Google backs music startup to help make more Chance the Rappers

Imagine you're in the market for a new pair of shoes, and you hear your favorite artist playing in the background of an online ad.

Coincidence? Maybe not in the future. Launched out of stealth mode Wednesday by record label veteran Steve Stoute, United Masters is tying together artists and brands in the hope of driving more attention and sales for both groups.

And cutting out labels in the process.

“Brands are spending hundreds of millions of dollars trying to get to young people by using music as the vehicle,” Stoute told the Wall Street Journal. “Being able to use music data and making it actionable so they can target and speak to these fans, that’s super important.”

The concept of empowering artists with data isn't anything new. In 2014, a startup called 300 partnered with Twitter to sort through its music data and share it with artists, record labels, and consumer brands. Spotify launched a new app for artists last month that lets them see their listening data in real-time.

United Masters, however, is vying to be artists' best partner. The team will help get artists' songs on music streaming sites like Spotify and Youtube. The artists will then have access to United Masters' platform to see who their listeners are and potentially target them with online ads. So far, the company works with about 1,000 artists.

Of course, it's not all in good faith. Artists must pay a fee described to The Wall Street Journal as the "lowest price for distribution" and also split the royalties. The artists still retains the rights to the master recordings, but they must willingly hand over their data.

In this way, United Masters isn't acting directly as a record label. But it could later "sign established artists who want to ditch their label deals," TechCrunch wrote.

That royalty split was seen viewed by some as a red flag.

"I would never ever advise any artist to split royalties," said Adam Marx, a music entrepreneur who ran music discovery service Glipple. United Masters is "going to try and play both ends against the middle."

Along with opening up to the public, United Masters announced a $70 million in venture capital funding. It's not just a hefty check. The venture has the support of two of the most notable firms in Silicon Valley: Google's parent Alphabet and venture firm Andreessen Horowitz. 21st Century Fox also participated.

United Masters' venture capital backers are confident in the mission. In fact, it was Google cofounder and Alphabet CEO Larry Page who advocated for his company to lead the Series A. He refers to United Masters as a "a movement than a mere software company," according to TechCrunch.

The venture is, at least, a sign that the traditional models of the music industry continue to shift. Chance the Rapper has continuously proven that artists don't necessarily need labels.

"It tells you that there is a massive market validation for the notion that there's money to be made from independent artists, not just streaming listeners," Marx said.