 | |
| Founded | May 2017 in Lagos, Nigeria |
|---|---|
| Founder | Bugwu Aneto-Okeke |
| Fate | Active |
| Headquarters | , United States |
| Website | madsolutions |
Measurable Accurate Digital Solutions (doing business as M.A.D Solutions) is a Nigerian music distribution company founded in 2017 by Bugwu Aneto-Okeke.
M.A.D Solutions was established by Bugwu Aneto-Okeke in May 2017 in Lagos and started off by securing licensing agreements with Apple Music and YouTube. Aneto-Okeke then partnered with Merlin to explore more licensing rights. [1] In 2021, the headquarters were moved to Houston, Texas. [2]
M.A.D Solutions distributes contents using digital service providers (DSPs) such as Spotify, Boomplay, Ayoba, Audiomack, Triller, and TikTok. [1] [3]
As of 2023 [update] M.A.D Solutions has amassed over 3 billion streams across its DSPs. [4] [5]
M.A.D Solutions distributes audio and video contents in over 45 distributions services across different genres. [1] [6]
Through ENGAGE, a record label and subsidiary of MAD Solutions, through a partnership with Chordcash and Artsplit, MAD Solutions allows fans to support their artist. [4] Engage as a record label and talent incubator offer a 360 label service to artist. [6]
M.A.D Solutions distributes music for Afrobeats artists such as Runtown, Phyno, Flavour, Ric Hassani, Simi and Nigerian gospel artists such as Mercy Chinwo and Moses Bliss. [1] [2] [7]
Warner Music Group Corp., commonly abbreviated as WMG, is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the "big three" recording companies and the third-largest in the global music industry, after Universal Music Group (UMG) and Sony Music Entertainment (SME). Formerly part of Time Warner, WMG was publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange from 2005 until 2011, when it announced its privatization and sale to Access Industries. It later had its second IPO on Nasdaq in 2020, once again becoming a public company. With a multibillion-dollar annual turnover, WMG employs more than 4,500 people and has operations in more than 50 countries throughout the world.
African popular music, can be defined as any African music, regardless of genre, that uses Western pop musical instruments, such as the guitar, piano, trumpet, etc. Afropop is a genre of music that combines elements from both African traditional music with Western pop music, characterized by the use of African rhythms and melodies, as well as western instrumentation and production techniques. Like African traditional music, Afropop is vast and varied. Most contemporary genres of western popular music build on cross-pollination with traditional African American and African popular music. Many genres in popular music of rock, metal, pop, blues, jazz, salsa, zouk, and rumba derive, of varying degrees, musical traditions from Africa cultured to the Americas, by enslaved Africans. These rhythms and sounds have subsequently been adapted by newer genres like hip-hop, and R&B. Likewise, African popular music have adopted Western music industry recording studio techniques. The term does not refer to a specific style or sound but is used as a general term for African popular music.
Rotana Music Group is a Saudi Arabian record label and the music division of the Rotana Media Group. It was established by the Nagro Brothers, Mohammed, Khalid, Waleed, Ahmed and Nezar Nagro in 1987 and was later sold to Saudi billionaire Prince Al Waleed bin Talal. Rotana Music Group is known to be the largest record label and music repertoire holder in the Arab world and is headquartered in Riyadh, with other branches located in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Kuwait, Cairo, Egypt and Beirut, Lebanon. Artists who have released musical works with Rotana include Mohammed Abdu, Abdul Majeed Abdullah, Ahlam, Amr Diab, Elissa, Tamer Hosny, Najwa Karam, Saber Rebai, Angham, Wael Kfoury and more.
Merlin is a digital rights music licensing partner for independent record labels, distributors, and other music rights holders around the world. It was founded in 2007 with Charles Caldas as the chief executive. In January 2020, Jeremy Sirota stepped into the role of Merlin CEO. The company is a member-based organization representing the digital licensing rights for hundreds of independent labels and distributors in nearly every country around the globe. As of 2019, Merlin has paid out over two billion dollars.
Empire Distribution, Records and Publishing Inc. is an independent American record label, distribution and publishing company founded in 2010 by Ghazi Shami. Based in San Francisco, EMPIRE has offices in New York, London, Lagos, and Johannesburg in addition to recording studios in San Francisco and New York.
LANDR Audio is a cloud-based music creation platform developed by MixGenius, an artificial intelligence company based in Montreal, Quebec. Since launching with its flagship automated mastering service in 2014, LANDR has expanded its offerings to include distribution services, a music samples library, virtual studio technology (VSTs) and plug-ins, a service marketplace for musicians, and online video conferencing.
DistroKid, formerly titled Fandalism, is an American independent digital music distribution service, founded in 2012 by American entrepreneur Philip J. Kaplan. DistroKid principally offers musicians and other rights-holders the opportunity to distribute and sell or stream their music through online retailers such as Spotify, Pandora, iTunes/Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Roblox, Tidal, Deezer, iHeartRadio, and more. Originally known as Fandalism, it was originally a social media website for musicians before going into its current name while also becoming a music distributor over a year later in mid 2013.
