beatBread has $100 Million available to fund indie musicians

Music funding platform beatBread has finalized a $100 million funding agreement with Variant Investments. The startup also raised a $34 million seed round earlier this year.

The new $100 million will allow beatBread to offer funding ranging from $1000 for early-stage artists to $2 million deals for established stars. Larger deals can be funded through its recently launched invite-only investor network made up of music companies, distributors, and high-net-worth individuals.

“Our initial artist fund powered more than 500 advances to artists and independent labels, keeping ownership in the hands of artists and creators,” said beatBread CEO Peter Sinclair. “Now we’re scaling our capital sources to fund the next 1000 deals and expanding the size of our advances in the process. Major label deals are no longer the only option for artists seeking to fund their careers. Our mission is to empower artists and independent labels with better economic terms and the freedom to choose their own partners and maintain creative control.”

How beatBread Works

beatBread advances funds on existing catalog, as well as new and unreleased music, to provide capital for working artists. Advances are repaid from a share of an artist’s streaming and airplay revenues, over a period of the artist’s choosing.

These deals leave touring, publishing, synch, and merchandise revenue untouched, don’t restrict how funds are used, and leave the choice of marketing and distribution partners to the artist.

beatBread also offers a white-label platform to 20 independent labels and distributors, including Symphonic Distribution, UnitedMasters, and Too Lost Records, allowing them to provide more financial support to their artists.

Bruce Houghton is the Founder and Editor of Hypebot and MusicThinkTank, a Senior Advisor at Bandsintown, President of the Skyline Artists Agency, and a professor for the Berklee College Of Music.