SoundCloud, Helix and PayDay Records unite to support global talent

The move seeks to leverage SoundCloud’s extensive global platform and Helix and PayDay Records expertise to discover, nurture, and invest in emerging electronic and hip hop music artists.

SoundCloud says the arrangement aligns with both its history and future and arrives amidst a surge of growth across SoundCloud’s UK dance communities.

SoundCloud will identify and refer promising artists on the platform for potential signing with Helix or PayDay Records.

Founded in 2007, SoundCloud, an artist-first platform, boasts over 375 million tracks from 40 million artists. Founded in 1992, Payday Records is one of the world’s longest-running independent hip hop and R&B labels and helped to launch the careers of some of the biggest names in the genre including Jay-Z, Yasiin Bey, aka Mos Def (via his first group U.T.D.), Jeru The Damaja, and more. Electronic dance music label Helix Records was established in April 2022 as a multi-territory independent home for the world’s best new electronic dance music and boasts high-profile artists including Snakehips, Grammy-nominated Ten City, Jamie Jones, San Holo, Two Friends, and more.

“The A&R alliance between Helix and PayDay with SoundCloud is very exciting. Between us, we’re uniquely positioned to give emerging artists global reach through expert marketing, promotion and A&R support,” Helix and PayDay founder and CEO Patrick Moxey added. “SoundCloud has always incubated new talent and shares our artist-friendly ethos. I’m delighted to work with SoundCloud and emerging talent with our new association.”

“Hip hop and electronic music are core to SoundCloud’s identity, and in Patrick Moxey, there is no better partner with whom to give artists the opportunity to build their careers,” SoundCloud CEO Eliah Seton said. “I’ve known Patrick for years  – as we all know, he’s paved the way for some of the biggest names in the industry, and this partnership exemplifies our commitment to identifying and nurturing what’s next in music.”

This year, SoundCloud launched First on SoundCloud (FOSC) 2023, a six-month accelerator programme aimed at supporting emerging artists and fostering music discovery, as part of efforts to build a more holistic and robust creator offering. SoundCloud has also introduced a range of updates that allow artists and fans to directly connect, including the new Fans tool for artists, direct messages on mobile, and a new Comments tool.