With the internet’s vast possibilities, getting discovered and making it big in the global music scene seems much more attainable than 25 years ago when UMEK first started. Yet, as he can also attest, not much has changed when it comes to the artist’s eternal dilemma: How do you find and secure the next gig without sacrificing too much time and energy that could be better spent in the studio?

Determining that there was really no singular, easy-to-use, and comprehensive tool that would connect the right industry people and help talented artists break through, UMEK and his team decided they would simply make their own. That was the initial idea for Viberate. Today, it’s a music-tech startup valued at $40M and employing 120 music enthusiasts worldwide.

Viberate is a global music platform set to bring order to the chaotic world of live music where information and contacts are scattered all over the internet. On a mission to build the world’s largest music network, it has already connected more than a million artists, venues, events and festivals all in one place, and has offered them valuable data and tools required for making better business decisions. All said and done, Viberate empowers musicians by offering them a place where they can easily showcase their music, get noticed by industry professionals, and find new gig opportunities all around the world.

Similar to other online platforms, each artist gets their own profile. The main difference – and advantage – is that once they’re up, all these profiles are updated automatically. Artists can be sure that the displayed gig dates, social media links, new music and videos, and even the list of similar artists, are reliable and up to date. Once the artist officially “claims” their profile, they get full control over it, enabling them to ultimately replace outdated one-pagers that require constant attention and “manual” handling. To set an example, UMEK deleted his official website years ago, and relies on his Viberate profile. The Chainsmokers, Richie Hawtin, Gramatik, and Showtek are among the big-name artists who have already claimed their profile.

The engine that powers this platform, however, isn’t a plethora of obscure algorithms but rather something more surprising: a massive international community of true music fans. Joining more than 20,000 contributors and a curation team that triple-checks every entry for accuracy, Viberate strives for an incredibly ambitious goal: listing 99% of all the world’s artists by 2025.

“We have built our database from scratch with the help of over 20 thousand contributors, who are adding new profiles on a daily basis," said UMEK. "They earn badges for their work and each month the best of them are rewarded with merch, festival tickets, or other goodies. Some even get the opportunity to join Viberate’s PRO contributor program which turns a hobby into a full-time job.”

Viberate’s crowdsourcing approach encourages anyone to take part in listing and mapping the global live music scene. Anyone can log in and add missing musicians, venues, or events at viberate.com/contribution. And what’s most important: by sharing efforts, everyone involved works towards the common goal of helping artists be free to make more music for the world to enjoy.