3LAU Gives Half the Streaming Revenue for 'Worst Case' to Fans

3LAU—aka Justin Blau—continues to find new ways to highlight the intersectionality of music and technology. His new release "Worst Case" featuring CXLOE, is yet another example of how the artist is building community through dance music and blockchain tech. Out now on his imprint, Blume Recordings, the song showcases the producer's house chops. However, what's most remarkable is that 333 fans will get to share in the revenue from streams of the song.

Blau is giving away 50% of the ownership of his song via Royal, the platform he founded that gives fans the chance to buy ownership in their favorite artist's work. It's a new way to build community, by highlighting how interconnected the fan to artist relationship really can be.

"One of my goals as a musician is to not only make unique art but to build an everlasting symbiotic relationship between artists and listeners. What if my listeners and biggest supporters could share the success of my music with me? Why shouldn’t they? After all, I wouldn’t be where I am today without them," he said in a press release.

"My goal as an avid member of the blockchain community and CEO of my new company Royal — is to make that a reality. My long-term vision is that digital collectibles will eventually grow into actual ownership in a song’s master revenue rights, enabling artists to disintermediate the music industry, capturing value alongside their fans. That’s why I’m so excited to kick off what I hope one day becomes a new standard for song ownership."

Blume Records is the first non-profit dance music record label. It was founded in 2016 by Blau. The label has raised over $450K for organizations like the ACLU and Pencils For Promise.