88rising
88rising is a Los Angeles-based independent music label and artist management company founded in 2015 that operates the HEAD IN THE CLOUDS festival brand (Los Angeles and Japan) and 88NIGHTMARKET, monetizing through ticketing, merchandise, and artist representation for Asian and Asian-American artists and global fans.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What 88rising does
88rising (legal entity 88Rising, Inc., incorporated in California) is a privately held music company founded in 2015 and headquartered in Los Angeles, operating as a record label, artist management firm, and cultural-event producer targeting the Asian and Asian-American millennial audience. The company's flagship product is the HEAD IN THE CLOUDS music and arts festival, with editions in Los Angeles and — as of 2024 — Japan, executed in partnership with Japanese promoter Creativeman Productions. A second branded property, 88NIGHTMARKET, is a cultural-market experience centered on Asian food, music, and merchandise.
The company monetizes across three primary streams: ticketing and sponsorship revenue from festivals and cultural events; direct-to-consumer merchandise sales through its Shopify-powered online store (shop.88rising.com); and artist-representation income via management fees, streaming royalties, and performance bookings. Distribution is multi-channel: owned digital properties (88rising.com, la.hitcfestival.com, 88nightmarket.com), social media (Facebook, X, Instagram), email/newsletter, and physical festival venues across Los Angeles, Tokyo, and Bangkok. The tech stack is largely off-the-shelf (Shopify for commerce, Google Analytics for measurement, standard CMS for websites) with no proprietary technology platform disclosed.
Cumulatively, 88rising has raised across at least five funding rounds since 2015, including a $15.75M round in November 2019 and a subsequent round from Atwater Capital in October 2022. Its partnership with Creativeman Productions provides established promoter infrastructure in Japan and Thailand (SUMMER SONIC BANGKOK) and is positioned as the primary vehicle for further Asian-market expansion, including potential entry into China. Co-founder Jaeson Ma and managing director H. Andrew Kuo lead the company, which operates with a 11–50 employee base.
88rising firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- 88rising
- Legal name
- 88Rising, Inc.
- Website
- https://88rising.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- 88rising is a Los Angeles-based independent music label and artist management company founded in 2015 that operates the HEAD IN THE CLOUDS festival brand (Los Angeles and Japan) and 88NIGHTMARKET, monetizing through ticketing, merchandise, and artist representation for Asian and Asian-American artists and global fans.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
88rising industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Music and Cultural Entertainment
- NAICS
- Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events with Facilities (711310), Music Publishers (512230)
- SIC
- Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Merchandising & Onsite Retail (Concert Merch, Pop-ups) (MPAGAAAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Merchandising & On-Site Retail (Tour Merch, Pop-ups) (MPAIAFAJ)
Keywords
Where 88rising is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
88rising business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Festival and Event Tickets: Revenue generated from selling tickets to HEAD IN THE CLOUDS music festivals in Los Angeles and Japan, as well as 88 NIGHTMARKET events.
- Merchandise Sales: Online store operations through shop.88rising.com selling artist merchandise, apparel, and other products. Powered by Shopify e-commerce platform.
- Artist Representation Services: The company represents Asian artists for global reach and likely earns revenue through management fees, streaming royalties, and performance bookings.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
88rising product offering
Product offeringCore offering
88rising is a record label, artist management company, and digital content producer focused on Asian and Asian-American artists. It sells tickets to its flagship HEAD IN THE CLOUDS music festival (Los Angeles and Japan editions), operates the 88NIGHTMARKET cultural event experience, runs a Shopify-powered merchandise storefront at shop.88rising.com, and provides artist representation services that include management fees, streaming royalties, and performance bookings.
