Trailblazers is an MBW interview series that turns the spotlight on music entrepreneurs with the potential to become the global business power players of tomorrow. This time, we meet Randy Fusee, CEO of music streaming platform Coda Music. Trailblazers is supported by TuneCore.
The dominance of algorithmic music discovery on streaming platforms has become a source of mounting frustration for artists and managers.
Enter Coda Music, which claims to be the first fully licensed, on-demand premium streaming service to launch in almost a decade. It’s taking direct aim at this long-standing machine-driven approach.
Coda Music positions itself as an alternative to algorithmic curation, with user-generated playlists and social sharing features designed to prioritize human recommendation over machine learning.
Fans can share listening activity through social feeds and customize profiles, while artists can engage directly with their audiences within the app.
“True discovery happens in those unexpected moments – not through recycled recommendations like ‘If you like artist A, here’s artist B,’” CEO Randy Fusee argues.
“Algorithms can’t replicate that. Only humans can.”
Fusee calls Coda “the first platform to seamlessly combine the global music catalog with a social network, powered by artists and fans.”
While Western streaming platforms have largely treated social features as an afterthought, services in China like NetEase Cloud Music have demonstrated the power of community-driven discovery.
NCM, for example, combines streaming with social features that allow users to share and comment on music. Artists respond directly in comment sections to build fan connections, and users spend around 90 minutes daily on the service.
Coda is betting that Western audiences are equally hungry for human connection around music. “Every major platform runs on the same algorithmic logic – prioritizing profit over artistry, and passive consumption over real connection,” Fusee claims.
He adds: “We’re rebuilding the middle class of artists and giving fans the power to shape what gets heard. It’s a return to authenticity, driven by community.”
More provocatively, Coda introduces a “FanDirect” program that allows subscribers to allocate $1 of their monthly fee directly to any qualifying independent artist.
Combined with what the company claims are “the highest per-stream rates in the industry,” it’s an attempt to address streaming’s notorious artist compensation problem through what Fusee calls a “per-fan” rather than “per-stream” model.
Coda has launched in the US and Canada with plans to expand into Europe and Asia in 2026. The service is priced at $10.99 per month for an individual plan or $16.99 for a Family plan, which lets you access up to four accounts.
Co-founded by a team with deep tech and music backgrounds – Fusee and CTO Jeff Teles previously built tablet systems used across NFL and MLB – Coda says it has secured licensing deals with all three major music companies, plus key independents like Merlin and Beggars Group.
Russell Gaskins (Chief Creative Officer) spent over a decade at BMG, most recently as Vice President of Creative and Business Strategy. Ted Andre, Chief Operating Officer, is a producer and production executive with over 20 years’ experience in the entertainment business.
Here, MBW speaks with Randy Fusee about launching a new streaming service in a competitive market, challenging algorithmic dominance, rebuilding music’s “middle class,” and more…
WHAT PAIN POINTS IN THE STREAMING MARKET WERE YOU TRYING TO ADDRESS?
We’re music fans first. Coda Music was born out of a deep frustration with a streaming landscape that had become completely homogenized. Every service offered the same catalog at the same price, paid artists the same way, and relied on the same algorithmic delivery system. The entire model was built to serve the platform, not the fans, and certainly not the artists.
We saw no value in building yet another service that followed the same playbook. So we built Coda Music to solve two fundamental problems:
Discovery and Curation: Today, discovery is gated by algorithms that prioritize engagement metrics over artistic value. That doesn’t serve fans or artists. Coda takes a radically different approach: we put humans in charge. Fans and artists drive curation through a unique blend of full-catalog streaming and robust social features.
Playlists are created and shared by real people — not machines. Fans can post what they are listening to directly to the social feed and customize their profile to reflect their unique taste. Our role is to facilitate those connections, not to act as gatekeepers.
It might get a little weird sometimes. You’ll stumble across music you’ve never heard before. That’s the point. True discovery happens in those unexpected moments, not through recycled recommendations like “If you like artist A, here’s artist B.” Algorithms can’t replicate that. Only humans can.
Fairness for Artists: Streaming has financially gutted the vast majority of artists. The ‘per stream’ model simply doesn’t work for most creators. Worse, many platforms charge artists — or third parties — to promote their own music.
