Instagram Has Just Launched Its Own @Music Channel

Illustration by Jared Eberhardt / photo courtesy of Instagram

A reported 25 percent of the most popular Instagram accounts belong to musicians, and many more of them belong to music fans and smaller bands—a fact that hasn't escaped the savvy media company. They've just introduced a new, dedicated music channel that aims to streamline Instagram's music-loving community and further cement their brand as a creative force.

In an interview with Buzzfeed, Instagram's head of music partnerships, Jonathan Hull, laid out the ultra-popular photo-sharing platform's new plans to expand into more music-focused territory. The new channel, @music, will be updated daily Tuesday through Sunday with eleven different series as well as short artist blurbs and a variety of editorial features (some of which will also appear on Instagram's blog, which is currently spotlighting a post from flagship artist Questlove, who joins Tricot, Until The Ribbon Breaks and NoBrain as @music's first round of artist partners).

The goal, according to Instagram's music editor Alex Suskind (who, by the way, once dug deep into Kanye West's old blog for Noisey), is to break new artists and provide support and exposure to up-and-coming bands. It's a lofty goal, and one they're hoping will pay off in increased user numbers and interaction. Instagram's own official account boasts 65 million followers, and @music will serve as a carefully curated spin-off (possibly with other themed channels to follow).

According to @music's first blog post, "Each week, we’ll take a look at the musical experience on Instagram. That means showing you a different side of artists you know and love, like Questlove (@questlove), and introducing you to up-and-coming talents from around the world, like Tricot (@ikkyu193). It means highlighting music photographers, album illustrators, instrument makers and, of course, fans."

"In the Instagram tradition, we will also welcome community participation with a new, music-themed monthly hashtag project. Music is a huge part of all of our lives here at Instagram. It’s a passion of ours, and we know it’s a passion of yours. So follow along at @music –– we think you’ll discover something new."