Sound Connections

Amplitude Ventures
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  • Music Interviews
  • Every two weeks

This is the intricate world of music entrepreneurship. Hosted by Jakob Wredstrøm from Amplitude Ventures, this podcast offers listeners a unique blend of insightful interviews, industry expertise, and behind-the-scenes stories from the global music landscape.  From the challenges of breaking into the industry to the nuances of music tech innovations, each episode is a journey into the lives of music professionals, founders, artists, and innovators. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, an industry veteran, or just a music enthusiast, "Sound Connections" provides a fresh perspective on the ever-evolving world of music.  Listen and connect with the sounds and stories that shape the industry.

  1. 18 hr ago

    #160: FOUNDER: Exporting African Music: Rights, Revenue, and Global Growth: Yoel Kenan

    African music is growing globally, but the business behind that growth is still catching up. In this episode of Sound Connections, Jakob Wredstrøm speaks with Yoel Kenan, a longtime music executive and entrepreneur whose career has taken him from major-label roles at Universal and BMG to building businesses focused specifically on African music. After founding Africori and helping develop it into a significant distribution business, Yoel is now returning his attention to African music rights, catalog investment, and the wider opportunity around cultural entrepreneurship. Together, they unpack why the growth story of Sub-Saharan African music is more complicated than the headline numbers suggest. Yoel discusses the gap between huge levels of music consumption and comparatively low monetization, the role of telecom companies and streaming platforms, challenges around publishing and rights registration, and why missing contracts and unclear ownership can make catalog investment particularly difficult. From exporting African artists and songs to building stronger marketing systems, investing in catalogs whose audiences are still moving toward streaming, and supporting the next generation of cultural entrepreneurs, Yoel sees significant opportunity, but on a longer timeline than many investors expect. This is a candid conversation about patience, infrastructure, ownership, and what it will actually take for African music’s global momentum to become a stronger and more sustainable business. Produced by Amplitude Ventures AS.

    #160: FOUNDER: Exporting African Music: Rights, Revenue, and Global Growth: Yoel Kenan

  2. 1 Sept

    #159: FOUNDER: Building the Infrastructure for Scalable Music Licensing: Chantal Epp

    Music is everywhere, but the systems for licensing it at scale are still remarkably fragmented. In this episode of Sound Connections, Jakob Wredstrøm sits down with Chantal Epp, founder of ClicknClear, to explore the hidden challenges and opportunities within music licensing. Chantal shares how her background in music and cheerleading led her to identify a licensing gap in choreographed sports, and how that insight evolved into a technology platform connecting music rights holders with businesses that want to use music legally. They discuss why licensing thousands of songs for a single sporting event cannot be handled one deal at a time, the complexity of securing rights for video-on-demand content, and why the music industry has struggled to monetize many of the markets already using its music. Chantal also opens up about the realities of building a music tech company over seven years, securing deals with every major record label and music publisher, raising capital as a sole founder, and staying lean while waiting for the market and licensing ecosystem to catch up. A conversation about music rights, technology, entrepreneurship, and the infrastructure needed to unlock new revenue across the music industry. If you want to learn more about ClicknClear: Website: https://www.clicknclear.com/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/clicknclearmusic/LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/clicknclearmusicInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/clicknclear_ Produced by Amplitude Ventures AS.

    #159: FOUNDER: Building the Infrastructure for Scalable Music Licensing: Chantal Epp

  3. 25 Aug

    #158: FOUNDER: The Business of Artist Analytics in the Age of AI: Oskar Eichler

    Music is becoming increasingly data-driven, but having access to data is only the beginning. In this episode of Sound Connections, Oskar, founder of Songstats, joins Jakob to discuss the business of artist analytics, music technology, and the growing role of AI in how artists and music companies understand their data. Oskar shares his journey from building music-related tools as a young DJ and technologist to developing Songstats into a platform that brings data from streaming, social media, radio, playlists, and other sources together in one place. The conversation explores the challenges of turning music data into something artists can actually use, building a music tech company without outside investors, and developing a business model that combines artists with enterprise customers. Oskar also discusses the shift from dashboards and apps toward AI-powered interfaces, including Songstats' work allowing AI tools to interact directly with its data. The conversation looks at what this could mean for artist decision-making and the wider music ecosystem. Produced by Amplitude Ventures AS. If you want to learn more about Songstats: Website: https://songstats.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/songstats/

    #158: FOUNDER: The Business of Artist Analytics in the Age of AI: Oskar Eichler

  4. 19 Aug

    #157: FOUNDER: The Reality of Building a Music Tech Business: Matt Urmy

    Building music technology is often presented as a story of rapid growth. Matt’s journey with Artist Growth tells a very different story. In this episode of Sound Connections, Jakob sits down with Matt Urmy, Founder of Artist Growth. He reflects on more than a decade of building software for the business side of music. What began as a product for independent artists eventually led him toward a deeper industry problem: management companies, labels, and agencies were still relying on spreadsheets, email, and disconnected systems to manage their operations. They explore the difficult shift from B2C to B2B, the challenges of raising capital before finding product-market fit, and what it takes to keep a company going through years of slow enterprise adoption. Matt also shares his perspective on building software in the age of AI, where developing products is becoming easier, but understanding customers, building reliable data infrastructure, and creating lasting value remain difficult. A grounded conversation about capital, technology, resilience, and the realities of building a company in music tech. Produced by Amplitude Ventures AS.

