Photo credit: BandLab
The parent company of cloud-based music production platform BandLab has announced a $25 million Series B1, which has brought with it a post-cash valuation of $425 million.
Singapore-headquartered BandLab Technologies, owners of the eponymous offering, along with DAW Cakewalk, musician networking site ReverbNation and beat marketplace Airbit, contacted DMN today to share the latest increase. This latest capital injection comes after BandLab announced in December 2021 that it had secured $53 million from investors at a post-money valuation of $303 million.
The same Series B then increased its total by an additional $12 million before officially closing in April last year, with participation from Cercano Management (founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and formerly known as Vulcan Capital) and Prosus Ventures.
(Allen passed away in 2018 and Bloomberg reported in February of this year that Vulcan/Cercano “was spun off from the late billionaire’s family office in late 2021 as a standalone company for the world’s super-rich.”
Cercano also led today’s round, according to BandLab, a subsidiary of Caldecott Music Group, which also announced a “disproportionate investment from Prosus Ventures.” (The investment arm of the company of the same name, headquartered in Amsterdam and -traded Parent company Prosus is majority-owned by South African group Naspers, best known as one of Tencent’s early backers.)
The umbrella company BandLab Technologies, which executives say now has more than 60 million registered users on BandLab itself, intends to use the available $25 million to “grow its workforce” and “grow the ranks of emerging YouTubers.” to double campaigns”.
And on that front, the company emphasized the presence of “groundbreaking artists” at BandLab d4vd, ThxSoMchAnd Luh Tyler – As well as highlighting the platform’s diverse tools, including an “AI music generator” called SongStarter.
Meng Ru Kuok (CEO of Caldecott and its subsidiaries NME Networks, Vista Musical Instruments and BandLab Technologies) issued a statement detailing the increase, citing BandLab’s global expansion momentum amid rapidly evolving music sectors in emerging markets.
“In this transformative era of mass music production,” said the nearly nine-year head of BandLab Technologies, among others, “our commitment to artists, emerging musicians and creators worldwide has never been greater.” We are democratizing music creation worldwide and fostering a community where everyone can express themselves through music, regardless of their resources or technical ability.
“With this investment, we are taking a step forward into a future where every smartphone owner has the potential to be a unique music artist who is protected, empowered and heard,” concludes Meng Ru Kuok.
Back in March, AI-powered music marketing service Unhurd announced a seven-figure seed capital sum, while AI-musician collaboration platform Myxt announced a $2 million seed capital raise in April, and music NFT startup anotherblock said a week ago, it got about $4.35 million from investors.