Music investing platform JKBX said on Wednesday it is partnering with SoundExchange to process payments to artists and songwriters who are a part of its creator program.
Founded in 2022, JKBX (pronounced “jukebox”) allows everyday investors to buy royalty shares that give investors the right to a slice of the income generated by songs like OneRepublic frontman Ryan Tedder‘s “Counting Stars” through public offerings regulated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Committee (SEC). The company, which launched its first public offering last month, aims to open up an asset class to fans and other investors that previously was only available to the wealthiest investors.
JKBX currently does not work directly with musicians like Tedder. Instead, the company’s deals are with record labels, music publishers and catalog funds that own the copyrights behind the royalties offered on the platform. But JKBX chief executive and Orchard co-founder Scott Cohen says the creator program was designed to “spread the wealth,” giving artists and songwriters a cut of the revenue generated by this new way to monetize music rights.
“The JKBX Creator Program was designed to continually reward the creators and artists for their contributions to society,” Cohen said in a statement. “We firmly believe that the talent who creates this indispensable artform that fuels us deserves that right.”
Artists who sign up for the creator program can create an artist page on the site and earn money for the fan attention and interaction they bring to JKBX’s platform. JKBX says it tracks page views and distributes payments based on an artist’s share of traffic to the site.
The partnership with SoundExchange means JKBX will use its technology and systems to pay artists, many of whom are already registered to work with SoundExchange.
“The mission of SoundExchange is to help creators maximize the value of their work, and JKBX provides a new alternative to monetize music assets,” said Michael Huppe, president and CEO of SoundExchange, adding the platform has the potential to bring millions of fans to “invest in the craft.”
JKBX launched its first SEC-approved offering last month, a grouping of 85 projects — 69 of which involve Ryan Tedder, the songwriter and producer best known as a member of the group OneRepublic. Tedder is a songwriter or producer on tracks by Adele, Jonas Brothers and Diplo that are offered on the platform.
Share prices on JKBX are currently fixed, meaning a song’s return will fluctuate based on the amount of royalties paid out, not an increase or decrease in the price. JKBX intends to launch a secondary marketplace in 2024, according to the site’s FAQ section, that will allow investors to re-sell their shares.