Diversity is a hallmark of Memphis’ population. And the city is known for its entrepreneurial nature. The inaugural class of Memphis Inno's Startups to Watch reflects that racial, gender, and business-focused diversity.
Since its fall 2021 launch, Memphis Inno — MBJ’s brand geared toward startups, technology, and innovation — has expanded its coverage of the local entrepreneurial ecosystem. The section highlights startups and founders who are breaking technological ground in their respective industries, with new ventures and innovative product offerings. Represented among Memphis Inno’s Startups to Watch in 2022 are entities with concerns as varied as medical technology, music and digital content, transportation, finance, and retail.
Some are early stage companies figuring out how to get off the ground, and others already have significant sources of funding and are looking to scale up. All are uniquely Memphis ventures.
Connect Music Group
When someone signs up for a music streaming service like Spotify, Apple Music, or Tidal, the user pays that company a monthly fee. And each time a song is streamed on one of those platforms, a microtransaction occurs, ranging from around .001 to .005 cents per play. Payments from those microtransactions trickle down from the streaming service to distributors, record labels, artists, producers, and songwriters.
And those microtransactions add up. Often, however, not everyone receives the full compensation they’re entitled to.
And this is where Connect Music Group comes in. Founded by Memphian George Monger, Connect is a music monetization startup that distributes songs globally and ensures that its artists, writers, and producers receive compensation and recognition for their work.
Already, it has more than 200 label clients, acts as a sub-distributor for three other music distribution companies, and, as Monger said, is “substantially complete with our financing round [of $600,000] and likely oversubscribed.”
Since it began, it’s amassed about $1 million in revenue — without deploying any investor capital.
