SixtyFour Music and Sephora US announce a long-term strategic partnership to amplify up-and-coming artists and celebrate creative innovation and culture.

On August 1st, 2023, SixtyFour Music and Sephora US launched the Sephora Sounds music collective that will amplify underrepresented and emerging musicians through the brand’s social media channels and reposition Sephora as a culture shaping organization dedicated to discovery and diversity.

Throughout the latter half of 2022, SixtyFour collaborated closely with Sephora on their music and sound strategy: SixtyFour’s specialized brand marketing approach focusing on behavioral targeting via music. This approach consisted of extensive research and analysis into the listening behavior and habits of the brand’s audiences, giving Sephora up-to-date insights that are more emotional, more engaging and more personal. By using multiple data sources, SixtyFour was able to give Sephora a complete understanding of music and sound preferences across all media types, as well as knowledge of what will engage consumers best at every touchpoint.

By soft-launching the Sephora Sounds program over the past few months, the retailer has found that its TikTok videos using the artists’ music has "driven more than double the views of our average TikTok" explained Brent Mitchell, Sephora’s vice president of social media and influencers.

“It’s no secret that music and sound can be very powerful tools for a brand, a way to connect emotionally with customers and prolong attention, but it’s only by researching and understanding an audience’s listening habits that this can be done effectively” says Nick Payne, Founder and CEO of SixtyFour Music, who goes on to add, “Sephora genuinely understands the power of music and how it can connect with their audiences. By giving up-and-coming artists a new platform for discovery, they are not only fostering creative innovation but also building a deeper bond with their customers.”

Through the implementation of the music strategy and on-going collaboration with SixtyFour, Sephora is empowered to confidently engage their customers, beyond simple music licensing, knowing that what they deliver aligns with their audiences’ tastes and yields optimal engagement and impact. With this strategic partnership, new artists have been signed to the Sephora Sounds program, a dedicated music influencer roster has been created, and there will be events, partnerships and activations with the music that Sephora’s audiences will love. Watch this space!

Tamara Credle, the Head of Music Strategy at SixtyFour had this to say: “Once the hard work of creating a music strategy for Sephora was complete, the decision to build an influencer roster on that strong foundation was a no brainer. They’ve had so much success in the beauty influencer space, and with our research, a roster for emerging music artists seemed a natural evolution for the brand, whilst still doing something unique in the marketplace. We are thrilled with the talent brought into the fold, and more than excited to see how the program continues to develop.”

After executing the research-backed music strategy and the Sephora Sounds collective, listenership for the featured artists have flourished as well as engagement and interactions on Sephora’s social media accounts.