Stolar Announced as First Independent Artist to Use DOT BLOCKCHAIN MEDIA

DOT BLOCKCHAIN MEDIA ("DotBC") and NYC-based independent artist STOLAR have announced the successful release of a DotBC track into the music supply-chain via MEDIUM and an accompanying video. As part of his Raw Emotions project (which celebrates its one year anniversary this month), Stolar's song "Forget and Feel" was stamped onto a Hyperledger Sawtooth blockchain last October, watermarked with a link to the blockchain registration, and delivered successfully to all major Digital Service Providers via DotBC's digital distribution partner FUGA.

This marks the first successful delivery of a DotBC-encoded audio file into the music ecosystem, ensuring that song-writing, performance, and other relevant ownership data is forever attached to the audio file itself. The relevant ownership information (metadata) for "Forget and Feel" was first bundled and stamped onto the DotBC blockchain. Then, a DotBC URL was created to display the public-facing information that had been recorded on the blockchain. The audio file was then watermarked with this URL before delivery to online stores.

Whether a user downloads the track from iTunes, streams on Spotify, or uses the track behind user-generated content on YouTube, the watermark (and therefore Stolar and other contributors' rights) is always present. Importantly, the information updates when ownership changes are made, ensuring that the most current and accurate data is available quickly.

Michael Morrison, CEO and founder of Groundwork Management, says that: "When we first heard about Dot Blockchain Media at Groundwork Artist Management, we were excited about the solutions it offers to detangle the jungle of digital royalties for our artists. Our artist Stolar, besides being a songwriter and performer in his own right, is also an independent songwriter for other big names like Aloe Blacc, Train, and Hall & Oates. We were thrilled to take the first steps with Dot Blockchain Media to test and prove that it is possible to link ownership data to audio files permanently and record changes over time. It's a step that is absolutely vital for artists and management teams of all sizes to assure proper payments are possible."

Ken Umezaki, CEO of DotBC, stated: "We founded our company with a mission to modernize how rights data and songs move through the digital world by leverage existing 21st century literate technology. We also needed to include a way to track changes to the data in an organized and authoritative way that multiple users can broadcast to the music ecosystem and supply chain simultaneously and quickly. "Forget and Feel" represents a great real-world example of how we can get there. We are grateful to Stolar and our partners for working with us and will continue to work with artists and businesses to accomplish our mission."

Stolar is a poly-instrumental songwriter and performer who has worked with many known and up and coming names, including Train, Hall & Oates, Aloe Blacc, Hedegaard and more. He co-wrote Aloe Blacc's summer smash hit, "Brooklyn in the Summer" which has over 1.6 million views (between official and lyric videos) and over 19 million streams on Spotify, as well as the first single from Hall & Oates (feat. Train) in 15 years, "Philly Forget Me Not" which reached #12 on the AC charts. His recent EP, Raw Emotions: West Village, N.Y. was released in May, as part of his year-long project based upon spotlighting and creating songs around individual emotions, entitled Raw Emotions. Outside of the recording studio, Stolar is actively involved with NAMI, the JED Foundation and Be Vocal, the mental health awareness foundations. For more information on Stolar please visit www.stolarmusic.com

DotBC is a U.S.-based corporation, which seeks to modernize media rights management by creating an open system with blockchain technology and a file container to dynamically "wrap" rights information, media files, and metadata linked to a distributed database. Co-founded by industry veterans Benji Rogers, Ken Umezaki, Bill Wilson, Allen Bargfrede, and Chris Tse with offices in New York, London, and Portland, the company's focus is on building a media rights ecosystem that provides better information to both businesses and creators about rights ownership, faster payments, and greater transparency. For more information on dotBC, please visit www.dotblockchainmedia.com.


FUGA is an industry-leading technology and services company for international music rightsholders. FUGA's technology offers best-of-breed digital supply chain integration. Its flexible platform enables clients to vary services across different DSPs so that they can develop their catalogue management, distribution, marketing, licensing and royalty accounting activity as their needs evolve. Connected to over 250 digital service providers worldwide, FUGA's platform manages ± 4 million tracks, with over 4 million deliveries every month. For more information on FUGA please visit www.fuga.com.

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