Quick take:
- Pourshasb will oversee artist relations and music partnerships at Royal.
- She has close to a decade’s experience in the music industry.
- She brings with her deep expertise in music streaming and record labels.
Spotify’s Premium Content Strategy Director, Darya Pourshasb, is joining Justin Blau’s NFT music platform, Royal as Head of Global Artist & Label Partnerships, according to a report by Music Business Worldwide. In her new role, she will oversee artist relations and music partnerships.
Launched last summer by American music producer Justin Blau, also known as 3LAU, Royal gives users partial ownership of NFT music on the platform, allowing them to earn a percentage of streaming royalties.
The platform closed a $55 million Series A funding round last November, led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), with participation by Coinbase Ventures, electronic duos The Chainsmokers and Disclosure, as well as rapper Nas, among others.
In January, Royal’s first NFT drop featuring Nas caused the servers to crash as fans rushed to purchase the NFTs.
Royal told Music Business Worldwide that Pourshasb will focus on expanding its artist roster, bringing a variety of artists, ranging from independent artists to icons, to the platform. Prior to making the jump from Web2 to Web3, Pourshasb spent four years in her role at Spotify.
“Darya comes to us from Spotify and Sony Music, and therefore brings deep expertise in both streaming music and record labels. She understands the diverse range of needs and is in a good position to form partnerships that benefit everyone. We’re really excited she chose to join us at Royal — it’s a testament to the promise of fan-held music ownership when people who are deep in the music industry are driving this new approach mainstream,” Justin Blau told Music Business Worldwide.
Before Spotify, Pourshasb worked for five years at Sony Music Entertainment, where she handled executive office and corporate strategy before being promoted to vice president of partner development and global digital business.
With close to a decade in the music business, Pourshasb brings a wealth of experience in music streaming and record labels to Royal.
Speaking to Music Business Worldwide, Pourshasb said: “Having seen the industry from both the label and streaming side, I am very excited by companies that are truly additive and grow the pie rather than take a cut from existing players. I am also very excited about solutions that aim to fix a creator economy that continues to be broken”
“Royal does exactly that with artists opening up music ownership to fans – creating a new revenue stream and allowing for a deeper connection with superfans and new audiences. This ultimately offers value for everyone involved, from streaming services and labels to, of course, artists and fans,” she added.
Meanwhile, Spotify has been searching for Web3 talent as it plans to add NFTs to its streaming service.
Stay up to date:
