MUMBAI: Surround, the music and entertainment division of Bitfury, is announcing a recent investment in and partnership with Vezt, the mobile app that allows fans to participate in the royalties of their favorite songs - allowing artists, songwriters, producers, labels and publishers to immediately monetize their work in a meaningful way. Vezt will be a cornerstone in the Surround marketplace launching later this year. 

The deal strengthens key elements long missing in the music industry. Surround is building a marketplace for asset management and music IP using a suite of technologies that includes AI and blockchain, where artists, labels, publishers, CMOs, and other music stakeholders can distribute assets, track payments, and engage with innovative new products and platforms, all in a highly secure, radically more efficient way. Vezt will be a vital partner in this ecosystem, offering creatives helpful means to finance important projects by enabling fans and supporters to invest directly in their creative output.

“Artists, managers, and labels struggle with transparency, efficiency, and liquidity as things stand in the music business,” Surround CEO Stefan Schulz says. “Surround provides the foundational data layer that’s the rock of Gibraltar. On top, we’re creating an artist-readable layer that fits into a musician or music professional’s day-to-day workflow and makes important tasks easy. The liquidity part is what Vezt is bringing to the table, as artists and labels are struggling to bring liquidity to their assets.” 

“The business of music is changing very rapidly, and we recognize the importance of providing a transparent and efficient compensation method that will benefit artists and creators worldwide, in a way never seen before,” notes Robert Menendez, Co-founder and COO of Vezt. “The connection between artists and their fans will be much stronger going forward.” 

“The creator side has been disintermediated, and technology is now bringing it back,” reflects Schulz. “This connection is usually only happening live or via performance, but it’s happening now on the recorded side, as well, thanks to Vezt.”

Vezt has already helped a number of established and emerging artists monetize their rights to ensure creative independence and financial stability. Featuring rights in songs recorded by the likes of Jay-Z, Lil’ Wayne, Maroon 5, Nipsey Hussle, Panic At The Disco, The Weeknd, John Legend, Mary J. Blige, and hundreds more, Vezt launched in both the Apple and Google app stores 18 months ago. Surround is currently working with select artists and securing partnerships with music technology companies for their beta launch later this year, with a full public launch slated for Q1 2021.