NEW YORK, July 28, 2021 -- The ASCAP Lab has partnered for a second year with the NYC Media Lab (NYCML) for its Immersive Music Studio Challenge, a seed project for startups and university teams to explore a range of experiences that demonstrate new ways artists can create music, connect with fans and reimagine how we interact with music and sound. Four finalists have been selected to receive grants to develop and expand upon prototype technologies as part of the 12-week challenge. The ASCAP Lab will mentor and work closely with each seed project team to provide guidance on how their products can best benefit the music creator community.

In a recent research survey conducted in conjunction with independent research firm Whitman Insight Strategies, ASCAP found that a large majority of music creators want their PRO to provide exposure to new ideas and technologies that can help them innovate. The ASCAP Lab, the innovation initiative of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), was created to explore how advanced technologies, new business approaches and creative collaborations can drive value for its music creator members and music users.

The ASCAP Lab and NYC Media Lab will host a Demo Day for the seed project teams to demonstrate their prototypes that will be presented virtually as part of ASCAP Experience on August 12. Anyone can RSVP for the ASCAP Lab Demo Day session and receive information on other upcoming ASCAP Experience events by visiting www.ascapexperience.com.

A panel of judges will present awards to the team with the product that has the most potential for positive impact to the creator community, and to the team that has made the most progress during the 12-week program. These teams will present their prototypes at the NYC Media Lab Summit, slated for early October.

ASCAP Chief Executive Officer Elizabeth Matthews said: “In a time of constant change, disruption and innovation can come from anywhere. The ASCAP Lab’s Immersive Music Studio Challenge allows us to work with and nurture emerging industry talent and to experiment with new ideas, new technology and new business models that create future opportunities for our members and music user partners.”

And NYC Media Lab Director of Partnerships & New Initiatives Erica Matsumoto adds: "What's happening now at the intersection of artistic expression and emerging tech reflects an approach to innovation that's open, collaborative and impact-focused. We at the NYC Media Lab are inspired by the incredible talent and creativity of this cohort, and the future-facing vision of this challenge."

The 2021 ASCAP Lab Seed Project Finalists are:

Boomy: A startup building AI-powered technology that makes it easy for people to create and release original songs and enables them to earn royalties from 40+ streaming services, stores and digital retailers worldwide. https://boomy.com

MiSynth: Music software plugin that allows humans to synthesize sounds with brainwaves, reproducing a specific timbre or sound they hear in their mind into a playable MIDI synthesizer. https://www.misynth.io/

OTHERWARDS by The Slashers: A mixed reality album experience that combines music with interactive 3D objects and geolocation technology, creating an explorative album listening experience for fans that melds music, gaming and the world around them. www.slashers.blog

SOCIAL by DOTDOT: Created by the award-winning studio of the same name, SOCIAL by DOTDOT is an accessible, web-based, online platform that enables blended in-person and virtual live event experiences for performance venues that are memorable, playful and interactive. https://dotdot.social/

More information on the 2021 ASCAP Lab Seed Project teams can be found at https://www.ascaplab.com.  

The ASCAP Lab launched its inaugural Seed Projects last year, mentoring five teams. Two went on to present their prototypes at the 2020 NYCML Summit: CHILLER (Computer Human Interface for Live Labeling of Emotional Responses), a tiny device that can read the body’s physical and emotional reactions to music (e.g. goosebumps), converting them into data that can then be leveraged in a multitude of ways by emerging technologies; and MADD by Team MiDi, a device for audio sampling and editing that features a user-friendly, soft-surface sensor that captures nuances in a user's touch, allowing for increased expressiveness and customization of sound.