Nigerian Producer Sarz Inks Deal With UnitedMasters

American music distribution and artist services company UnitedMasters has announced a partnership with Nigerian producer Sarz’s 1789 imprint to empower emerging African artists.

The news was made public this week following a similar agreement with Afrobeats label Mavin Records earlier this year. It aims to utilise UnitedMasters’ inclusive platform to equip the next generation of artists from the continent, offering brand, synchronisation and artist services.

According to the statement, through the partnership, Sarz, a celebrated Nigerian creative who has worked with notable stars such as Wizkid, Drake, Tiwa Savage, CKay, LoJay and Chris Brown, will extend the reach of both partners to discover artists and obtain licences for their catalogues in important African markets like Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania and South Africa, among other countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

“Our goal is to become a bridge connecting global markets through our platform,” UnitedMasters founder and CEO Steve Stoute said. “Sarz possesses an incredible eye and ear for talent, has an impressive track record and is the ideal partner for us as we expand to Africa. This collaboration represents the first step towards achieving our mission of empowering independent artists at all steps of their career globally.”

“My team and I have always been committed to supporting the development and empowerment of African music producers,” Sarz, whose The Sarz Academy Foundation will also receive support through the collaboration, said. “We can now create even more global opportunities and resources for both artists and producers on the continent. As our partnership with UnitedMasters grows, we will explore different avenues to enhance the African music industry.”

UnitedMasters is behind Beat Exchange, a platform that allows users to buy and sell beats. The year before, the company collaborated with crypto company Coinbase to allow independent artists to receive payments in cryptocurrency through Coinbase’s payroll product.