NATURE is now open for collaboration. The global initiative Sounds Right today launches a world-first platform that lets any artist officially feature NATURE as a recording artist on their music, sharing their royalties to fund conservation.
Following last year’s launch of NATURE as an official artist on streaming platforms, with collaborators including Hozier, Ellie Goulding, Bomba Estereo and David Bowie x Brian Eno, the new platform FEAT. NATURE now opens submissions to musicians everywhere via soundsright.earth/feature.
From forests and oceans to rivers and wildlife, artists who feature natural sounds in their music can upload songs and release them on major streaming platforms with royalties split 50:50 between the artist and NATURE. Proceeds from NATURE’s share go to the Sounds Right Fund, which supports community-led conservation projects selected by an independent panel of Indigenous leaders, scientists, and conservationists.
26 million fans across 181 countries have now listened to the artist NATURE, generating royalties which have helped enable the Sounds Right Fund to direct $400,000 to Indigenous and community-led conservation in the Amazon and Congo Basin region, building on $225,000 directed to projects in the Tropical Andes in 2024. The funds were announced on stage at the Global Citizen Amazonia concert (Belem, 1 November) and live on Brazilian TV.
The initiative comes at a critical cultural moment. A recent study found that people’s connection to nature has fallen by around 60% since 1800, tracking almost exactly with the loss of nature words such as river, moss and blossom from books. As nature fades from culture, our sense of belonging to it diminishes – a pattern Sounds Right hopes to reverse by inspiring artists everywhere to weave nature’s sounds back into music.
This groundbreaking venture is the first major extension to the Sounds Right model since NATURE launched as an official artist last year and is powered by a new global music distribution pathway in partnership with DistroDirect, making it easier than ever for artists to join the movement.
Ahead of COP30 in the Brazilian Amazon, Ghanaian artists Juls and Olivetheboy were joining the global movement, releasing new music featuring the sounds of the Congo Basin alongside international artists.
Juls, the acclaimed London-born Ghanaian producer, said: “My recent records feature the sounds of nature and ambient noise, because I tend to produce music in environments that reflect those moments. I’ve recorded by the beach, in forest cabins while the rain pours down. Those sounds bring me peace and serenity — they keep me grounded and clear my mind so I can create,” said Juls
Other artists from Africa include Blinky Bill and Bien from Kenya, Lady Donli from Nigeria and Phila Dlozi from South Africa.
Since its launch, Sounds Right has engaged millions with the sounds of the natural world, combining art, music, and conservation. Led by the Museum for the United Nations – UN Live, the initiative is a unique collaboration between global artists, sound recordists, producers, creatives, and environmental groups, putting music at the heart of a global conversation about nature’s conservation and restoration. Partners include EarthPercent, AKQA, Spotify, Eleutheria Group, and the Hempel Foundation.
Gabriel Smales, Global Programme Director, Sounds Right – UN Live, said: “Today, in a world first, we’re giving artists a simple and impactful way to credit NATURE in their music — helping restore nature’s presence in popular culture while directing new music royalties to frontline conservation. This matters because nature has been steadily disappearing from our culture, with fewer references in children’s stories, popular music, even major films. This cultural loss is deepening the growing disconnect between people and the planet at a time we can least afford to. With the launch, we’re taking an important step to reverse that trend, while mobilising real resources to protect and restore the ecosystems we all depend on.”
Hans Poulsen, Program Partner, Eleutheria Group, said: “With this launch, we’re extending the Sounds Right model into a scalable mechanism for independent artists worldwide. It’s a practical, transparent framework that embeds purpose into the core of music distribution, aligning creative freedom with measurable environmental impact. This is where cultural innovation meets industry infrastructure, and we’re proud to help build that bridge.”