Product overview
88rising operates as a music company and artist collective focused on Asian and Asian-American artists. The company offers two main branded products: the HEAD IN THE CLOUDS music festival (with editions in Los Angeles and international locations including Japan and Bangkok) and 88NIGHTMARKET, a food and cultural event experience. The company also operates e-commerce storefronts for merchandise through the 88rising Shop (shop.88rising.com).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- HEAD IN THE CLOUDS: Music festival brand featuring Asian artists and performers, with events in Los Angeles and internationally
- 88NIGHTMARKET
Products and services
- HEAD IN THE CLOUDS Festival
Quantifiable outcome
- Successfully launched HEAD IN THE CLOUDS Japan in collaboration with Creativeman Productions
Companies that use 88rising
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
88rising technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
88rising partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Creativeman ProductionscoreCreativeman Productions, led by Naoki Shimizu, is the promoter behind SUMMER SONIC and the HEAD IN THE CLOUDS Japan event. The partnership with 88rising brought the HEAD IN THE CLOUDS festival concept to Japan for the first time, creating a platform for Japanese artists to reach global audiences. Creativeman also operates SUMMER SONIC BANGKOK in Thailand and is exploring expansion to China, with 88rising as a key collaborator.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
88rising competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Goldenvoice: Festival promoter behind Coachella and other major music festivals with strong curation-led brand. Comparable to 88rising's HEAD IN THE CLOUDS festival business model—independent festival brand built on distinctive artist curation.
- YG Entertainment: South Korean music label and artist management firm with artist development, touring, and merchandise businesses. Comparable to 88rising as an Asian artist-centric label with global crossover ambitions.
- SM Entertainment: Major South Korean music label and talent agency managing K-pop artists with global touring and merchandise operations. Comparable to 88rising's label + management + live events model targeting Asian artists.
- HYBE: South Korean entertainment company and global music label (home of BTS) with artist management, publishing, and live event operations. Directly comparable to 88rising as a label/management/events platform focused on Asian artists with global ambitions.
- JYP Entertainment: South Korean music label and talent agency combining artist management, music publishing, and live performance businesses. Directly comparable to 88rising's integrated label/management/events model.
Broad incumbents
- AEG Presents: Global live music promoter and venue operator producing festivals and concerts across multiple genres. Comparable to 88rising's festival promotion business but with broader mainstream focus rather than Asian artist specialization.
- Live Nation Entertainment: Global live entertainment conglomerate operating festivals, concert promotion, and ticketing at massive scale. Comparable to 88rising's live events and ticketing operations but operates across all genres with vastly broader portfolio.
Others
- Bravado: Global artist merchandise and brand management company (part of Universal Music Group) producing tour merchandise and apparel for major artists. Comparable to 88rising's e-commerce merchandise business operated through Shopify.
Emerging players
- EMPIRE Distribution: Independent music distribution and label services company supporting emerging and established artists globally. Comparable to 88rising's record label and distribution operations as an independent label serving diverse artist rosters.
- 88-philes: Asian American music media and event brand producing concerts, showcases, and editorial content spotlighting Asian artists. Comparable to 88rising's community-driven GTM and event-led discovery of Asian talent.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
88rising social profiles
Digital presence88rising financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
88rising leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
88rising funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors6 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
88rising M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about 88rising
What does 88rising do?
88rising is a record label, artist management company, and digital content producer focused on Asian and Asian-American artists. It sells tickets to its flagship HEAD IN THE CLOUDS music festival (Los Angeles and Japan editions), operates the 88NIGHTMARKET cultural event experience, runs a Shopify-powered merchandise storefront at shop.88rising.com, and provides artist representation services that include management fees, streaming royalties, and performance bookings.
Is 88rising a public or private company?
88rising is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was 88rising founded?
88rising was founded in 2015. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is 88rising based?
88rising is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does 88rising make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Festival and Event Tickets are the primary driver. The others are merchandise Sales and artist Representation Services.
Who are 88rising's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Goldenvoice, YG Entertainment, SM Entertainment, HYBE and JYP Entertainment. Broad incumbents are AEG Presents and Live Nation Entertainment. Bravado is listed as an others. Emerging players are EMPIRE Distribution and 88-philes.
Does 88rising have an API?
No public API is recorded for 88rising.
What industry is 88rising in?
88rising's product category is Music and Cultural Entertainment. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAGAAAJ, Merchandising & Onsite Retail (Concert Merch, Pop-ups), with a secondary code of MPAIAFAJ, Merchandising & On-Site Retail (Tour Merch, Pop-ups). Its NAICS code is 711310 and its SIC code is 5945.