Press Coverage

"Ahead of the release of the TMN 30 Under 30 shortlist tomorrow, last year’s Readers’ Choice winner, Josh Simons, reflects on how much has changed in 10 years, why creatives have more control than ever, and why a couple of years in the music industry is like a lifetime."

"Mr. Simons, chief executive of the tech start-up Vampr, was in Australia at the start of the pandemic."

"Vampr has announced a further £570,000, taking its total investment raised to £1.9m."

"Consumers want their entertainment despite the pandemic. It’s just that they want it in a safe, responsible manner. That’s where Vampr enters the stage front and center. A social media network that connects artists of all stripes to their audience, Vampr was relevant even before the crisis because it enabled creative individuals to expand their audience/networks to a focused user base."

"The crowdfunding platform Wefunder is in the midst of a $577,000 stock sale for Vampr, the second round for a company that has raised more than $1.85 million… [The company] managed to nab as lead investor David Rickert, a Kentucky investor and managing partner of RZN8 Capital. David Weisburd, co-head of venture capital at 10X Capital in San Francisco, has joined the latest round with an undisclosed sum."

"Vampr has just surpassed 6 million connections between creatives. If there ever was a super-connector in the music industry, it is [CEO Josh] Simons."

"Vampr is the easiest to use collaborative app and the largest, social-professional network of aspiring creatives in the world. With a simple swipe, you are able to connect with people around the globe, grow your network and even build your team."

"As the largest professional social network and digital distribution platform for musicians and other creative types, Vampr has created numerous journeys since selecting Airship in August 2020."

"Music social network Vampr launched a reactivation journey that targets inactive app users with a series of three push notification and a final email within two weeks. They were able to reactivate users at a 277% higher rate than those in the control group!"

"Other companies like... Vampr were created by Australians, launched in the United States through successful campaigns on Wefunder and have since become multi-million-dollar enterprises."

"The top key feature? Music distribution. Not only can you submit your music to all leading digital service providers (including Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube), you also get to keep 100% of your royalties. Once you become a Vampr Pro user, you will receive a Pro Badge, the Vampr version of the coveted blue checkmark."

"Israel Gil was discovered through the social network Vampr, an app that connects musicians from all over the world with similar tastes. He replaces former Aisles singer Sebastián Vergara."

""One day I thought, 'I want to sing in a band' [so] I downloaded an app called Vampr" 25-year old Israel Gil [on how he] replaced Sebastián Vergara as Aisles new lead singer."

"For the price of a coffee you can really stand out from the crowd, while keeping 100% of your royalties from streaming platforms."

"Shoutout Vampr for hooking [Rae Khalil] and Jared [Rubens] up!"

"Vampr, an app that aids in music discovery, connection and collaboration, will unveil its new Pro service on Aug. 14. On the heels of announcing its publishing division that assists members with free sync representation, Vampr Pro’s August launch will allow users new features and more accessibility to music distribution for a monthly fee of $4.99... An early adopter includes Kanye West producer Anthony Kilhoffer, who found and hired a string arranger through the app."

"Josh Simons, co-founder and CEO of Vampr, a social network for musicians, applied for a PPP loan and went through "various struggles at each stage of the sloppy rollout," he said. "We have been successful in receiving the funds but it's unclear still how they will accept which part of the loan to forgive.""

"This week on our startup series, we profiled Vampr, a Linkedin type service for the music industry."

"[Vampr] grew from about 20,000 users at the end of Year 1, to over 200,000 at the end of Year 2 and now with over half a million users."

"Platforms like TikTok and Instagram have given creatives a completely new way to share and create content; however, there still lacks an official infrastructure to help creatives professionally network. Vampr fixes that problem with its professional networking platform designed specifically for creatives and musicians. Unlike its competitors, Vampr is a mobile-first platform that gamifies networking in order to make it fun and appealing."

"Vampr [is] a location based social and professional mobile platform that facilitates music discovery, networking and communication between musicians."

"Vampr, meanwhile, helps musicians discover new collaborators."

"I did my research on the Internet and even subscribed to Facebook groups, but I didn't find what I was looking for, until I discovered Vampr... [that's where] I met the LiTAFiRE duo. At my request, they created a new song in the style of Tove Lo / The Chainsmokers."

"Music collaboration network Vampr has added free sync representation to its award-winning app. "

"Expanding their features, Vampr has launched a new publishing division that provides members with free sync representation. Independent artists can now submit their music for placement in film and television, advertising, and video game soundtracks through the app... with just three clicks."

"Pablo Salvadores (guitar and keyboards) and Lara Giardina (voice and keyboards) started a band called The Death of Robert a couple of years ago. They met through the Vampr app, which connects musicians: "I was looking for people to play with, but for fun, nothing serious. As we were talking we connected very quickly around musical and project tastes and we decided to take it seriously," says Pablo. Through the same application they connected with Robert Panadés, the bassist and who gave the group its name, and with drummer Simón López, who joined a few months ago."

"The app... has launched a free Publishing Sync Representation feature, to give indie musicians an avenue to have their music submitted to brands, commercials, video game developers, film/TV producers and more. The company says there are no upfront costs to artists for the feature. The sync representation is non-exclusive and provides 75% royalty to the artist on placements. Josh Smith will lead the new publishing division from the company’s new London office; Smith previously worked at Music Gateway and has experience working with music tech startups."

