High-quality sample packs are a staple for producers all around the globe. Enabling artists to innovate and express themselves in different and unthought-of ways. First-rate sample packs are no longer just a luxury, but a key part of the production process.

Chinese producers are no different – they have been waiting for quite a while to have access to a one-stop solution for their business and artistic needs. One that operates in Chinese, that accepts payment methods native to China (such as Alipay, WeChat, UnionPay, etc), and is importantly convenient and easy to use. That wait is now over!

Travelling back to 2021 Kanjian Music teamed up with industry leader Black Octopus to launch a brand new store dedicated to offering the best sample packs exclusively for the Chinese audience. Fast forward to January 2022, the domestic sample pack store has now officially launched with a whole array of localised Black Octopus sample packs. Coupled with IP protection provided by Kanjian Music, this store is the only way to officially purchase Black Octopus samples in the region.

Available via Kanjians own music licensing platform Coolvox, the dedicated sample pack section empowers Chinese artists to create groundbreaking music with the confidence that they’re using officially licensed packs of the utmost quality.

We caught up with Toby (CEO) and Slade (COO) from Black Octopus Sound to discuss the company, sample pack market and the venture. Read on to delve into the story of Black Octopus and their journey into the orient so far!

Black Octopus Sound was started by a long time music industry and electronic music producer veteran Toby Emerson (C.E.O.) in 2011. He had a passion for producing sound design and bringing his own touch into samples and sounds, and this lead him to start up the company; providing the world with a special touch that couldn’t be found anywhere else. Steve Roland then joined shortly after to co-pilot the business and become C.B.O. Slade Templeton then came on a couple of years after that, first as Mastering Engineer to a Black Octopus Sound Mastering services, before eventually moving up to C.O.O. rounding out the C-class team. Steve, Toby and Slade all knew each other as producers in a thriving dance culture from 2007-2011 as International touring DJs and producers, releasing on top tier record labels worldwide off and on together. It was only natural that their paths collided on a deeper-industry level and start providing the world tools and sounds to enrich the audio community even further.

Skip forward to today, and Black Octopus Sound now has over 100 artists and sound designers, along with over 300 packs released. The Black Octopus Sound Leviathan series is one of the best-known series of samples packs in the industry and is used by the biggest names just as often as the newcomers. 

We are very excited to reach a new audience and expand our sample packs and products to China. It’s an area filled with loads of talent and inspirational producers, and for this reason, we have always had China on our mind. When Kanjian approached us about bringing us there and we had our meetings; we knew we were in good hands from the very start.

Our ultimate goal is to become the go-to brand for producers looking for inspiring sounds for their own productions. We already have that stronghold in other parts of the world and hope to also achieve this in China. To become a brand known for consistency and unique quality there, would be a huge achievement. We believe Kanjian can help be that beacon to take us there.

The utmost thing is knowing that Kanjian Music has faith in our products and work ethics enough to bring us over there to their marketplace. That does not go unnoticed or unappreciated. Their way of working in an innovative approach to expanding into new places in the music industry coalesces perfectly with our own goals, strategies and visions. The future of possibilities of working together in this way will open up many doors for driving our ideas as a mutual team and bringing even more possibilities to the producers in China.

The team at Kanjian have been extremely professional, laying out the groundwork from day one in such a way that we have been able to navigate with certainty that it will be executed without failure at the end. They have shown us much support and great insight, and we appreciate this. We really enjoy working with them. 

We often have many exciting projects going on at one time. As cheesy as it sounds, we make a joke inside the team that it’s similar to the tentacles of an octopus, with each reaching for goals at once, and in many different directions at once. This keeps us on our toes and our staff busy.

We have a new cutting edge platform to enrich the audio community even further about to be launched that has been a couple of years in the making. We also have a record label Black Octopus Music, which is the first of its kind to break down albums that are released traditionally on all shops into all original Samples, Stems and Loops, for producers to use in their own productions; all royalty-free.

We also have many new amazing artists and production team members pushing the boundaries with genres and styles at an intense pace. Sometimes almost faster than we can keep up with! We would not be anywhere without the massive team and support around us, and that includes Kanjian Music. 

2022 is going to be a big year. 

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Our journey with Black Octopus has just begun and we look forward to furthering our cooperation with them. 

Kanjian Music is looking for sample packs of all kinds. If you’re interested in licensing your sample packs onto Coolvox please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Check out the sample pack store: https://coolvox.com/sample

Follow Black Octopus:

• Website: https://blackoctopus-sound.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blackoctopussound

With China’s online users having limited access to the global media (Google, Facebook, and YouTube to name a few or the multiple news and media outlets such as the BBC or The New York Times), many businesses, music artists and labels included discover that in China they need to invest heavily or in some cases even start from scratch regarding their brand and following.

The government’s role has been also significant in educating people in China about copyrights and fighting illegal use of content through the National Intellectual Property Strategy Outline promulgated in 2008. And as intellectual property protection in China is often questioned, some of the recent developments and reforms demonstrate a strong resolve to enforce the copyright doctrine. The authorities’ effort and commitment became quite clear as it began shutting down major online services utilizing unlicensed content – books in 2008, videos in 2012 and music in 2015.

Many artists use platform placements to expand their fanbase and to promote key releases. It should be said this is typically only available for artists who have achieved moderate success within the market already or who are collaborating with artists of note.

Authenticity is one of the centrepieces of present-day marketing practices and with the rapid advance of social media and marketing tactics, brands now talk directly to their followers and music artists are embracing the opportunity to nurture and retain their own fan base.