Music NFTs offer a new way for musicians to take control of their creations and monetize them without intermediaries, such as record labels, managers, or even streaming platforms such as Spotify.

These digital assets also allow artists to strengthen their relationships with fans without artificial limits placed upon reach by social media giants such as Facebook and Instragram, and give the opportunity to continue to earn royalties through the secondary sales of their works. The increasing adoption of music NFTs by creators is transforming the music industry and bringing musicians and fans closer together.

What are Music NFTs?

Music NFTs are a type of non-fungible token that represents ownership of a musical piece. These variations can include albums, singles, digital artwork, tickets, video clips, mixes, and audio samples, as long as the NFT is linked to some sort of audio file. They use blockchain technology to ensure authenticity and make it difficult to forge, enabling many in the crypto music space to call them 'true digital collectibles'. 

Collectors who purchase music NFTs may not acquire the rights to the creative work, but rather the original audio file and the opportunity to support their favorite artists. As an owner, you can store your collection in a crypto wallet and decide whether or not to sell it later on, with the possibility for the original artist to receive a portion of any sales. On the other hand, musicians can choose what type of asset to sell and on which platform to mint and sell their NFTs, which gets tricky.

What's the Deal with Minting Music NFTs?

Music NFTs are emerging as an alternative monetization strategy to streaming platforms such as Spoitify and Apple Music, each of which pay a fraction of a cent for streams in the western world, and up to 10x less than that for streams originating in developing countries. By cutting out the intermediary between artist and fan without the need for that intermediary to take a cut of profit generated by the artist, the artist is left with more of revenue. 

Music NFTs allow artists to enhance the value of their work by offering fans access to unlockable content such as bonus tracks, behind-the-scenes videos, or rare album artwork. In addition, music NFTs provide a new avenue for artists to engage with their audience by offering perks or benefits to NFT holders. It's like having an immutable fan club on the blockchain. 

Top 10 Music NFT Marketplaces

1.) OpenSea

Type of Marketplace: General NFT Marketplace

Chains Supported: Ethereum, Polygon

Open or Application Required: Open

OpenSea is the largest and most well-known NFT marketplace where creators and collectors can buy and sell digital goods such as art, collectibles, domain names, and music. It features a diverse selection of music NFTs from independent artists and big names like The Weeknd, Snoop Dogg, and Imogen Heap, as well as collaborations and various genres like generative lo-fi music and 8-bit musical loops. In addition, the platform offers a minting tool to allow users to create their own music NFTs and supports Ethereum and Polygon blockchains as well as ERC-721 tokens for auctions. OpenSea has also recently introduced a feature that mandates creator royalties on successful resale of an NFT. 

2.) SoundXYZ

Type of Marketplace: Music NFT Marketplace

Chains Supported: Ethereum

Open or Application Required: Application Required

Sound.xyz is a music NFT marketplace that also functions as a minting and streaming platform. It enables fans to support their favorite artists directly and allows artists to launch listening parties for new tracks. These tracks can be released as NFTs with unique numbers representing early listeners' support. Fans can also gain value from listening parties by obtaining early music editions. Sound.xyz stands out by allowing fans to comment on the songs they support.

3.) Catalog

Type of Marketplace: Music NFT Marketplace

Chains Supported: Ethereum

Open or Application Required: Application Required

Catalog is a unique platform that combines elements that both musicians and fans enjoy: it's a digital record shop, a music community, and a streaming platform. Unlike other NFT marketplaces, it only features one-of-one digital records, but it offers the benefit of allowing artists to receive 100% of initial sales and commissions from resales. Additionally, Catalog allows artists to release their music on other platforms

4.) Async Blueprints

Type of Marketplace: General NFT Marketplace

Chains Supported: Ethereum

Open or Application Required: Open

Async Music is a music-focused NFT marketplace that originated from Async Art. It differs from other general or music-based NFT marketplaces by allowing artists to mint unique music NFTs based on the "variants" or versions of a master track. For example, a track can be broken down into separate layers called "stems" that can be owned as NFTs, with the option to choose the active variant on the master track. The platform also has an Async Player that displays information about a master track, including its stems and current settings, and a Recordings feature that allows artists to create limited edition recordings of a selected master track.

