GoKawiilFormer Spotify innovation chief raises $5.5M for music creation startup A Vinyl Bar in Shibuya
Máuhan M Zonoozy, who previously led innovation at Spotify and founded remix startup Bubbl before its acquisition by Cricket Media, has launched A Vinyl Bar in Shibuya, a startup building small apps for playing with sound and vocals. The company secured $5.5 million in pre-seed funding from investors including Mantis VC, SV Angel, Boxgroup, and former Spotify advertising executive Dawn Ostroff, who is advising the venture. Rather than one product, the startup releases experimental apps as 'singles,' such as a Chrome extension called Speed Surfer that alters browser audio and a stem-mixing tool called Stacks.
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Zonoozy's bet reflects a broader shift in how younger audiences engage with culture—not just consuming music but remixing and playing with it, similar to games and filters. By targeting creation rather than access, the startup is positioning itself in a gap that streaming services like Spotify never fully addressed, potentially opening a new category of music interaction tools.
- A Vinyl Bar in Shibuya raised $5.5M pre-seed from a dozen investors including former Spotify executive Dawn Ostroff.
- Founder Máuhan M Zonoozy previously led innovation at Spotify and sold his prior startup Bubbl to Cricket Media.
- The company releases experimental sound-manipulation apps as 'singles,' including a Chrome extension and a stem-mixing tool.
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Published there as: “A Vinyl Bar in Shibuya is a startup from a former Spotify leader for making music apps”
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