Following success with AI-based Musiio, Hazel Savage is now backing aspiring DJs with Syntho
Hazel Savage is no stranger to Music Week’s Start Me Up – she first appeared in 2021 to talk about Musiio, which uses AI for deep analysis of rights-holders’ catalogues.
Following the sale to SoundCloud, the Musiio co-founder joined the streaming giant for three years as VP, music intelligence but has since moved on to new ventures.
“I love SoundCloud as a brand, it is a powerhouse fuelling the music industry and I will always be its biggest supporter,” Savage tells Music Week. “But from a personal perspective, the entrepreneur in me was always keeping half an eye on the future and wondering where I can have the most impact – and what can I build next.”
For the tech entrepreneur, the answer arrived in the form of Syntho, an electronic music education platform established by Manchester-based DJ/producer Josh Baker.
“I love that zero to one stage, I love starting small and scrappy and just figuring it out,” explains Savage of her appointment as CEO of the start-up. “I felt like Syntho is partly this, but also already has a really exciting growth story and a very compelling founder in Josh Baker – it’s pretty much an entrepreneur’s dream project.”
Syntho is targeted at aspiring and professional electronic music producers, offering beginner to advanced lessons. Savage had multiple approaches for roles at C-suite level, but opted for what appeared the less obvious appointment.
“Syntho was probably the relative unknown of all the approaches I had,” she admits. “But it was the one which, when I saw the growth, the revenue and projections, I was most excited about and felt I could have the most impact as a leader.”
The appointment comes at a crucial period for the growth of the company, but it also allows Baker to focus more on his DJing.
“The reason why Josh wanted to bring in a CEO is because he has just become insanely successful with his live shows,” says Savage. “He has the Midas touch, he is playing sold-out shows across the world.”
As well as a recent performance at Miami Music Week, Baker has upcoming shows at Amnesia’s opening party in Ibiza, as well as Hide and Seek, Parklife and Mint Festival.
He features on the popular ‘Introduction To…’ videos, which are among the 560 tutorials accessible to the online learning community members who subscribe to Syntho.
The expert-led courses provide a structured path to mastering the production software Ableton.
Syntho has users from over 73 countries, and tutorials are subtitled in multiple languages. As well as helping aspiring DJs to connect with like-minded creatives, the platform offers personalised monthly feedback.
“I think this market is huge,” says Savage. “I know from my time at SoundCloud that electronic music is one of the most popular genres in the UK and Europe and one of the fastest growing worldwide. I also think people want to learn. They want these skills and they want to follow in the footsteps of the successful artists we bring onto Syntho to teach, such as Josh Baker, Marsolo and Alisha.”
While the start-up is targeting global growth, Savage stresses that “keeping that authentic, underground artist approach is key to the Syntho brand”.
“From a business perspective and as the new CEO, I am very open to chatting with people from across the spectrum of the music industry to figure out where the exciting partnerships are going to come from,” she adds. “So anyone reading this can absolutely get in touch with me. Expect us to have a bigger presence at industry events this year!”
While she’s clearly fired up by the new challenge, Savage’s decision to join Syntho is perhaps a little surprising given her genre affiliations.
“I am 100% a failed rock star and still one third of an all-girl punk band!” she laughs. Fortunately, Baker brushed off her reservations about entering the electronic music space.
“We have such a strong team; Josh as our founder is our superstar DJ, but we have lots of active gigging DJs within the team in marketing and content roles,” she says. “And with me not playing live as a DJ, I have more time for spreadsheets, so it’s a beautiful balance.”
