In our age of the internet, file sharing and online streaming, many artists are struggling to get a fair deal. British singer-songwriter Imogen Heap is hoping to change all that, using a technology that could revolutionise the way music is produced and shared.
Heap is one of a group of artists and coders who are using blockchain technology to launch and distribute music. Blockchain technology aims to record all recent transactions on a network and file them back as a permanent database. The technology was first used by Bitcoin.
On Friday 2 October between 7pm and 8.30pm BST, Heap releases her song Tiny Human, and its associated data, into the wild at a special Guardian Live event.
The launch will serve as an experiment for creators, developers, hackers and technophiles to brainstorm, collaborate and test out existing and work-in-progress platforms.
Over the following 24 hours, the team will track and report back on the performance and possibilities of this new way of connecting artists with audiences and will reconvene the next evening to discuss what could be improved, what’s been a success and, most importantly, what’s next.
We’ll be streaming the whole event live. Join us for a panel discussion about the future of the music industry, Heap’s live performance, and the launch of Tiny Human - a moment that could mark the beginning of a fresh set of standards and an entirely new way forward for the music industry.
