SoundCloud facts for kids
Logo used since 2010
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Screenshot
Screenshot of the desktop version of SoundCloud
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| Type of business | Private |
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Type of site
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| Available in | English |
| Founded | 27 August 2007 |
| Headquarters |
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Germany
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| Country of origin | Germany |
| Area served | Worldwide |
| Owner | SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG |
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| Services | |
| Employees | ≈425 (2021) |
| Registration | Optional; Required to post and upload content. |
| Users |  140 million users monthly (2023) |
| Launched | 17 October 2008 |
| Current status | Active |
| Written in |
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SoundCloud is a popular online service where you can listen to and share audio. It's like a huge library of sounds and music! The company that owns it is called SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG.
SoundCloud was started in 2007 by two friends, Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss. They wanted to make it easier for musicians to share their work. Today, it's one of the biggest music streaming services in the world. You can find it in 190 countries!
As of 2023, over 140 million people use SoundCloud every month. There are more than 200 million audio tracks available. You can use SoundCloud for free, or you can get a paid membership for extra features. It works on your phone, computer, and even Xbox. SoundCloud has grown from just a streaming site into a big entertainment company.
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The Story of SoundCloud
SoundCloud began in Berlin, Germany, on August 27, 2007. It was created by Alexander Ljung, a sound designer, and Eric Wahlforss, an electronic musician. Both are from Sweden. The website officially launched on October 17, 2008.
At first, SoundCloud was meant to help musicians work together. They could easily share recordings and talk about them. But it quickly became a popular place for artists to share their music with everyone. Soon, SoundCloud started to become as important as Myspace for musicians.
In 2009, SoundCloud got its first big investment of €2.5 million. By May 2010, one million people were using the service. More investments followed, and by January 2012, SoundCloud had 10 million users. The site was growing very fast, adding about 1.5 million new users each month in 2012.
In 2014, SoundCloud started talking with big music companies. They wanted to make sure artists were paid fairly for their music. This was important because many songs on the platform were copyrighted. SoundCloud raised US$60 million to help with these plans.
In 2019, SoundCloud bought a company called Repost Network. This helped artists share their music even more easily. In 2020, Sirius XM invested US$75 million in SoundCloud.
A new way to pay artists was announced in March 2021. It's called "fan-powered royalties." This means that the money an artist earns comes directly from their biggest fans. If a fan listens a lot or pays for a subscription, more money goes to that artist. This system is designed to help smaller, independent artists.
SoundCloud's Chief Financial Officer said in 2021 that the company was close to making a profit. They hoped to be profitable by 2023. The rise of "SoundCloud Rap" and new artists finding fame helped the company grow. SoundCloud is also special because it lets artists and listeners connect directly.
In January 2024, it was reported that SoundCloud was looking to be sold. Its estimated value was around $1 billion.
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How SoundCloud Makes Money
SoundCloud offers different ways for artists to earn money from their music. In 2014, they launched "On SoundCloud." This program lets artists make money through ads played before their songs. They can also get sponsorships.
SoundCloud made deals with many content partners and independent music labels. They also worked with Warner Music Group. This allowed Warner Music to earn money from their songs on the site. However, some other music labels were not sure about SoundCloud's business plan.
In 2015, Sony Music Entertainment even removed its content from SoundCloud. They were worried about how much money artists would make. But later, SoundCloud made deals with other big music groups like Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment.
In February 2017, SoundCloud launched a paid subscription called SoundCloud Go. This lets users listen without ads and download music to listen offline. The original plan, now called SoundCloud Go+, offers even more songs and features.
In 2017, SoundCloud had to make some tough choices to save money. They closed two of their offices in San Francisco and London. Later that year, they received a big investment of $169.5 million. This helped the company keep going.
In May 2022, SoundCloud bought a company called Musiio. This company uses AI (Artificial Intelligence) to help discover new music. SoundCloud plans to use this technology to improve how users find new songs.
SoundCloud Features
SoundCloud has improved a lot over the years. In 2012, they made it much better for mobile phones. You could listen to multiple things at once and easily move around the site. At that time, 10 hours of new content were uploaded every minute!
SoundCloud has two main apps. The main SoundCloud app is for listening to music, finding new songs, and making playlists. In 2015, they released another app called SoundCloud Pulse. This app was for artists. It let them upload and manage their music, reply to comments, and see how many people were listening.
By the end of 2016, SoundCloud Pulse had been downloaded over 100 million times. In 2020, SoundCloud added "Insights" directly into the main app. This lets all users see who their top listeners are and where they are from. Pro Unlimited subscribers get even more detailed information.
In April 2017, SoundCloud added support for Chromecast. This means you can easily play SoundCloud music on your TV or speakers.
SoundCloud Go and Go+
On March 29, 2016, SoundCloud launched SoundCloud Go. This is a paid service that lets you listen without ads and offline. It also includes licensed music from major record labels. This means you can find popular songs alongside music uploaded by independent artists.
SoundCloud Go was first priced at US$10 per month. In February 2017, they changed the plans. The original plan became SoundCloud Go+. They added a cheaper plan, just called SoundCloud Go, for US$5 per month. This cheaper plan still has no ads and offline listening, but it doesn't include the licensed music library. SoundCloud Go+ also offers higher quality streaming and works with some DJ apps.
Next Pro for Artists
SoundCloud also has a special service for musicians called Next Pro. This service offers premium features for creators. With Next Pro, artists can upload up to six hours of audio. They also get better statistics about their listeners. They can even turn off comments on their tracks if they want. The top Next Pro plan allows artists to upload unlimited music. This service costs US$99 per year.
Helping Artists Grow
In October 2022, SoundCloud launched "SoundCloud For Artists." This program helps musicians with things like marketing, getting funding, and distributing their music. It's a way for SoundCloud to support artists directly.
SoundCloud's Impact on Music
SoundCloud changed how artists share and promote their music. It became a place where musicians could release songs without needing a record label. This created a community where both listeners and artists could connect. You can comment, like, and share songs, making it feel like a social media site.
In 2018, the Grammys started to recognize artists who became popular on SoundCloud. This showed how important the platform had become. For example, Chance the Rapper released his first mixtape, 10 Day, on SoundCloud. He chose not to sign with a big record label. He felt it was better to give his music to fans "without any limit on it."
The Rise of SoundCloud Rap
SoundCloud also helped create a new style of rap music called "SoundCloud rap." Artists like Lil Pump, XXXTentacion, Juice Wrld, and Lil Uzi Vert became famous through SoundCloud. Many of them later topped the music charts.
SoundCloud rap often has a raw, lo-fi sound. This is because many artists started by recording songs at home without expensive studio equipment. The lyrics often focus on repetition. Many SoundCloud rappers also have unique looks, like bright hair and face tattoos. They are often young, in their late teens or early twenties, and have a huge following among young people.
For example, Smokepurpp, a SoundCloud artist, said he didn't even use a real microphone for his first songs. The freedom to upload music easily meant millions of artists could share their work. This DIY (Do It Yourself) approach helped create this new sub-genre of rap.
Where SoundCloud is Blocked
Sometimes, governments block access to websites.
- The government of Turkey blocked SoundCloud in January 2014.
- In October 2022, Russia blocked SoundCloud. This was because the platform did not remove certain anti-war podcasts.
See Also
- Weird SoundCloud
- Music websites
- Music streaming services
