Unchained Music and NOISE Foundation Partner to Enhance Transparency in Independent Music Industry

Unchained Music, an independent music distribution platform focused on artist ownership and clarity, has announced a partnership with the NOISE Foundation to develop new infrastructure aimed at improving transparency and accountability across music funding, promotion, and rights management. The partnership brings together Unchained Music's global distribution platform with the NOISE Foundation's work on structured, auditable campaign support for independent artists. Together, the organizations are addressing long-standing industry challenges such as unclear marketing spend, opaque recoupment arrangements, and limited visibility into how promotional support is structured and measured.

Under the partnership, artists using Unchained Music may have access to optional, clearly defined services including curated marketing campaigns, promotional support, and publishing administration. These services are offered separately from distribution and are designed to give artists greater insight into campaign structure, costs, and outcomes. Matthew Waters, CEO of Unchained Music, stated that independent artists often struggle to understand how promotion is funded and how returns are calculated, emphasizing that this partnership is about creating clearer, more accountable systems so artists can make informed decisions about their careers without sacrificing control.

Unchained Music will continue to operate as a standalone distributor, with no changes to artist ownership, royalty flows, or existing account terms. Participation in any additional services introduced through the partnership is entirely optional, with no automatic enrollment or obligation. The NOISE Foundation operates as a service and infrastructure organization focused on documenting and managing music campaigns in a transparent, standardized way. Its role is to support artists and partners through clearly scoped agreements, consistent reporting, and long-term stewardship of supported projects.

This collaboration represents a significant development for independent musicians who have historically faced challenges with transparency in industry relationships. By separating distribution from optional professional services, the partnership enables artists to choose if and when they engage in additional support such as marketing, promotion, or publishing administration, with each service clearly defined, scoped, and reported. The initiative aims to eliminate bundled deals, hidden recoupment structures, and forced upgrades that have characterized traditional distribution and label models.

The partnership's importance lies in its potential to establish new industry standards for how independent artists are funded, promoted, and paid. By combining modern infrastructure with a principled approach to artist support, the collaboration addresses fundamental power imbalances in the music industry. Artists will gain access to tools and infrastructure through Unchained Music's platform that compound value over time rather than extract it, representing a shift toward sustainable career development rather than short-term volume metrics. Additional details on participation and available programs will be announced in the coming months as the organizations work to implement their transparent framework across the independent music ecosystem.