38Views
Meet Tony Abrahams, the man revolutionizing artist discovery with Tweedl
Tony Abrahams might have the next big thing in music. No he’s not an artist, he does not have a record label, nor is he an A&R. He is, however, an accomplished businessman, music executive, and is now creating a music sharing platform that maximizes artist exposure like never before.
The site name is Tweedl and it has all the workings to be groundbreaking.
Despite the music industry being oversaturated — seeing that anyone can make a song now and from the comfort of their own home now — it’s not always easy for up and coming talent to pave their lane out the gate. That’s how Tweedl came about.
Not only does it give artists the opportunity to be discovered, but they can actually win cash prizes to help jump-start their career as well as customized PR from some of the industry’s most experienced minds. It’s a gamified music streaming experience that gives the creatives the tools they need to succeed.
In an exclusive interview with Kulture Hub, Tony Abrahams discussed the genesis of Tweedl, his ambitions, and why he truly feels like it’s bound to make a difference in the music industry. But first, the name. How exactly did Abrahams arrive at calling the company Tweedl? The esteemed executive tells us how exactly he stumbled across it:
“My initial project name as I was conceiving the platform was U-Select, because you select the next hot artists. I spent weeks trying to come up with cool names. I even wrote like 40 words on the board that exemplifies what U-Select was about (words like discovery, engagement, interactivity, etc.) and looked up the Latin and Greek roots and meanings to find a cool name but I found nothing. I always had the dictionary.com app on my phone, which gives me a new word of the day each day. On my birthday in 2016, the word of the day was ‘Tweedle,’ which means to lure by music, as in the Pied Piper tweedled the mice out of the city. My oldest daughter told me to lose the ‘e’ at the end to make it cooler. That gave birth to Tweedl, by divine intervention and a tweak from my daughter.”
And the process is just as simple as the name. Upload your track, pick the best 30 seconds of your best songs and submit them to Tweedl discovery feed, then share. From there, your track has the chance to be discovered and receive the support it needs to go even further.
Besides the tremendous opportunity Tweedl has in itself, founder Tony Abrahams adds insight and edge as well. Abrahams is the former Chief Financial Officer for Combs Enterprises (yes, Combs as in Sean Puff Daddy Diddy Combs) and oversaw finance and operations compliance Bad Boy Entertainment.
In fact, that’s how he got his idea for Tweedl. in our conversation with Abrahams, he reflected start in-depth:
“Over the years, young people would approach me about careers in music as an aspiring artist, producer or manager. With the dramatic changes and challenges in the music industry, I would tell them ‘if you can solve the problems faced by the industry participants, you can make a lot of money. Otherwise, you should pursue a new passion.’ I was just being painfully honest. I had seen first-hand how hard it was to make money in music. In reality; however, all I did was discourage them and squashed their dreams; I was a ‘Dream Slayer.’ As I watched them walk away dejected, I felt awful.”
“This continued far too long with far too many young creative people. Then one day I decided instead of killing their dreams, I will facilitate their dreams. At that very moment in February 2016, I committed myself to create a platform to do just that.”
“One day I stumbled upon the Fantasia story on TV where it said that something like 65 million people voted on her finale. I was floored by how many people phoned in or txt in a vote on a specific date, at a specific time in a specific window. So after doing some research, at the peak of American Idol in 2012, 132 million people voted in the finale. It was clear; people wanted a voice in selecting the next hot artists. So I set out to create a platform that would put that kind of voting experience in people’s hands every day, and that gave birth to the concept of Tweedl. It is like American Idol meets Tinder.”
With more than $2 million in seed capital, Tweedlhas the resources to create a powerful, fun and engaging app for aspiring artists and music listeners alike. Tweedl also has the ability to develop and execute our pre and post-launch strategies, further giving new artists that boost that’s so hard to attain.
View this post on Instagram
Set yourself up for a successful career in music. Check out our plan at TWEEDLmusic.com.
What sets Tweedl apart from all other music sharing platforms is that its sole purpose is exposure, and it puts the power in hands of the people. When asked why Tweedl right now, Abrahams’s answer was that of a seasoned veteran who’s been studying the industry from afar. Tony explained,
Tweedl combines gamification and music, the two fastest growing segments in digital revenues. Combine that with the need for artists to connect and engage and to be empowered and you have the perfect storm. As a result, to use your words, TWEEDL will be a current that will create the next big shift and change in the music market.
Aspiring artists can upload their music, share their tracks across their social media footprint, engage and interact with their fans, let music lovers vote on their music and subject their music to a ranking by the people. Tweedl also offers premium services that provide real-time analytics for a more professional experience to enhance their music careers. He continued,
“Our biggest appeal is that we put the artist first, not technology. Meaning, in everything we do we gain inspiration from the needs of artists. Then we look for fun ways to include music lovers in the process at each step along the journey. So underground/undiscovered artists will appreciate how Tweedl lets them.”
As opposed to a SoundCloud, Audiomack or any other streaming services that are free, Tweedl promotes and expands artists’ reach by providing tools and analytics. As Abrahams tells us, “Tweedl is a professional tool disguised as a fun app experience.”
Abrahams hopes that over the next five years Tweedl would have made a significant impact on new music and artists discovery. “We will increase the pool of artists as being heard will be made easier and people will have a greater voice in determining what music is dope,” he says.
The thing is, Tony is on the side of artists — he really wants to cultivate artists potential — and Tweedl is his way of doing so. He’s even launching an Aspiring Artists Ambassador Campaign which is a voting process for fans to pick the faces of the company and site. He explains to KH in detail just how:
“Tweedl wants to reward hustle with a $100,000 contract that includes $50k in cash, a customized PR campaign experience, digital presence consulting and more to be our Brand Ambassador. If they are a pop, hip-hop, or R&B artist, all they have to do is upload their Tracks in the Tweedl app and get ready to perform at our launch party in New York City. Tweedl’s Music Fans will select 5 artists, through the Tweedl app, to perform at our livestreamed launch party in NYC. The performance with the most votes gets the bag, with over $100,000 in cash and prizes. We will supplement the Ambassador Campaign with a Music Lover’s Campaign where we will offer a chosen user $10,000 for being the best supporting user in our Ambassador Campaign.”
I’m sure if he could he’d go, one-by-one, giving advice to every aspiring artist and act that he comes across but that’s not realistic. But with Tweedl, he can.
Seeing that it’s just taken life the opportunity that lies ahead is still ripe, but it sure does sound promising.
For updates and information on Tweedl visit TweedlMusic.com If not you, maybe you know a friend who could be the next wave.