Snap launches India creator fund to support independent artists distributing music on Snapchat

“Beginning in mid-November, Snap will provide monthly grants of up to $50,000 to emerging, independent artists distributing music on Snapchat via DistroKid, and driving the creation of content on the platform,” the company said in a statement.

DistroKid is a digital music distribution service through which artists can distribute their licensed music to streaming platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music, and to social media apps like Snapchat and Instagram.

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The move is in line with Snap’s plan to access the Indian market by tapping into regional content creators. ET had reported last week that Snap has been looking to shore up its revenue in India. To do that, it has been onboarding creators in non-metro markets to boost app engagement and the advertising business.

Snap recently roped in
Ajit Mohan, former vice-president and managing director of Meta in India, to lead its Asia Pacific market. Mohan will oversee several key markets in the region, including India, China, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and South Korea.

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In India, Snapchat’s popularity has been soaring, especially among Gen Z users — people born between 1997 and 2012. In October last year,
Snap’s co-founder Evan Spiegel had told ET that the app had crossed 100 million monthly users in the country, representing almost a third of its global base of 363 million users (as of Q3, 2022).

“Snap wants to help emerging, independent artists produce quality content and build their brands by recognising Sounds creators who are driving trends and defining cultural moments — not just based on their follower numbers. We are excited to support independent and emerging artists in India who are driving creations on Snapchat,” said Lakshya Malu, interim market development lead, Snap Inc.

“By providing meaningful funding and creative support, our goal is for artists to feel empowered to continue creating and pursue a career in music.”

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The Sounds Creator Fund has been live in the US, and Snap has partnered with DistroKid to facilitate and distribute payments of $2,500 per artist to up to 20 artists per month.

Sounds is a feature within Snapchat that allows users to add licensed music to their posts. Since the launch of the Sounds feature, over 2.7 billion videos have been created on Snapchat with music from Sounds, garnering over 183 billion views globally, the company said.