Linktree acquires Odesli in a bid to become a “one-stop shop” for artists

Aussie social media startup Linktree has acquired Odesli, moving ahead in its strategy to provide a “one-stop shop” for musicians seeking to monetise their art.

Announced late on Thursday, the acquisition will see Odesli’s content matching technology integrate with Linktree under a new Music Link feature.

Odesli, formerly known as Songlink, is an automated music link aggregation platform that allows artists and fans to easily locate music across a range of streaming platforms based on what country they’re in.

By inserting one link to a song on Odesli’s platform, artists and fans can view every website the song is available to be streamed from.

Anthony Zaccaria, co-founder of Linktree, tells SmartCompany that integrating the Odesli with Linktree to create the Music Link feature will help artists connect with their fans and help fans easily access music on the streaming platforms they prefer.

“It’s reducing friction between artists and fans and helping them get to where they want to go quicker,” Zaccaria says.

“We’re getting close to being that one-stop shop for artists because they can now directly link off to their music, their merch and tour dates,” he says.

In June, Linktree partnered with the shopping platform Spring, enabling artists to embed six items from their Spring e-store into their Linktree profile. 

Founded in 2016 by Anthony Zaccaria, his brother Alex Zaccaria and their friend Nick Humphrey, Linktree has always been focused on helping musicians connect with their fans online.

Prior to starting Linktree, the brothers ran a digital digital agency catered to artists and record labels, which allowed them to see firsthand some of the frustrations musicians had.

Zaccaria says artists have the unique challenge of managing their content across a range of platforms, with music in one place, merchandise in another and so on.

“Linktree was born out of the frustration of wanting to help those artists connect with their fans and reduce the friction,” he says.

Kurt Weiberth, founder and chief executive of Odesli, will join the Linktree team as technical lead as a result of the acquisition, which was made for an undisclosed amount.

Acknowledging the acquisition, Weiberth said Linktree is a great fit for Odesli because the platform is committed to expanding and establishing new ways for artists to connect with fans and broaden their audiences.

“I’m excited to bring our technology into Linktree as they open the door even wider for creators and members of the music community,” he said.

This acquisition and new feature come as Linktree pursues a series of partnerships, feature updates and product developments.

In May, Linktree introduced its Passion Fund to help creators, business owners and activists monetise their side projects.