Billboard Partners With Mastercard to Showcase Emerging Artists

Billboard and Mastercard are teaming up to put the spotlight on emerging artists.

Under a new partnership announced Thursday (July 20), five artists who took part in the previously-announced Mastercard Artist Accelerator program will perform on a livestream to be hosted on Billboard‘s YouTube channel, which boasts more than 3.7 million subscribers. The livestream kicks off Thursday, July 27 at 3 p.m. ET.

The Mastercard Artist Accelerator program was created to offer developing artists the tools to thrive in a tech-driven era. Participating acts represent a range of genres and geographies; all were chosen because of their unique stories, sounds and inclusion-oriented mindsets. They are:

“Music is a universal passion, inspiring us, moving us, and bringing us together,” said Mastercard chief marketing and communications officer Raja Rajamannar in a statement. “With the Mastercard Artist Accelerator, we are expanding access and driving connections further with cutting-edge Web3 technology. Our vision is to bridge passion and purpose, spotlighting amazing emerging artists and creating an interactive community that allows participants to learn, experiment and grow together.”

“We are thrilled to be able to support this unique program for artists,” added Billboard chief brand officer Dana Droppo. “With the help of Mastercard we’re shining a light on amazing emerging talent and giving them exposure to a wider audience of fans, artists and executives to help them reach new heights.”

To learn more about the program and its featured artists, go to artistaccelerator.mastercard. To hear the full rendition of each song, you can claim it as a free NFT by visiting mastercard.com/artist-accelerator.