Coda introduces a new ‘per fan’ model designed specifically for independent and qualifying artists. Our social network is free for any artist who wants to promote their music. Fans also have agency: they can direct a portion of their subscription to the artist of their choice.
Artists shouldn’t have to beg for tips. Fans shouldn’t have to pay extra just to support the artists they love. There’s enough money in streaming to pay artists fairly, we built the infrastructure to make that possible.
WHAT MAKES YOUR SOCIAL-STREAMING INTEGRATION DIFFERENT FROM PREVIOUS ATTEMPTS IN THE MARKET?
Coda Music is the first fully cataloged, premium on-demand streaming service that also functions as a true social network. That combination has never existed before. The major streaming platforms were all built over 15 years ago, and their architecture reflects that – they’re utility-driven, not community-driven.
“The major streaming platforms were all built over 15 years ago, and their architecture reflects that – they’re utility-driven, not community-driven.”
What most people don’t realize is that there hasn’t been a new premium, full-catalog streaming service in well over a decade. New music apps launch all the time, but only a handful offer access to 130 million songs on-demand and everyone knows who they are.
Some of those platforms have bolted on social features, but it’s nearly impossible to retrofit community into a product that was never designed for it.
Coda was built from the ground up to integrate streaming and social as a single experience. Fans don’t just listen – they connect, share, and discover together. Artists don’t just upload – they engage, build followings, and grow careers. It’s not about adding features to an old model. Coda Music is curated by the crowd, not the cloud.
TELL US ABOUT THE TECHNOLOGY AND LICENSING INFRASTRUCTURE UNDERPINNING THE PLATFORM?
Coda Music operates on a technology and licensing foundation similar to other major streaming services. The music streaming industry is mature, with well-established frameworks that have supported its growth for over two decades.
“we benefit from a wave of modern infrastructure and third-party innovation.”
But because Coda is the first new premium streaming platform to launch in years, we benefit from a wave of modern infrastructure and third-party innovation.
Today’s ecosystem includes powerful service providers that solve complex challenges from stream aggregation to metadata management to rights tracking. That allows us to build leaner, faster, and smarter. Lower overhead means we can redirect more value to the people who create the music. It’s a key part of how we deliver better financial outcomes for artists without compromising the listener experience.
THE press RELEASE about the launch NOTES THAT YOU’VE PARTNERED WITH Universal Music, SONY AND WARNER, PLUS MERLIN AND OTHERS. HOW DID YOU CONVINCE ALL THREE MAJORS AS WELL AS KEY INDIES TO PARTNER WITH YOU?
Rights holders are essential partners. Without them, there’s no access to the music that powers the entire ecosystem. Securing those partnerships took years of work. Each company had its own path, its own priorities, and its own process for evaluating a new service model. Aligning those moving parts was complex, but ultimately worth it.
“What encouraged us most was how many people inside the majors genuinely wanted to solve the same problems we were tackling.”
What encouraged us most was how many people inside the majors genuinely wanted to solve the same problems we were tackling. When we showed them what we were building, it was the social layer – the direct connection between artists and fans, and fans with each other – that resonated most.
They saw what had been missing: a platform that didn’t just distribute music, but rebuilt the relationships that legacy streaming had unintentionally fractured. Instead of putting the service between artists and their audiences, Coda puts community at the center.
IN REGARD TO THE LICENSING INFRASTRUCTURE QUESTION, YOU MENTIONED THIRD-PARTY INNOVATION, JUST WANTED TO CLARIFY IF THAT’S VIA MASSIVEMUSIC IN ADDITION TO SEPARATE PARTNERSHIPS WITH UMG, SONY, WMG, MERLIN, AND BEGGARS ETC?
MassiveMusic plays a key role in our licensing and delivery infrastructure, but they’re part of a broader ecosystem of third-party innovators that help make Coda Music possible.
“We also maintain direct licensing relationships with all rights holders and publishers.”
We’ve built a lean, high-impact tech stack that allows us to scale artist compensation without inflating operational costs. Companies like Xperi, Singular, Music Story, AWS, Tipalti, and ACR cloud are essential to our operation.
We also maintain direct licensing relationships with all rights holders and publishers.
These partnerships ensure catalog depth and rights clarity, while our third-party integrations allow us to deliver a premium experience without compromising artist payouts. Building all of this in-house would dramatically increase our costs and that’s exactly what we’re trying to avoid. By staying lean and modular, we’re able to pay artists significantly more than any other streaming service.
