EarBuds is a real-time social music platform that enables users to stream the same songs and playlists as friends, favorite musicians and celebrities in real time. The app creates group audio experiences both live and on-demand, and supports chat and live-voice functions to bring people closer through shared musical interests. It offers artists, labels, celebrities and brands tools to build and engage fan communities and to connect through voice, premium content, social and mobile features. EarBuds is available for Spotify and Apple Music users, with Pandora and Amazon Music coming soon. The company plans to use the funds to build new tools to help EarBuds hosts better connect with listeners and monetize their streams. The team has added David Ransom as Head of Product and Sean Moubry as Head of Engineering, and veteran executive Drew Larner has joined as an investor and senior advisor; the company is led by Founder and CEO Jason Fox. Earbuds is a social music app founded by former NFL lineman Jason Fox that lets users stream and share playlists from athletes, entertainers and peers by linking Spotify or Apple Music accounts. The app has been in beta since February and emphasizes influencer-driven content, courting athletes, musicians and entertainers to act as on-platform broadcasters. Core features include account linking via Google/Facebook, a one-month free premium offer for Spotify or Apple Music, leaderboards for top streamers, and the ability for users to build in-app playlists. Early partnerships, including an activation with Burton that streamed snowboarders’ music, have informed plans to expand integrations across sports and esports and with services like Twitch. The company moved development from Los Angeles to Austin, rebuilt the product for better UX, and currently has seven employees. Financially, Earbuds completed a $630,000 friends-and-family round and a $1.5 million seed to launch and is now seeking $3 million to scale.

Total raised

$6M

Funding rounds

2

Latest round

Series A

Latest activity

Aug 2021