Stem co-founder Tim Luckow has launched a new platform that aims to help artists and songwriters claim so-called “black box” royalties, it was announced Thursday (Oct. 30).
The platform, called Notes.fm, seeks to simplify the process of claiming these royalties. It requires only an artist or songwriter’s name to scan streaming services, collection societies and registries, including the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC), to identify missing recording, publishing and performance rights royalties and fix issues to ensure future income flows to them directly. In addition to Luckow, the founding team includes Derek Davies and Montalis Anglade.
Now open to the public, Notes.fm does not take a cut of royalties but instead boasts a subscription model beginning at $5 a month. It previously held a year-long beta with more than 400 artists, from established names like Mt. Joy, James Blake and Girl in Red to emerging artists like Adam Melchor and Adam Wise, along with the estates of artists including Howlin’ Wolf. During that time, Notes.fm identified more than $10 million in missing or unclaimed royalties from songs encompassing more than 50 billion streams — an average of $15,500 per artist, according to the company.
The company adds that some artists saw six-figure payouts by participating in the beta, including Mt. Joy, who collected six figures across corrected historical registrations and new registrations for songs including “Highway Queen,” which was the first song to secure 100% royalty registration from delivery by Notes.fm on its release in 2024. Additionally, Blake discovered that around a quarter of all songs in his catalog had missing or incomplete registrations and was able to recover unclaimed royalties from those works.
“When it comes to music royalties, complexity is the enemy,” said Luckow in a statement. “For over a century, musicians have struggled to get paid because of disconnected systems that were not designed for the digital streaming era. Notes.fm fixes that, handling the complex work in the background so artists can focus on the music. Every musician deserves every dollar they’ve earned, and we’re here to make sure that happens.”
Added Steve Bursky, founder and partner at Foundations, which was an early investor in Notes.fm: “What sets Notes.fm apart is its ability to move artists and their teams from insight to action. Rather than merely flagging unclaimed royalties, Notes.fm empowers users to identify, correct, and directly recover what’s rightfully theirs, representing a fundamental leap forward in artist-first rights management.”
More information can be found at the Notes.fm website.
