Bootleg: Beyond the Setlist

Notes on live music, connection, and the emerging future, by Bootleg founder and CEO, Rod Yancy This week marks exactly one year since we sold our first Bootlegs, partnering with Kaitlin Butts on her hometown show in Tulsa last December. What a difference a year makes. This year has taken me and our company to places I never imagined. From great American music cities like Tulsa, Nashville, Upstate NY, Atlanta and Athens, GA, to global hubs like New York, Los Angeles, London, Dublin and Dubai....

Notes on live music, connection, and the emerging future, by Bootleg founder and CEO, Rod Yancy Music is the heart and soul of this industry, but it runs on relationships. Building a company like Bootleg requires more than a great product, the real building happens through thousands of individual interactions that become relationships, that become partnerships. What’s amazed me most is how serendipitous it all feels. One introduction leads to another, a single conversation opens ten new...

Notes on live music, connection, and the emerging future, by Bootleg founder and CEO Rod Yancy 🎤 Sound Check Something is happening in the music world right now: artists and fans are rediscovering the magic of the live album. In the past year alone, we’ve seen a surge of new releases that celebrate the raw, human energy of performance. Radiohead unearthed a live recording from their 2003 Hail to the Thief tour, Elton John released Live From the Rainbow Theatre this spring, the Jonas Brothers...

Notes on live music, connection, and the emerging future, by Bootleg founder and CEO Rod Yancy 🎤 Sound Check When major paradigm shifts occur, they rarely announce themselves with fanfare. More often, it feels like one morning we wake up and realize the world has changed. If we weren’t paying attention to the signs, the new reality can feel bewildering, even disorienting. But looking back, the markers are always there. Think about the moment CDs disappeared and mp3s took over. No one could...

Notes on live music, connection, and the emerging future, by Bootleg founder and CEO Rod Yancy 🎤 Sound Check A few weeks ago I shared my thoughts on the pros and cons of raising capital versus bootstrapping Bootleg. At the time, I was on the fence. The act of putting that uncertainty out into the world brought the clarity I was looking for. Investors have been reaching out and major funds are doing diligence. One of the most important lessons I’ve learned in life and business is knowing when...