Re:Discover: A Digital Label For Cover Song Artists Emerges From A Stealthy Network
Re:Discover is both an interesting new label and the center of a group of labels and services including Bundle Dragon which I wrote about yesterday. Re:Discover describes itself as offering licensing and distribution for cover song artists. It's an interesting concept but I'm a bit surprised at the seeming invisibility of the people behind the service.
Re:Discover is definitely worth a look as an example of a digital label born within the new landscape created by the web and such major territories as YouTube. Details of their services are both specific and vague offering:
- Mechanical Rights Clearance
- Digital Distribution
- Royalty Administration
If I came upon Re:Discover as an isolated entity, I would have to describe it as looking somewhat dodgy. There's no identification of who's behind it. Domains and trademarks are registered through third party entities. And there's almost no news coverage to speak of with Re:Discover only appearing in one or two news pieces in reference to other services.
However it's crosslinked and designed in the same manner as a variety of labels and services that you can find listed at the bottom of the homepage. One of the related labels is A Cappella Records which seems to be where the network of websites began.
Who's Behind This Secretive Network of Sites and Services?
According to LinkedIn, Chris Crawford is the co-founder and CEO of Re:Discover, launched earlier this year, and also the co-founder and President of A Capella Records. A Capella Records was founded in 2009 and grew out of the co-founders' involvement with a capella music organizations and groups at UC Santa Cruz. Crawford and co-founder Jesse Avshalomov won a UC Santa Cruz business plan competition for A Capella Records in 2010 after losing the year before.
Crawford is separately identified as CEO of Loudr which is part of this curious empire. Once you dig in it all makes sense. It's a group of digital labels with associated services developed for their needs and then made available to the general public as was Bundle Dragon.
On the one hand, from both a public relations standpoint and from the standpoint of establishing trust via transparency this operation is kind of a mess. On the other, if you've spent any time trying to sort out major label business via those companies' web presence, you know that they have surprisingly similar issues as regards transparency.
In any case,their approach seems to be working for them and, according to Crawford's LinkedIn account, the group as a whole is:
J Rice"Proud to work with over 600 artists including Peter Hollens, Alaa Wardi, J Rice, Adam Stanton, Mike Massé, The Swingle Singers, The Blake Robinson Synthetic Orchestra, The Contemporary A Cappella Society (CASAS), The Tufts Beelzebubs & On The Rocks. To date we've never lost a client."
The Re:Discover crew appear to be doing a good job of building on their initial connections and activities at UC Santa Cruz. And now that I've got a clearer picture of this network of websites and services, I look forward to future developments.
More: Jack Conte Of Pomplamoose Tries Bundle Dragon For DIY Digital Bundles
Hypebot Senior Contributor Clyde Smith (@fluxresearch/@crowdfundingm) also blogs at Flux Research and Crowdfunding For Musicians. To suggest topics for Hypebot, contact: clyde(at)fluxresearch(dot)com.
