“Let's make it happen.”
The message went out on New Year's Eve. I had cleared enough room around work to give the music-store project real time, and I was ready to start whenever the rest of the group was.
The idea had reappeared at the end of November through somebody I worked with in the early Beatport days. He wanted to build a digital store around high-quality music, component stems, and uses beyond DJs. Labels, production tools, licensing, remixes, and people making music at home could all be part of the market.
I wanted back in the room with somebody from the old crew.
We had been young and inexperienced when we first worked together. Several years later, neither of us really knew what the other had become capable of. That made the possible reunion more interesting, not less.
I wrote down what I thought I could bring. Scaling was the first thing. Most startups eventually reach a point where technology becomes the bottleneck, and I had spent the Beatport years learning what happens when growth meets systems that were not designed for it.
Process was second. We both liked collaborative, lightweight ways of working and had little interest in paperwork that existed only to look organized.
The third piece was specific to music. He understood the content, formats, labels, customers, and commercial side. I knew how to ingest, store, and distribute large media libraries.
The last line was simpler: I love businesses. I love helping one grow. He already knew that.
The project was still a possibility, not a company. The proposed team had people with music, label, web, and infrastructure experience, but no finished plan or launch date.
Internet service finally came online in one apartment at the end of December. My collaborator said he was ready to work after the weekend.
I answered from my iPhone before lunch.
Here was to 2010.