Vertigo's Song Stories brings music to the forefront, allowing users to access Spotify or Apple Music within the Vertigo app.

According to Vertigo, Social Stories is a unique and legal way to mix visual and musical experiences into moments that are easy to share with friends and fellow fans.

How to use Social Stories

When a song is played in Vertigo, users will see a visual story made up of the 'most popular' user-generated pictures and videos connected to that song.

Vertigo users can also take photos and videos while listening to music. They can link their visual status with the songs they are playing.

Followers on the app can see and like those visual updates in their feed, and everyone can see the most popular posts in Trending.

The result is a video made up of the 'most liked' content associated with the song, which aims to simultaneously provide maximum financial benefit for music makers and rightsholders.

"Song Stories solves a key social media challenge facing the music industry," says Vertigo CEO Greg Leekley. "While today’s picture and video sharing offers consumers a fun, lean-forward social experience, music must [usually] just settle for being in the background."

"This doesn’t help the artists’ music chart or get artists paid. It’s ironic that music artists remain the most popular figures in social media, while the songs that connect us to them are not getting any meaningful direct benefit. With Song Stories, artists get that benefit," adds Leekley. 

Due to its two approved patents, Vertigo connects premium streaming accounts such as Spotify and Apple Music into a collaborative listening experience, while allowing users to engage socially while doing so.

Vertigo says this means that it does not require a separate Content ID or licensing system. Tracks come from the listener’s paid streaming service every time the song is played or heard.

"Every song has a story, and every story has a song. Now, with Vertigo Song Stories, social currency is now music currency. They are two sides of the same coin in the future of music marketing and monetisation," says Leekley.

"When a song plays on the radio, it’s potentially heard by one million people, but the rightsholders are only paid for that one play. With Vertigo, that’s one million paid streams," adds Phoenix Stone, Vertigo’s new global head of creator services.

"Social 'fear of missing out' (FOMO) can be a real driver of full mainstream consumer adoption of premium streaming. Vertigo is determined to add value to the industry, and we’ve designed our app to do just that," says Leekley.

Leekley concludes, "We’re not here to surf pre-existing success. We’re here to help grow both the premium streaming pie as well as get those artists who engage with us a greater share of it."

For more information, visit www.vertigomusic.com. You can also follow Vertigo on Facebook, Twitter or on Instagram.