SoundCloud has partnered with on-demand vinyl and CD platform elasticStage to enable Artist Pro users to sell vinyl globally.
Artist Pro subscribers can join the waitlist for the service from roday with no upfront cost, and no minimum order requirement. Once they are approved to use the service, it will allow them to pick tracks from SoundCloud, add credits and upload artwork to create an on-demand vinyl release. SoundCloud will create a web page for the record and list it for sale.
SoundCloud and elasticStage will ship each record as orders come in, and artists will then get paid for every sale. Shipping is available to almost 100 countries. The on-demand model means that only the vinyl that is ordered will be produced, and elasticStage will handle all processing, shipping and customer service requests.
In a statement, SoundCloud CEO Eliah Seton said: "Vinyl sales have surged over 300% since 2016, yet most independent artists have been excluded from this growth due to high manufacturing costs and logistical limitations. At SoundCloud, we're committed to helping artists thrive by providing new opportunities for connection and monetisation.
"This partnership is another step toward ensuring that every artist – no matter where they are in their career – has the tools to build a sustainable career."
"We created elasticStage's on-demand vinyl technology to make physical music as accessible as streaming for artists and music fans everywhere," said Steve Rhodes, elasticStage CEO and co-founder. "Records have been bringing fans closer to their favourite artists for decades, but today's modern music creators are now shut out of the vinyl market by high costs and outdated practices – our mission is to break down these barriers so musicians can sell vinyl with zero cost or risk.
"SoundCloud's artist-centric platform is a perfect fit for us, and we're thrilled to be collaborating with them to help independent artists connect with fans and build long-lasting music careers."
Find out more about the new service here.
Last year, SoundCloud launched six AI-powered tools that aim to allow artists and fans to remix, edit and produce music without using traditional software or equipment. However, the company faced backlash after an update to its Terms of Service seemingly gave it permission to use artists' content to train AI. A statement from the platform later clarified that it had "never used artist content to train AI models” and asserted that “AI should support artists, not replace them”.
Earlier this year, a record pressing plant in Scotland, Seabass Vinyl, was named the UK's first to be officially certified as carbon neutral. In April, a new vinyl pressing plant opened in Ireland, Anthem Vinyl.