Berklee College of Music, Midem and Madrid’s IE Business School are searching for the next music business entrepreneur. Individuals and businesses have until Sept. 29 to submit their music start-up project to be in the running to win a $10,000 “start-up package.” The prize includes access to investors and capital to launch the winner’s new music-related project, legal services, work space, enrollment in an online certificate program from Berklee, and complimentary registration for Midem 2015.
The start-up competition will be the center of the second annual Rethink Music Venture Day, set for Oct. 24 in Berlin. The event will also offer workshops and feature industry speakers, and serve as a meeting point for music business entrepreneurs, brands and investors. Kobalt Label Services managing director Paul Hitchman has been tapped for the keynote.
This year’s Rethink Music Venture Day takes a place at The Factory, the new start-up incubator and tech campus in central Berlin funded by Google and other corporate partners.
“Music entrepreneurs and business start-ups have a key role to play in furthering the music industry, not least in delivering new original services…” Bruno Crolot, director of Midem & Music Markets, said in a statement. “Our annual Rethink Music Venture Day is designed to provide the forum — and the tools — to assist these entrepreneurs in developing their ideas and ventures into the successful music businesses of tomorrow.”
Nagual Dance, creators of an “interactive musical experience” that uses technology to create music from dance movements, won last year’s Rethink Music competition. That Berlin based start-up also won the Midem Lab 2014 competition. Its founders will give a presentation and performance at the upcoming Rethink Music event.
Projects entered into this year’s competition must be “investor ready.” Criteria for assessment will include innovation, team, growth potential, and scalability. A short-list of 12 start-up projects will be selected to pitch their ventures at the event to a panel of judges made up of experienced music executives and investors. Finalists will be notified by Oct. 6.
“We had over 300 start-ups and guests from leading international music and creative companies attending last year — with over 50 entries into our start-up competition,” said Allen Bargfrede, executive director of Rethink Music for Berklee. “We expect to grow these numbers this year.”