Some of the biggest names in the music industry are backing a Chicago startup that lets you buy personalized songs from musicians.
Songfinch announced Wednesday that it raised a $2 million seed round from singer The Weeknd, Atlantic Records CEO Craig Kallman, The Weeknd's manager Wassim "Sal" Slaiby, School of Rock CEO Rob Price, Recycled Paper Greetings co-founder Michael Keiser and David Kalt, the founder of Reverb.
The big-name backers join Songfinch as it works to become the "Cameo of music," co-founder Scott Kitun said in an email. The startup connects users with songwriters who turn someone's personal stories and feelings into unique, professional-quality songs. Since its launch in 2016, Songfinch has created over 20,000 original songs.
The startup has more than 500 active musicians on the platform. In the last 12 months, musicians have been paid $1.5 million through Songfinch, Kitun said.
Songfinch's focus is currently on “working artists," Kitun said, i.e. musicians you're not likely to have heard of yet. But with a roster of top music talent and executives as investors, it's possible larger names could join the platform.
Founded by John Williamson, Rob Lindquist, Kitun, and Josh Kaplan, another music industry vet and the manager of Doja Cat, Songfinch is working to open up the creator economy for musicians, allowing them ways to find additional revenue streams between gigs.
"Currently, there's a platform to connect and monetize for every creator type imaginable except musicians and we hope to fill that gap," Kitun said.
