Samsung Takes On Spotify and YouTube

There are two things that are hard for major brands to do: make it seem like you’re on the side of the little guy, and create quality, user-generated-content campaigns. But with a new platform released Tuesday night at SXSW, Samsung Galaxy might do just that.

Here’s the deal: Rockstar hopefuls can now get one step closer to their dream with the help of ADD52—a new musical content platform created by Samsung, Def Jam co-founder Russell Simmons, and entrepreneur Steve Rifkind.

It’s a smart UGC play for Samsung; they will feature a new single and video from an unsigned artist every week for 52 weeks, in hopes of getting those artists more exposure and a record deal, reports Mashable. To further entice people to submit, Samsung Galaxy will feature the winning artists on their newly launched, ad-free radio service, Milk Music.

Promise of exposure

The ADD52 platform is intriguing, especially for metrics geeks; it will measure views, watch times, engagement, social activity and more. Artists can submit their own music to ADD52 and use the platform to promote themselves and their work.

“This type of artist empowerment marks huge progress for the music industry,” Rifkind said. “The artists will be featured on multiple platforms, including Samsung’s new Milk radio service, ADD52 TV show hosted by DJ Skee, as well as music for the HoopMixtape franchise, which collectively have viewership in the millions.”

Samsung, Simmons, and Rifkind are betting that this promise of exposure will attract artists in droves, and it likely will. After all, if you’re already uploading your music content to YouTube and Vimeo, why not try another platform where you won’t need to compete with videos of kittens and drunk news anchors? And if you’re creating a profile and uploading tracks to Spotify, why not try out ADD52 as well? Participants can submit their tracks now, and the platform will officially launch in May.

“People need access. They need exposure,” said Simmons. “They need to be put in a place where they can grow and they need a vehicle for distribution.”

What’s the deal with the Content Strategist? At Contently, storytelling is the only marketing we do, and it works wonders. It could for you, too. Learn more.