2. By Miriam Mannak
Art credit teekay FEBRUARY 2015 FASTCOMPANY.CO.ZA 45
guttercredittk
How Jason Grishkoff turned a blog into a business that has
become an important influencer of the new-music market
Based on Grishkoff’s upbringing, one could say that
becoming a digi-music entrepreneur was nothing but a
natural and even logical career choice. Born and bred in
Cape Town, the now 29-year-old grew up in a household
where music prevailed, with both parents being
members of the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra
(CTSO). “My mom, who is South African, played the
viola—while my dad, who was born in America, played
the French horn. Even my brother is a musician, which
makes me somewhat of the black sheep of the family,”
Grishkoff says with a smile.
However, the tides turned for the Grishkoffs when in
1997 the CTSO lost its government funding. This forced
it to merge with the CAPAB Orchestra, which eventually
gave way to the Cape Town Philharmonic. “These were
interesting times in South Africa. As a result of the CTSO
losing its funding and other events, my parents decided
to leave South Africa and move to Orange County in
California,” Jason recalls. “I was 12 back then. The first
thing Mom and Dad did was take me and my brother to
Disneyland, to ease us into the American way of life.”
A few years after the big move across the Atlantic,
while in high school Grishkoff discovered computers and
the Internet, which swiftly turned into a fully fledged
passion. “I became deeply involved in the world of online
gaming. I was 16 when I started to sell webspace to
gamers. These so-called gaming servers allowed gamers
from around the world to meet and play against one
CRE ATI V E CON V ER SATIONNext
Tothebeatof
hisowndrum
When browsing the Indie
Shuffle website, it’s difficult
to believe that one of the
world’s top online meeting
places for up-and-coming
artists, music fans and
record labels began as a
simple email campaign.
Fast Company SA met with
founder Jason Grishkoff
for a chat about his love
of music, entrepreneurial
vision, his time at Google,
and plans to expand in
South Africa.
3. 46 FASTCOMPANY.CO.ZA FEBRUARY 2015
Next Creative Conversation
another,” he recalls. “Later, I began to build
hardware and assemble computers with the
objective to make them go as fast as possible.
I was also helping bands with their websites.”
Despite his passion for information
technology , computers and gaming—and his
pre-dispositioned interest in music—
Grishkoff went on to study history and
political science at the University of California,
San Diego. Upon receiving his degrees some
three years later, he found a job in
Washington, DC as a strategic consultant.
His prime task was to help his employer
determine what they should pay executives
and other staff members. Little did Grishkoff
know that this new chapter in his life, one
that had very little to do with his academic
background or passion for computers and
music, would be the start of Indie Shuffle.
“After moving to Washington, I found
myself on my own, with hardly any friends.
It was a difficult time for me. In order to deal
with the transition, I turned to music and
started emailing friends and family about my
music finds and the new bands I had come
across,” Grishkoff says. “At some point, I
decided that a blog would make it easier for
me to share my digests. It would also give my
write-ups an audience. What I really wanted,
I guess, was for my reviews to have a home.”
Grishkoff’s focus was primarily on Indie
rock, a genre of alternative rock music that
originated in the United Kingdom in the 1980s
and has evolved into all sorts of sub-genres
as time has gone by. “While our focus is very
much still on Indie rock, hence the website’s
name, we tend to cover most genres. Well,
everything except for pop. We don’t do a lot
of Katy Perry–type of stuff,” he says.
A few years after relocating to Washington,
the world’s economy started to crumble as a
result of the financial crisis. The turmoil went
hand in hand with mass retrenchments,
globally but also in the US. While Grishkoff
feared for his own job and future, he was
approached by Google for the position of
remuneration consultant. “While Google
was interested in hiring me because of my
experience in this niche industry, it was my
music blog that got me the job. The trick to
getting hired at Google is the ability to fit in.
You need to be cool enough. There is even a
term for it: Googliness.”
While at Google, Grishkoff continued to
build, expand and improve Indie Shuffle. As
a result, the platform started to gain serious
momentum among music fans around the
world and up-and-coming artists. Then,
record labels began to pay attention to
whatever was happening on Indie Shuffle.
That is why, in March 2013, three years after
his first day at Google, Grishkoff exchanged
his secure job for a full-time life of
entrepreneurship.
Since his decision, the website has grown
from strength to strength. Between 2009 and
2013, the year Grishkoff took on Indie Shuffle
full-time, 300 million minutes of music
Flying the flag for local music:
Grishkoff is now focused on growing
Indie Shuffle’s reach and presence in
South Africa.