    #157: FOUNDER: The Reality of Building a Music Tech Business: Matt Urmy

  5. 10 Aug

    #156: FOUNDER: Reinventing the Tools Behind Music Creation: Casey Kolb

    Can music software become more powerful without making creativity feel less human? Casey Kolb, founder of Lunacy, joins Sound Connections to explore the changing world of audio plugins and what it takes to build tools that feel as inspiring visually as they sound. From his years as a film composer in Los Angeles to spending a year and a half programming Lunacy’s first flagship product, Cube, Casey shares the persistence behind turning a side project into a growing music tech company. We discuss product design, pricing, seasonal revenue, community building, fundraising, and why Lunacy has been careful to protect its creative independence while scaling. The conversation looks ahead to Nova and a future where creators can build and share their own plugins with AI assisting the code rather than replacing human creativity. Tune in for a thoughtful conversation on sound, technology, and what the next generation of music tools could become.

    #156: FOUNDER: Reinventing the Tools Behind Music Creation: Casey Kolb

  6. 13 Jul

    #155: FOUNDER: Inside the Next Generation of Music Companies: Aidan Schechter

    What happens when the future of the music business is built by small, agile companies instead of industry giants? In this episode of Sound Connections, Jakob Wredstrøm sits down with Aidan, CEO of Patchbay and Partner at 1916 Enterprises, to explore how music, technology, investment, and entrepreneurship are reshaping the industry's future. Aidan explains why independent music businesses are becoming more powerful, how AI is accelerating product development, and why the next generation of music companies will rely on collaboration rather than scale. From artist management and publishing to software and venture investing, he shares how small teams can now accomplish what once required entire enterprises. The conversation also explores data infrastructure, the changing economics of music, and why relationships remain the industry's greatest competitive advantage. Rather than replacing people, technology should remove administrative complexity; giving artists, managers, and executives more time to discover talent, build relationships, and create meaningful careers. If you're interested in music technology, AI, entrepreneurship, independent music, or the future of the creative economy, this episode is for you. Produced by Amplitude Ventures AS.

    #155: FOUNDER: Inside the Next Generation of Music Companies: Aidan Schechter

  7. 26 Jun

    #154: EXIT: Building a Music Tech Company Before the Market Was Ready: Vijay Basrur

    A missed CD delivery exposed a gap in India's music industry. That moment led Vijay to build OKListen, an independent music platform that spent more than a decade growing alongside a market that wasn't yet ready for it before ultimately being acquired by AWAL. In this episode of Sound Connections, Vijay shares what it was like to build a music tech company in one of the world's largest music markets while streaming, independent music, and consumer willingness to pay were still evolving. He reflects on bootstrapping the business, spending five years balancing a corporate career while keeping the company alive, and why patience became a competitive advantage. The conversation explores the realities of building music businesses in emerging markets, from raising capital and competing against global platforms to understanding when market timing matters more than execution. Vijay also discusses India's evolving independent music ecosystem, the economics behind music tech, and why founders often need conviction long before the market validates their ideas. If you're interested in music technology, entrepreneurship, emerging markets, or the business of music, this episode offers a thoughtful look at what it takes to build for the long term. Produced by Amplitude Ventures AS.

    #154: EXIT: Building a Music Tech Company Before the Market Was Ready: Vijay Basrur

  8. 11 Jun

    #153: FOUNDER: AI Is Rewriting the Business of Music Software: Noam Levinberg

    Are traditional music production tools entering their last era? Noam Levinberg, founder of Safari Audio, believes the future of music creation may look very different from the world producers know today. In this episode, we explore the rapid impact of AI on music software, why traditional plugin businesses are being challenged, and how the next generation of creators may never adopt the workflows that defined the last 30 years of music production. Noam shares the story behind Safari Audio, a bootstrapped company that has grown to more than 170,000 users by building creative, unconventional tools for music producers. We discuss startup building, product-market fit, software distribution, customer loyalty, and the difficult challenge of staying relevant in a market changing faster than ever before. Whether you're a music producer, founder, engineer, or music technology enthusiast, this episode offers valuable insight into the future of creative tools and entrepreneurship. Subscribe for more real conversations on music, startups, and innovation.

    #153: FOUNDER: AI Is Rewriting the Business of Music Software: Noam Levinberg
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About

This is the intricate world of music entrepreneurship. Hosted by Jakob Wredstrøm from Amplitude Ventures, this podcast offers listeners a unique blend of insightful interviews, industry expertise, and behind-the-scenes stories from the global music landscape.  From the challenges of breaking into the industry to the nuances of music tech innovations, each episode is a journey into the lives of music professionals, founders, artists, and innovators. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, an industry veteran, or just a music enthusiast, "Sound Connections" provides a fresh perspective on the ever-evolving world of music.  Listen and connect with the sounds and stories that shape the industry.

Information

  • Creator
    Amplitude Ventures
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    181
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Amplitude Ventures
  • Show Website
    Sound Connections