Warner Recorded Music (WRM) has enlisted LINKIN PARK co-founder and music tech pioneer Mike Shinoda as Community Innovation Advisor. In this first-of-its-kind post, Shinoda will work closely with Warner Music's leadership and business development teams to help shape the company's artist-centric approach to Web3. With Shinoda's support, WRM will continue to partner with artists to bring their creative visions to life and build communities across new platforms, products, and experiences, while exploring new revenue streams. Max Lousada, CEO, Warner Recorded Music, said: "Central to our DNA at Warner is that we start with the artist experience. A passionate creative who's deeply embedded in the rapidly evolving world of Web3, Mike's perspective here will be invaluable. As we continue to accelerate deals and build out our expertise across the company, together we'll navigate the possibilities at the intersection of music and technology with thoughtfulness and authenticity — to the benefit of our entire musical community." "There's no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to Web3; every artist and community is unique," added Shinoda. "Warner has made some strong first steps in this space, and I look forward to playing a role in further exploration — supporting artists in creating new opportunities, and connecting with fans in unimaginable new ways." Widely acknowledged as a go-to voice highlighting the connections between music and tech, Shinoda will serve as a sounding board for Warner Recorded Music as the company looks to experiment with new and emerging technologies alongside its artists. From his early days as co-founder, vocalist, and writer-producer with LINKIN PARK to blazing new paths on Twitch and in Web3, Shinoda has made a career innovating in music, fan communities, and content. His most recent explorations include "Happy Endings", the label's first single to debut as an NFT, and "Ziggurats", the world's first generative NFT mixtape — 5,000 unique mini-albums created from Shinoda's original audio and visual layers (ziggurats.xyz). In the last few years, Warner Music's industry-leading approach has led to partnerships with the likes of Roblox, The Sandbox, Genies, Griffin Gaming, Blockparty, OneOf and Splinterlands. Already, Warner Music has been behind massively popular metaverse and Web3 experiences, from TWENTY ONE PILOTS to David Guetta in Roblox; digital avatars via Genies for artists such as Michael Bublé, Cardi B and CKay; and the sale of a slew of NFTs including a hi-res digital image of the original lyric sheets from MATCHBOX TWENTY's megahit "Unwell" and Rico Nasty's "OHFR?" NFT drop on SuperRare, to name a few. Photo credit: Frank Maddocks
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