HIFI deploys its Royalties Dashboard aggregating all financial data sources

By Emmanuel Legrand

HIFI, a financial rights organisation for the music industry, has opened up for applications to join its membership community in order to have access to tools such as its complimentary Royalties Dashboard, a platform that aggregates financial data from labels, distribution services, PROs, music publishers and others. 

  HIFI said its Royalties Dashboard "provides music creators with a powerful, consolidated view of their current and future earnings and can advise them on steps to accelerate their careers."

 
  "Our Royalties Dashboard is the first tangible expression of HIFI's mission," said Damian Manning, Founder and CEO of HIFI. "It allows rights holders to see what they're earning across all of their royalty accounts, helping them make better business decisions. HIFI regularly hosts workshops and events to gather feedback and engage our community. A unified dashboard was a frequent request. And it will serve as a springboard for a suite of products that we're building for our members."

Provide transparency

  Max Gredinger, Artist Manager at Foundations Music, said HIFI offered "much needed transparency and access to royalties data across a multitude of revenue streams, and their financial services are thoughtfully designed to help effectively manage an artist's career."

  HIFI is also deploying Cash Flow among its charter members. The service, once fully implemented,  will allow artists to be paid twice a month like a salary, based on their revenue streams. Manning said the service was a frequent request from artists in surveys and workshops and Cash Flow will help creators getting access to credit and other market options generally unavailable to non-traditional earners.

  "The security of a consistent paycheck is another top priority for our members," said Manning. "HIFI can collect their royalties and guarantee a predictable income. As an independent, we collaborate with our artists' music services to facilitate Cash Flow. It's our independence and innovative technologies that make products like the dashboard and Cash Flow possible. There's so much we can do for HIFI members and we're just getting started."

Input from Matt Pincus

  HIFI has received the backing of several investors, including Matt Pincus, former co-founder and CEO of SONGS Music Publishing, which he sold in 2017 to Kobalt, via his new investment vehicle MUSIC, a joint venture with LionTree. Other investors include venture capital firms Lerer Hippeau and Flybridge Capital.

  Manning said HIFI was founded in New York by industry veterans and technologists to build tools taking into account the unique business and financial needs of music professionals that weren't being met by the market. HIFI has also recruited advisors and experts such as Platoon's Denzyl Feigelson, Splice's Steve Martocci, and Will Page, former Chief Economist at both Spotify and PRS for Music.

  "While the music industry has evolved dramatically over the past two decades, the financial solutions available to artists and their teams are historical relics by comparison," said Manning. "We represent a new kind of artist organisation, one that is focused on protecting the financial rights of its members. And rather than compete with other music organisations, we're building innovative products and services that work in concert with them to financially empower the creator class."