step by directly supporting creators’ livelihoods. In turn, this leads to increased discovery and more income for artists, who are at the core of Mixcloud. We’re excited to continue bringing creators and fans closer.”

For more information on Mixcloud Select, visit mixcloud.com/select

About Mixcloud:
Mixcloud is an audio streaming platform connecting a global community of listeners and creators through audio culture. Listeners can access a unique collection of over 15 million radio shows, DJ mixes and podcasts produced and uploaded by over 1.3 million passionate tastemakers and curators around the globe.

Launched in 2009, Mixcloud’s mission is to build a fair and sustainable ecosystem for audio culture. The platform’s proprietary content ID system is used to identify individual music tracks played in shows, ensuring proper payment is made to all artists and underlying rights holders. Mixcloud also collaborates with brands under its in-house agency LOUD, working with the likes of Adidas, W Hotels, Sonos, Dr. Martens, Eventbrite, and more to create cutting-edge cultural solutions.

Join the Mixcloud community at mixcloud.com or get the app via the App Store or Google Play.

Product summary:
Mixcloud Select channel subscriptions start at ($/£/€) 2.99 per month, with ability for creators to set a higher price. Subscriptions renew monthly and can be cancelled anytime. Select subscribers will receive the following features on individual channels (additional features to be rolled out in 2019).

• Offline listening.
  Download shows from the Mixcloud app (iOs and Android) to listen anytime, anywhere.

• Upfront tracklists.
  View full show tracklists before you hit play.

• Fair distribution model.
  Directly support creators, plus the music and artists played.

H/T C.D.