Universal Music Group and Snapchat sign global multifaceted agreement

By Emmanuel Legrand

Universal Music Group (UMG) and Snapchat's parent Snap Inc. have unveiled what they described as "an expansive multifaceted global agreement" that will allow Snapchat’s users to incorporate UMG’s catalogue of recorded music and content into creative tools, including Sounds and augmented reality Lenses. 

  Under the terms of the multi-year agreement, UMG’s entire recorded music catalogue will be made available to Snapchat users on a global basis in Sounds, and UMG will be developing Lens content featuring the company’s roster of artists, with the opportunity to feature merchandise launches and e-commerce experiences.   

  “We’re thrilled to build on our innovative and collaborative relationship with Snap and to provide Snapchat’s users with access to UMG’s vast catalog of the most iconic recordings of all time," said Michael Nash, UMG’s Executive Vice President of Digital Strategy. "When entertainment and social media companies work together, fans are able to creatively build close-knit communities around the artists and the music they love, all while ensuring that artists are fairly compensated for the use of their music.”  

A tremendous partner over the years

  Ben Schwerin, Snap's SVP of Content and Partnerships, added: "Universal Music Group has been a tremendous partner over the past several years, and we're thrilled to expand our relationship to bring Snapchatters even more music to express themselves and create engaging Snaps."  

  UMG is not new to Snapchat. Artists signed to the company have been using the platform to preview new music, such as Justin Bieber (Def Jam) and benny blanco (Interscope), who were the first to use Sounds to premiere songs. Nicki Minaj (Republic) was the first to feature artist merchandise in an AR Lens for her 2018 album 'Queen'. 

  UMG has previewed songs on Snapchat from Iann Dior (10K/VirginMusic), Dreamer Boy (slowplay/Harvest/Capitol Records) and JAWNY (Interscope), while BENEE's 2019 global Lens for her song 'Supalonely' has generated more than 1 billion views to date. 

  Commented BENEE: "Being someone who uses Snapchat often, I was excited that they wanted to use the song on one of their Lenses, but I had no idea the impact it was going to have at the time. It was really cool to see everyone connect with the Lens on Snapchat once it went live. It added another fun level to the song!"