Edmonton-based company connects songwriters to international producers

An Edmonton-based company is connecting songwriters and artists around the world.

Songistry, an online networking site for songwriters and producers, matches those making music with those looking to source it for video games, branding, digital content or film.

"People are starving for this," Songistry founder Justin Gray told CBC News Friday. "We're excited to be creating a global network that will hopefully restore the art of songwriting."

Gray developed the idea for the website in 2014 after he struggled to organize and pitch songs to producers.

That's when he started playing around with software, tagging collaborators in the songs he wrote, before deciding to create an online community to share his work with.

"We wanted to create something like a Facebook or a LinkedIn, but to have it very hyper-specific to the millions of creators out there," he said.

Addresses 'lack of transparency' in music production

Curtis Serna, entrepreneur and the current president of Songistry, was brought on board by Gray last year, after the two brainstormed over coffee in Calgary. Serna said he too was inspired to make a difference for struggling artists worldwide.

"There's a lack of transparency in this whole sector," he said. "We're providing real solutions to a lot of stakeholder groups, so I felt like I could really help."

In the last year, Serna has received 1,500 requests by artists to register for a Songistry membership. 

One of these artists is Edmonton songwriter Megan Keirstead, 21, a family friend of Curtis Serna. She signed up for an account on Songistry to connect her music to a larger audience.

"I think the hardest thing to do sometimes as a solo artist is figuring out what to do, where to put your stuff," she said. "[With Songistry] I feel much more professional [and] that my content is getting out there."

As much as Keirstead said she loves the Edmonton music scene, her goal as an artist is to expand her reach.

She is already working with a Los Angeles producer she met through Songistry to organize a work-shadowing opportunity to learn more about music production.  

Helping artists get paid

The website will also log information on the song's title, length, genre and collaborators for third-party agencies, like SOCAN and the Canadian Musical Reproduction Rights Agency.

Under copyright law, the song information is used by licensing agencies to pay musicians every time their songs are played, either by streaming apps like Spotify or on the radio.

The problem in the industry right now, according to Gray, is that licensing agencies aren't getting accurate information on who owns what — and artists don't get paid.

Michael McCarthy, business development officer at SOCAN, called the Songistry venture "revolutionary" for artists across the country.

"Songistry works in the story flow and recognizes that artists write songs online, and lets them organize their music," he said Friday. "If these tools can help these people do their work, of course we'll support it."

Serna and Gray said they want to encourage the "tremendous amount of talent that exists in Canada" to sell their work overseas.

The Songistry founder and president hope to sign up 500,000 artists within five years, and expand to other cities  including Toronto, New York, Nashville and Tokyo.

 Artists can sign up for a free 60-day trial, and then pay $15 a month to access the service.