5.) Zora

Type of Marketplace: General NFT Marketplace

Chains Supported: Ethereum, Polygon

Open or Application Required: Open

Zora is a "universal media registry protocol" that allows creators to publish, monetize, and share their digital works, and also enables other creators to build upon and share those works. It offers an alternative to traditional tokens and NFTs by creating a single original token that is accessible to all and can be resold, with the original creator receiving a portion of each sale. This allows collectors to purchase the work directly from the creator and then from other users.

6.) Serenade

Type of Marketplace: Music NFT Marketplace

Chains Supported: Polygon

Open or Application Required: Application Required

Serenade is a music-focused NFT marketplace based in Australia that allows artists to create eco-friendly digital collectibles with a small carbon footprint. In addition to individual musicians, the platform also features NFTs from music festivals like the Brit Awards. Artists on Serenade include The Kooks, Ladyhawke, Dead Pony, and Young M.A. and can use technology to create intimate communities of fans and offer them unique experiences. The platform also enables the creation of other NFTs like bespoke music-related artwork and redemptions (NFTs with physical merch). It operates on the Polygon blockchain, which has a smaller carbon footprint compared to major players like Ethereum.

7.) OneOf

Type of Marketplace: Sports and Music NFT Marketplace

Chains Supported: Tezos, Polygon

Open or Application Required: Application Required

One Of is an NFT marketplace that specializes in sports NFTs in addition to music NFTs and is backed by legendary musician and producer Quincy Jones. It has separate marketplaces for sports and music NFTs, featuring drops from artists like franc Moody, Elujay, and Mack Keane. The platform prioritizes emerging artists and makes minting more accessible, even for creators new to cryptocurrency. Additionally, it offers fans the convenience of $0 gas fees and multiple payment options including cryptocurrencies and debit or credit cards.

8.) Mintbase

Type of Marketplace: General NFT Marketplace

Chains Supported: NEAR

Open or Application Required: Open

Mintbase is a global platform and marketplace similar to Amazon that allows anyone, including those with less technical expertise, to create and verify their own digital assets on multiple blockchains. It offers minters various creative allocation and redemption mechanisms for their customers, enabling the sale and exchange of items on other digital platforms as well as the creation of scarce, interoperable, and unique digital items through non-fungible tokens (NFTs). It operates on the NEAR blockchain.

9.) AnotherBlock

Type of Marketplace: Fractionalized Royalty Music NFT Marketplace

Chains Supported: Ethereum

Open or Application Required: Application Required

AnotherBlock is a company that aims to revolutionize the music industry by creating a decentralized marketplace for music rights. The company's platform connects NFTs to royalty rights, meaning that each NFT represents a certain percentage of ownership in a particular song or album. When the NFT is bought and sold, the new owner becomes entitled to a portion of the royalties generated by the song or album. This allows artists to monetize their music in a new way by selling ownership stakes in their works to fans and collectors. Each time the NFT is traded, the artist will receive a payment and ongoing NFT royalties, providing a steady income stream. This innovative approach to music ownership can give artists more control over their work and a new source of revenue while also allowing fans and collectors to own a piece of their favorite music.

10.) Royal

Type of Marketplace: Fractionalized Royalty Music NFT Marketplace

Chains Supported: Polygon

Open or Application Required: Application Required

Royal is a marketplace that exclusively features music NFTs and was founded in 2021 by 3LAU and JD Ross. The team personally selects the artists and works featured on the platform. As an artist on Royal, you maintain ownership and control of your music, but you can share a percentage of song royalties to share with collectors, as well as offer incentives such as bonus tracks and digital art.

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