EarBuds is the leading real-time social music platform that enables users to stream the same songs and playlists as their friends, favorite musicians and other celebrities in real-time. The app brings people closer together through live group audio experiences and enables commercial partners to connect to fans through voice, premium content, social and mobile features. EarBuds is available for Spotify and Apple Music, with Pandora and Amazon Music coming soon. Currently available on iOS, the app will also be available for Android users soon.
The company is venture-backed with capital and support from Techstars, Ecliptic Capital, Camwood Ventures and a roster of remarkable private investors.
Unlike other social audio apps that focus on voice chats and podcasts, EarBuds fills a critical gap in the marketplace for a real-time social music experience where friends and fans can listen to the same music, regardless of what streaming service they use. The app has enabled artists and verified users, such as NFL star Patrick Mahomes and rap superstar Nelly, to engage with fans directly through voice and chat features, adding in a new layer of social listening that’s currently missing.
EarBuds is redefining the future of streaming by making music a social experience that enables users to simultaneously listen to the same streams as their friends, favorite musicians and other celebrities in real-time. Gannett will help lead the company as it experiences rapid growth and will oversee partnership discussions with the music and digital media industries, drawing on his 25 years of experience in senior roles at American Idol, Sony Music Entertainment, MediaMath and other leading media, entertainment and technology organizations.
Streaming services have reinvigorated the music industry over the last 10 years, with more than half of the industry's annual revenue resulting from streaming. Despite this growth, streaming platforms still only offer limited ways for listeners to engage with each other and their favorite artists through dynamic and real-time experiences. EarBuds offers artists, labels and brands the unique ability to build communities of fans based on shared musical interests and engage with users directly in powerful yet relatable ways, including through chat and live voice functions.