Spotify revealed on Wednesday that it has purchased WhoSampled, a community-driven database that catalogs sampled music. The announcement was also included in Spotify’s Wednesday blog post highlighting new features related to song credits.
The financial details of the agreement were not made public, but Spotify confirmed to TechCrunch that the acquisition encompasses both the WhoSampled team and its database. (PitchBook and LinkedIn data indicate the company’s workforce is small, with about 10 employees.)
Founded in London in 2008, WhoSampled maintains a vast archive of tracks, samples, covers, remixes, artists, and more. The platform’s website notes it now tracks over 1.2 million songs and nearly 622,000 samples. This information is now fueling Spotify’s newest features, including the soon-to-launch SongDNA music discovery tool, which was also unveiled on Wednesday.
Image Credits:Spotify
Spotify has actually been familiar with WhoSampled for several years, having collaborated with the platform in 2016 to let users access their Spotify playlists and saved songs through the WhoSampled app.
In its statement regarding the acquisition, WhoSampled indicated that its independent platform and brand will continue to exist after the deal is finalized, and users can expect some enhancements as it integrates with Spotify’s broader operations. For example, the company mentioned that moderation for submissions will become faster, display ads will be removed from the website in the coming weeks, and its mobile apps will soon be available as free downloads with complimentary subscriptions.
“During our recent conversations with Spotify, it became evident that we both value the importance of musical context and share a vision for helping listeners explore the music they love more deeply,” the WhoSampled team wrote in their announcement. “Spotify has demonstrated real dedication to our mission, and we couldn’t have hoped for a better place for WhoSampled,” the statement continued.
