Dune is the new worldwide music platform aiming to fix Spotify's artist income problem — and the band you love? Probably loves it

• Music platform Dune landed in Nov 2025 and is quickly gaining momentum
• The global app asks fans to buy a 'stake' in bands they love, to get content
• On May 1, iconic band When in Rome is launching music exclusively on Dune

Ever feel like a significant uptake in one music streaming platform directly coincides with a big milestone for another?

So it has come to pass, because in the week Spotify turns 20, Dune (the new music app that says it's looking to solve the industry-wide issue of music artists not earning a stable income from digital streaming providers) has just added a huge new artist to the books — and for an exclusive new music release.

This particular music-streaming machine really is different to any of the best music streaming services we currently rate, too. While it only launched last November, some pretty big names in music are already sniffing around it. Most excitingly for me, an 80s UK synth-pop band very close to my heart just agreed to launch music exclusively on it, coming May 1st.

Dune’s founders, Manchester UK-based Paul Knowles and Paul Bowe, say they recognize the ubiquitous nature of streaming means it isn’t going away, so the future of artists' earning potential from the DSP (which here stands for 'digital service provider') model needs to work alongside it, rather than attempting to disrupt it.

How does it all work?

So how exactly does Dune work? You sign up for free by inputting a few very basic credentials. Then, Dune asks you to purchase and trade 'stakes' in artists you're most interested in (if these are live — if they're not, you can ask to be notified when they go on sale), with values dynamically tied to the acts' daily streaming performance across major DSPs. Yes, it's a lot like trading stocks and shares in bands, but also with a side of Kickstarter and Spotify, because there are exclusive musical benefits for fans / stakeholders.

Artists earn a percentage from both that initial stake and any subsequent activity, because stakes can be traded or sold to other users to be cashed in. I know what you're thinking and no, no AI, blockchain or NFTs are involved.

Dune's founders describe it as "owning a piece of your favorite artist and being part of their journey like never before", thanks to "stakeholder benefits". Dune is quick to double down on its promise that the platform serves first and foremost as a fan-engagement hub that remunerates acts properly, enabling artists to offer stakeholders exclusive access to merchandise, early ticket sales, and other content not available to the wider public.

When in Rome — The Promise

A moment of silence for anyone who hasn't yet heard the song in my sub-head there, except perhaps when it featured in the 2004 masterwork movie Napoleon Dynamite. See this as your sign to go and listen to the track in its entirety, immediately.

My point is, when Dune — which, for the avoidance of all doubt, has absolutely nothing to do with the Chalamet movie franchise — initially contacted me last November with a request for coverage, I struggled to find a hugely noteworthy hook to get behind. Now, I have that… and I'm very intrigued.

For fans of the band, I should clarify that the exclusive When in Rome x Dune partnership concerns the When in Rome UK reformation (also based in Manchester UK — coincidence? I think not), comprising Clive Farrington, Andrew Mann and Rob Juarez, not When in Rome II, aka Michael Floreale, Tony Fennell, Chris Willett and Jack Ivins.

When in Rome has had a turbulent past, with legal issues and tensions arising over the original band members' distribution of royalties. But that only makes this partnership more interesting to me. Here is a group of musicians that found fame in the late 80s, long before music streaming took hold and changed how bands make (or let's have it right, don't make) money, so I find it intriguing to see such established and experienced musos pledging exclusive releases to Dune.

Dune co-founder Paul Knowles said, “Dune acknowledges the fact that income from streaming simply isn’t enough to sustain most artists and that 99.9% of them face a funding gap. Data shows that only 0.1% of artists generate enough revenue from streaming to cover modest monthly outgoings.”

Three other well-known acts that have already signed up to Dune are the huge Hertfordshire rock trio The Hunna, Manchester-based high-energy quartet Pyncher and American songwriter and multi-instrumentalist (who also happens to be based in Manchester UK) BC Camplight.

Are you a singer-songwriter interesting in knowing more about Dune? Artists and their representatives can claim their page on the Dune platform, where they can start engaging with fans. The company tells me that any artist can sign up to Dune’s subscription-free offering.

Dune has also produced a range of video tutorials, which help users navigate all aspects of the platform.

Look, I'm not saying it's hands down the future of music. But I'm not not saying that either — and as When in Rome's Clive Farrington once sang: "If you wait around a while I'll make you fall for me (I promise you)".

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