4. FEBRUARY 2015 FASTCOMPANY.CO.ZA 47
have been streamed by users worldwide—an
average of 6.25 million minutes per month. In
November 2014, however, over nine million
minutes of music were streamed. “In that
same month, we had four million page views,”
Grishkoff says, adding that the number of
reviewers has increased, too. “Indie Shuffle
is currently curated by 40 to 50 music writers
around the world, mainly in Australia, the
United Kingdom and the United States,”
he says.
This human factor has been the key to
Indie Shuffle’s success, he says. “We don’t
just provide you with automatically compiled
top-10 lists. Our stuff is written by real people.
We do this because we believe that humans
are better than robots when it comes to
discovering and writing about music.”
One of his major plans for the future is
expanding the website’s presence in South
Africa. “We want to make the international
community aware of what this country has to
offer music-wise,” Grishkoff says. “There is a
lot of talent here. The problem with many
South African bands and artists is that they
don’t know how to market themselves. That is
why I came to Cape Town in October 2014.
I have come to the realisation that it is quite
difficult to pay attention to what is happening
here locally, when you are elsewhere.”
Since he set foot on home soil, Grishkoff
has embedded himself deeply in the local
music scene. “I have attended various festivals
including Sónar, and done various radio guest
appearances. We have also organised some
tours for bands,” he says, adding that these
efforts have had positive results already. “At
least two South African bands have been
Background
Jason was born in Cape Town, and
emigrated with his family to California
when he was 12. He attended university
in San Diego, and worked at Google for
three years before leaving to pursue
entrepreneurial endeavours full-time.
Business Interests
Both Grishkoff’s parents were members
of the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra,
so his founding of a website dedicated
to the discovery of new music came as
little surprise. Since beginning Indie
Shuffle in 2009, his platform has seen
more than 9 million unique visitors
stream roughly 500 million minutes of
music across web, iOS and Android. In
doing so, it has become one of the
most reputable digital music portals
on the Internet, viewed by major labels
and musicians alike as a necessary
exposure platform for launching an
artist’s career. After leaving Google in
early 2013, Jason embarked on a two-
year journey working as a ‘digital
nomad’ to build his network in
London, Barcelona, Stockholm, Berlin,
Copenhagen, San Francisco, Istanbul,
Johannesburg and, ultimately, Cape
Town. Today he is focused on growing
Indie Shuffle’s reach and presence
in South Africa, with plans for a
nationwide tour with some of the
country’s biggest bands later
this year.
Likes
Coding and building new features
for Indie Shuffle, cricket, running
and hiking, scootering around Cape
Town, learning new languages
Dislikes
Slow Internet, taxes, the cost of
health insurance, mushrooms
30 SECONDS WITH JASON GRISHKOFF
approached by record labels—24 hours
after their songs went online. Our South
African traffic has doubled over the past
recent months.”
The interest of music companies has
probably been the biggest change for the
better since 2009, Grishkoff says. When
Indie Shuffle went live five years ago, it was
mainly aimed at music fans and promising
artists. Today, it’s a key link between not only
talent and audiences, but also between talent
and record labels.
“Music blogs have become an increasingly
important space for musicians and record
companies to find each other,” the
entrepreneur says. “Music labels like Sony
and Universal are now approaching us, a
recognised source, to scout for talent and to
punt their artists. These and other firms know
that if they get their content on Indie Shuffle,
there is a fair chance that it is going to
generate some positive outcomes. Indie
Shuffle is currently considered an important
influencer of the new-music market.”
In a way, the platform has become the
external artists & repertoires (A&R)
department of major record companies,
Grishkoff says, explaining that the job of
an A&R department is to find the next big
thing and to promote new artists. “That is
essentially what we are doing. Record
companies rely on us when it comes to
finding fresh talent.”
While Indie Shuffle, which thrives on
advertising, is undoubtedly a success story,
good fortune doesn’t grow on trees. “Running
your own business is hard work,” Grishkoff
says. “Indie Shuffle’s success didn’t happen
overnight. There have been a lot of challenges.
What pulled me through was the passion I
had for my business and music. Therefore,
my first best bit of advice I have for aspiring
entrepreneurs is to start small and build from
there. Take it one step at a time. Dream, but
don’t go too big in the beginning. Secondly, I
recommend you to do something you really,
really love. If you want to make it, that
something you really love will make you
want to overcome the challenges.”
When Indie Shuffle went live five years ago, it
was mainly aimed at music fans and promising
artists. Today, it’s a key link between
not only talent and audiences, but also between
talent and record labels.
