Social music startup Smule raises $54M for Asian expansion

Smule, maker of Sing! Karaoke and other social music apps, announced yesterday that it has raised $54 million in a round led by Chinese company Tencent.

Adams Street Partners, Bessemer Ventures, Floodgate, Franklin Templeton and Shasta Ventures also participated in the funding. Reuters reported that the round valued the company at $604 million, setting up Smule to expand in Asia and potentially to go public.

Founded in 2008, Smule’s apps allow users to share different types of musical performances with others, and the company says it now has 52 million monthly active users. CEO Jeff Smith has said his vision is to “build a social network around music” while also helping to promote music.

Tencent, meanwhile, is the maker of the popular WeChat app, and it’s also been investing in music and user-generated content.