HOW DO YOU DEFINE THE “MIDDLE CLASS OF ARTISTS” YOU’RE TRYING TO REBUILD?
The middle class of artists is far larger than most fans realize. We define it as artists with anywhere from 50,000 to 5 million fans. Artists who have built real audiences but haven’t broken into the top 1% that dominate streaming revenue.
“The reality is very different. In today’s streaming economy, income flows almost entirely to the top fraction of a percent. Everyone else is left treating platforms like Spotify as marketing tools, necessary for visibility, but never expected to pay the bills.”
This definition underscores the scale of the problem. Many people assume that if an artist has a few million followers, they must be living the rock star lifestyle. The reality is very different. In today’s streaming economy, income flows almost entirely to the top fraction of a percent. Everyone else is left treating platforms like Spotify as marketing tools, necessary for visibility, but never expected to pay the bills.
It doesn’t have to be this way. There’s enough money in streaming to support a thriving middle class of artists. What’s missing is the infrastructure and the integrity to distribute it fairly. That’s what Coda Music is here to rebuild.
TELL US ABOUT THE STRATEGY BEHIND GIVING ARTISTS D2C (MERCH ETC) TOOLS ON THE PLATFORM?
Supporting artists is our north star. It’s not about maximizing revenue, subscriber counts, or listening time. It’s about helping artists build sustainable careers. That means giving them the tools to monetize beyond streaming.
Merchandise, live shows, and direct fan engagement have become essential income streams for artists. So it’s only natural for us to integrate those opportunities directly into the platform.
“It’s about helping artists build sustainable careers. That means giving them the tools to monetize beyond streaming.”
Coda Music was built to connect artists and fans, not just through music but through meaningful interactions. That makes it the ideal environment for direct-to-consumer transactions.
Whether it’s selling merch, promoting tour dates, or offering exclusive content, our goal is to make those connections seamless. When artists thrive, the entire ecosystem gets stronger. That’s the strategy and the mission behind everything we build.
HOW DO THE FANDIRECT PROGRAM AND $1 DIRECT PAYMENT FEATURE WORK?
FanDirect is entirely powered by fans. On legacy streaming platforms, listeners have no control over where their subscription dollars go, even if they stream the same artist nonstop for a month, the financial impact is negligible. The reality is that most of their money ends up with the top 1% of artists, regardless of what they actually listen to.
Coda flips that model. We give fans agency, not just creatively, but financially. With FanDirect, every subscriber can allocate $1 of their monthly payment to any qualifying artist they choose. It’s real money, going directly to the artist, with no extra cost to the fan.
“With FanDirect, every subscriber can allocate $1 of their monthly payment to any qualifying artist they choose.”
Other platforms offer tipping, but tipping has a natural ceiling. It asks fans to spend more. We believe artists shouldn’t have to rely on tips, and fans shouldn’t have to pay extra just to support the artists they love. There’s enough money in streaming to do this right.
Artists become eligible simply by signing up and claiming their social profile on Coda. It’s free and open to all independent artists. Those signed to labels may need to review their contracts to confirm eligibility.
Eligible artists can sign up here.
CODA SAYS THAT IT “PAY[S] THE HIGHEST PER-STREAM RATE IN THE INDUSTRY”. HOW DO YOU ACHIEVE HIGHER PER-STREAM RATES WHILE KEEPING SUBSCRIPTION PRICES COMPETITIVE?
This is one of the most misunderstood aspects of the streaming business. While it’s true that Coda pays the highest per-stream rate in the industry, it’s not the badge of honor people assume. That claim is possible because we’re both the newest and smallest premium streaming service in the market.
People often point to platforms like Tidal or Qobuz as examples of higher per-stream payouts. But the reality is that those numbers only appear higher because those services have smaller user bases and lower total revenue than giants like Spotify, Apple, Amazon, or YouTube.
“Our FanDirect program realigns artist compensation with actual revenue, not play counts.”
Here’s the truth: No one actually pays “per stream.” It’s a false narrative. Consumers pay a flat monthly fee for unlimited listening. Streaming services then pay out a portion of that revenue to rights holders, who then pay the artists. So the smaller the revenue pool, the higher the apparent per-stream rate.
