Marking its 30th anniversary, Hopeless Records is embracing the future by partnering with Trolley to streamline their accounts payable and royalty payout processes, including essential end-of-year 1099 filings. By integrating Trolley’s advanced payment and tax solutions, Hopeless Records enhances operational efficiency, ensuring timely and seamless payments for their artists and staff. This modernization allows the label to focus more on supporting their artists and community as they look forward to the next 30 years.
TORONTO, CANADA – September 19th, 2024 – Trolley, the premier payout platform for the internet economy, is pleased to announce that pioneering independent record label Hopeless Records is embracing new technology to ensure a brighter future for its artists and staff as it marks its 30th anniversary.
In collaboration with Trolley, Hopeless Records—along with its subsidiaries Hopeless Publishing and Sub City Non-Profit—has streamlined its accounts payable and royalty payouts process, including crucial end-of-year 1099 filings.
Smoother, faster payments and tax processes
For 30 years, Hopeless Records has been a beacon of hope and positivity in the punk rock scene. With a commitment to supporting artists and reaching fans during transformative years, the label’s mission extends beyond music production.
Al Person, Chief Financial Officer of Hopeless Records explains, “The more organized we are in the back office, the better we can support our artists and their messages.”
Partnering with Trolley has brought several specific improvements to Hopeless Records’ payment and tax processes. According to Person, “Adding Trolley has really improved our processes. We’ve had other payment systems that were very segmented, but now, having everything in one place is a huge improvement.”
“We have had our tax preparers handle the 1099 process for our US payees, just because of the workload. Trolley gives us more control over the process so we maintain great relationships with our vendors and artists by owning this in a tool that makes it manageable.”
Person also highlighted the ease of use and responsiveness of Trolley’s system. “The process of porting over royalty payouts to Trolley was very fast and easy. Compared to spending two weeks cutting checks and handling various payments, using Trolley takes only about a day of my work. It’s a significant improvement,” he said.
Furthermore, Trolley’s support team has been instrumental in ensuring smooth operations. “Knowing that if I have an issue, I can get an answer quickly is crucial. Trolley’s support has been great, and their team is responsive, which is vital when dealing with real money leaving our bank,” Person added.
Enhancing artist payments with efficiency and care
By implementing Trolley’s platform, Hopeless Records has significantly reduced the workload associated with processing payments and managing royalties. This enhancement allows the team to dedicate more time to their core mission and less to administrative tasks.
Person emphasized the significance of this partnership, stating, “Our mission has always been to make a positive impact, not just through our music, but also in how we support our artists and community. With Trolley, we’ve found a system that aligns with our values and helps us operate more efficiently, allowing us to focus on what truly matters—the music and the message.”
Conor Cox, VP Revenue at Trolley, noted, “We’re seeing tremendous product-market fit across the music industry, particularly in spaces where companies are working closely with their artists. Partnering with Hopeless Records, a label that has continually championed its artists and community, is an exciting milestone for us.”
A vision for the next 30 years
As Hopeless Records looks to the future, they are committed to maintaining their core values while adopting innovative systems to support their artists and operations.
Person shared, “We want to ensure that Hopeless Records continues to make a positive impact long after we’re gone. Partnering with companies like Trolley helps us set up sustainable systems that align with our mission and prepare us for the next 30 years.”
Vincent Guérin, VP Marketing at Trolley, added, “Growing up on bands from Hopeless Records, I’ve always admired their impact on the music scene. Celebrating their 30th anniversary with them by ensuring their artists get paid efficiently and fairly is a personal and professional honor for me.”
About Hopeless Records
Hopeless Records has thrived as a beloved home for independent music for over 30 years. Founded by Louis Posen in 1993 as an excuse to release a seven-inch by the band Guttermouth, the Van Nuys, California-based record label spent much of the 90s catering to the prominent pop punk and ska craze before shifting to a more diverse spectrum of alternative music, encompassing everything from Atom and His Package and Thrice, to Sum 41. Over its 30+ years, Hopeless has been a haven for accomplished legacy acts like All Time Low and Avenged Sevenfold (whose collaborations with Hopeless have earned each a number of Gold and Platinum records), Taking Back Sunday, Yellowcard, and New Found Glory, as well as a major force in launching emerging artists like Neck Deep, The Wonder Years, and Illuminati Hotties, and Gen-Z juggernauts Waterparks, Scene Queen, NOAHFINNCE, and LØLØ.
Beyond the label’s impressive accomplishments, which boasts several Billboard top ten albums and millions of records sold, Posen’s proudest achievement is the label’s charity and advocacy work, which has long been an integral aspect of the business. Hopeless’ charity arm, The Hopeless Foundation, has raised over $3 million for more than 150 causes. The Songs That Saved My Life series, which started in 2018, continues that mission by raising funds and awareness for mental health and suicide prevention. Posen, who is a board member of several prominent industry organizations like Merlin and A2IM, notes, “It’s not enough for Hopeless to be a part of the community. We want to be a positive part of the community.”
About Trolley
Trolley is the end-to-end payout platform built for the internet economy, helping businesses make and manage payouts to contractors around the globe. Finance and product teams across hundreds of organizations—including SoundCloud, Envato, Downtown Music, Bugcrowd, GoTo, & Viral Nation—use Trolley to automate processes and enable payouts at scale. Annually, Trolley sends billions of dollars in 210+ countries & territories, with over 2.5 million total recipients on the platform. Trolley is on a mission to unlock the collective economic opportunity of the internet.