Believe SAS is a global digital music company headquartered in France. Believe has several brands including TuneCore, Nuclear Blast, Naïve, Groove Attack, Play Two and AllPoints.
TikTok, whose mainland Chinese and Hong Kong counterpart is Douyin, is a Chinese short-form video hosting service owned by Chinese internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration from three seconds to 60 minutes. It can be accessed with a smart phone app or the web.
UnitedMasters is an American music distributor based in the United States founded by Steve Stoute in November 2017. On February 16, 2023, Baton Rouge, Louisiana rapper YoungBoy Never Broke Again noted that he owns a percentage of the company and has had several talks with Steve Stoute on Rap Radar, a music podcast.
Afrobeats, not to be confused with Afrobeat or Afroswing, is an umbrella term to describe popular music from West Africa and the diaspora that initially developed in Nigeria, Ghana, and the UK in the 2000s and 2010s. Afrobeats is less of a style per se, and more of a descriptor for the fusion of sounds flowing out of Nigeria and Ghana. Genres such as hiplife, jùjú music, highlife, azonto music, and naija beats, among others, were amalgamated under the "Afrobeats" umbrella.
Universal Music West Africa is the West African division of the global record label Universal Music Group. Founded in 2017, it has its corporate headquarters located in Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria. The label has signed at least seventeen artists from various African countries. UMGNG is engaged in recorded music, music publishing, merchandising, and audiovisual content.
Amuse is a global music company offering digital music distribution, funding and artist services to independent artists and managements, who retain 100% of their master rights. The company was founded as a modern alternative to major record labels in 2015 in Stockholm, Sweden by entrepreneurs Diego Farias, Andreas Ahlenius, Christian Wilsson, Guy Parry, and Jimmy Brodd. Amuse is based in Stockholm, Sweden, with offices in London, UK and New York, US. In 2024, Giorgio D'Ambrosio was appointed CEO of the company.
"Love Nwantiti" is a song by Nigerian singer and songwriter CKay, released in 2019 as the second track from his second extended play Ckay the First by Chocolate City through Warner Music Group. A remix of the song titled "Love Nwantiti (Ah Ah Ah)" featuring Nigerian singer Joeboy and Ghanaian singer Kuami Eugene, released as a single in February 2020, became a commercial success in Nigeria, Middle East, North Africa and in many European club venues, as well as the subject of collaborations with few local artists for localised variations. The French version included vocals by French rapper Franglish.
Chukwuka Chukwuma Ekweani, better known by his stage name Ckay, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter and record producer signed to Boyfriend Music, Warner Music Africa and Atlantic Records. He was formerly signed to Chocolate City, a member of Warner Music Group independent label services ADA. His international hit single "Love Nwantiti", also known as "Love Nwantiti ", was released in 2019 by Chocolate City.
"Finesse" is a song by Nigerian record producer Pheelz. It was uploaded on TikTok in February 2022 and commercially released on 3 March 2022, through Riidiimacool. The song was produced by Miichkel and features vocals from Nigerian Afro-fusion singer Bnxn. During its debut week, the record gained popularity across TikTok in Europe and America, with the #FolakeChallenge hashtag.
"Sugarcane" is a song by Ghanaian singer and songwriter Camidoh, featuring the Nigerian record producer Phantom, released in 2021 by Grind Don't Stop Records, through Crux Global, and MOVES Recordings. A remix, with Mayorkun, and Darkoo, featuring the Ghanaian singer King Promise, was released in 2022. The song gained popularity across TikTok, following the release of the remix.
SoundOn is a music marketing and distribution platform founded in 2021 by TikTok. It mainly provides song distribution and artist services. The tool lets users upload music directly to TikTok to earn royalties, while allowing them to retain their copyright on the music. The service also distributes artists' music to other platforms. The platform provides support including audience insights and development advice.
Konvict Kulture is a record label founded by R&B singer Akon, Melvin Brown and Bu Thiam in 2003 under the name Konvict Muzik. Artists including T-Pain, Kat DeLuna, Mali Music, Red Café, Dolla, Ya Boy, and Costa Titch have signed to and released singles or albums by the label. Heard at the beginning of many of the label's recordings, besides Akon's own production or songwriting contribution, is the sound of the clank of a jail cell, followed by Akon uttering "Konvict". In 2022, the label was rebranded into Konvict Kulture. By 2011, Fotemah Mba was appointed Vice President of A&R for the label.
"My G" is a song by Nigerian singer Kizz Daniel. It was released on 9 October 2023, through Flyboy I.N.C and Empire Distribution, as the seventh and final single from his fourth studio album Maverick (2023). Produced by DJ Coublon, Roc Legion, M.O.G Beatz, Killertunes, and Fiokee, the song gained further attention through a viral TikTok challenge that highlighted its lyrics and boosted its popularity.