That’s why Coda doesn’t chase streams; we build fans. Our FanDirect program realigns artist compensation with actual revenue, not play counts. Fans can direct a portion of their subscription to the artists they love, creating a direct financial relationship that’s more transparent and more sustainable.
AND HOW DO YOU ACHIEVE PROFITABILITY WITH HIGHER ARTIST PAYOUTS AND ADDITIONAL DIRECT PAYMENTS?
As discussed, our per-stream payments follow the same revenue-based structure as every other streaming service. What sets us apart is the $1 direct payment we allocate from each subscription to the artist of the fan’s choice. That comes straight from our margin and it’s a deliberate choice.
We treat direct artist payments as an extension of our marketing budget. Unlike the major platforms, we’re not trying to outspend competitors in traditional advertising. The Big Four streaming services spend billions annually on ads. When they say they can’t afford better artist payouts, it’s worth asking where the money is actually going because it’s not going to artists.
“We treat direct artist payments as an extension of our marketing budget.”
Coda isn’t built to compete in that arena. We believe it’s a losing game for artists and a missed opportunity for fans. Instead, we redirect that spend into the ecosystem itself. FanDirect replaces the standard ad-based user acquisition model with something more transparent, more equitable, and more sustainable. Our core economics are similar to other streaming platforms. We just choose to invest in artists and fans instead of ads. That’s how we build profitability with integrity.
WHAT ARE YOUR POLICIES AROUND AI-GENERATED MUSIC ON THE PLATFORM?
Coda Music is built to champion human creativity. While we would prefer not to host AI-generated music, the reality is that the problem is vast, complex, and difficult to fully contain. The tools for generating synthetic content are widely accessible, and the lines between human and machine-made music are increasingly blurred.
“While we would prefer not to host AI-generated music, the reality is that the problem is vast, complex, and difficult to fully contain. We do have AI-generated music on the platform, but we’re actively working to identify and remove it whenever possible.”
We do have AI-generated music on the platform, but we’re actively working to identify and remove it whenever possible. Our priority is to support real artists who create from lived experience and connect with fans through authentic expression. We’re committed to doing our best, but we won’t be perfect. This is an evolving challenge, and we’ll continue refining our approach as the technology and the industry shift.
Our pledge is simple: we will always prioritize human artistry, and we’ll be transparent with our community as we navigate this space.
THERE’S NO AD-SUPPORTED OPTION. IS THAT SOMETHING YOU’D EVER CONSIDER, OR WILL YOU KEEP IT PREMIUM ONLY?
We’re committed to building a streaming model that puts artists first. Ad-supported tiers and promotional gimmicks – like extended free trials or bundling offers – may boost platform metrics, but they rarely benefit the artists whose music powers those platforms.
In fact, they often dilute the available revenue pool, redirecting money to advertisers and intermediaries instead of artists.
“Until a model emerges that supports artists without compromise, we won’t offer an ad-supported tier.”
At Coda Music, we’re keeping our focus on sustainable, fan-powered compensation. We’ll always explore ways to improve the listener experience and expand access, but not at the expense of artist earnings. Until a model emerges that supports artists without compromise, we won’t offer an ad-supported tier. And we won’t chase gimmicks that serve the platform more than the people who make the music.
WHERE DO YOU SEE MUSIC STREAMING IN FIVE YEARS AND WHAT’S CODA’S ROLE?
Music streaming isn’t going anywhere. The convenience of having 130 million songs in your pocket for a low monthly fee is undeniable. But the model needs to evolve. In five years, we believe the industry will shift from passive consumption to active participation, where fans play a meaningful role in discovery, support, and sustainability.
“Coda won’t make every artist a millionaire, but it will help thousands find a sustainable path forward.”
Coda Music’s role is to lead that shift. We’re here to restore equity and fairness to the artists who make it all possible. Our impact goes beyond streaming – it’s societal. What happens when more creators have a viable path to financial stability? When artistry isn’t reserved for the lucky few, but accessible to anyone with talent and drive?
Coda won’t make every artist a millionaire but it will help thousands find a sustainable path forward. Artists need income to live, create, tour, and grow. Fans want to support them. Our job is to bring those two groups together and build a platform where art can thrive, careers can grow, and music can breathe again.
Trailblazers is supported by TuneCore. TuneCore provides self-releasing artists with technology and services across distribution, publishing administration, and a range of promotional services. TuneCore is part of Believe.Music Business Worldwide