"Unveiling Vampr Publishing on Zoom at NOLA MusicTech"

"Why didn't I come up with that?! It's not all about hooking up to have sex, it's about hooking up to collaborate on beats! So dope."

"Find other musicians to collaborate with"

"Vampr, a networking platform for musicians, just announced it closed on a seed round bringing the company’s total funding to almost $1.2 million, including more than $500,000 in equity crowdfunding. “Our success has always been tied to the strength of our community — and in many ways the community owns the platform,” founder Josh Simons told Built In."

"I met a lot of great people through an app called Vampr. I met my producer that I’m working with right now, James LaFlamme, he reached out to me through the app and we made “Ain’t No Supermodel” shortly after that"

"Angel investment platform Angel Effect invests in US-based Vampr"

"Vampr is the first platform of its kind for musicians to connect with other musicians and industry professionals and collaborate on projects. Vampr is one of many startup networking platforms ready to partner with investors to revolutionize the way we build business through networking. Ultimately, professional networking startups are all about servicing niche communities."

"We are happy to invest in a team that has been together for a long time and has achieved rapid growth recently."

"Josh Simons created Vampr for musicians."

"Vampr expects to be one of many businesses nationwide subject to the California Consumer Privacy Act."

"With half a million users around the world [privacy] is definitely something Vampr keeps in mind."

"Rae Khalil’s debut project is produced by her best friend and frequent Collaborator, Jared Rubens. Rae and Jared met through “Vampr” – (Tinder for Music). “Girlfriend” was created out of frustration with the music industry – created with absolutely no budget out of Rae’s bedroom in Torrance."

"Josh and Baz know first-hand the power of collaboration, and particularly the value of connecting to global networks. APRA AMCOS is proud to support Vampr’s innovative platform that helps our members to connect with fellow creators wherever they are in the world"

"The Formation of China Moon... They found [lead singer] Thacker through Vampr (a Tinder-like musician finder app), instantly loving his vocal style... In short, this song is f*cking incredible."

"When guitarist Nathan Hallman and electric mandolin player Will Ruff met through Vampr, a local musician-finding app in 2017, the two knew right away they wanted their music to extend beyond a duo of college students playing in Ruff’s living room in Athens, Georgia."

"I am personally of the view that growing a platform with capital and support from the same group of people who have a vested interest in its success is a smart and obvious way forward for a social network with existing traction in 2019."

"Vampr has launched an equity-crowdfunding campaign this week using the WeFunder website… A couple of days in, and Vampr is already past the $100k mark"

"Once touted as a muso’s equivalent to Tinder, it’s evolved into so much more than a hook-up tool."

"Vampr not only serves as a platform for connecting musicians. Some users use [the app] to find good music instead of connecting with other musicians. For this reason Vampr is more than just a simple professional network."

"Signing a strategic partnership with Vampr, a mobile platform that was named among Apple’s “Best Apps of 2017,” and which facilitates music discovery and communication between musicians and music industry professionals, has added momentum [for Emanate]."

"First, find bandmates. With Vampr you make a profile of your musical tastes and skills, and then swipe, Tinder-style, through other posters, or wait to be contacted. You can chat in-app before agreeing to meet."

"Vampr is one example of what happens when a creative entrepreneur takes his personal experience of working as an artist and uses the insight this brings to fill a need in the market."

"[Vampr CEO] Josh began making his way in the music world as the lead vocalist and guitarist of the band Buchanan. As their success grew, the band caught the eye of Barry (Baz) Palmer, from the well-known Australian band Hunters and Collectors. Barry and Josh collaborated musically at first, until years later, when Josh came to Barry with the idea for Vampr. The two business partners spent 12 months developing the social network, and from there, the app rose to success. Vampr is rated on the App Store as one of 2017’s top community apps worldwide, and promoted by big-name organisations, like The Huffington Post."

"Vampr is a mobile network for musicians – a meet-platform, different from a social/friend platform like Facebook. The main differentiator is professional networking – presenting personnel who fit your search criteria, one by one, with a thumb swipe as the primary mechanism to sift through potential creative collaborators. This approach plainly hadn’t been done when Vampr launched."

"Mr. Ekow takes it back to the good old days on his new record titled “Jungle Gym”. Over a funky, upbeat backdrop, he delivers lighthearted lyrics with playful flows, laced with child-like optimism. The beat, delivered by Mexican producer Eidan, bounces along with stabbing synths and a groovy bass line that’s sure to get people moving. The two met via Vampr – an app for musicians. Think Tinder but instead of unsolicited pics in your DMs, you get dope music like this."

"Launched in April in eight languages, Vampr has made 2,463,700 connections between musicians across 190 countries and is seeking to change the face of the music industry on a global scale."

"Success can bring many benefits, but it won’t stop fear in its tracks. From Musk to Branson, even billionaire masterminds say the entrepreneurial journey is one that naturally leads to a lot of hairy moments. We asked [Vampr CEO Josh Simons] to share some of the scariest moments in his career: the times he feared all is lost, the moments that trigger the fear and how they’ve forged ahead."

"Liuzzi uses an iPhone app called Vampr to make cross-country and global connections. The innovation paid off: Vocalist Dries Laisnez, of Belgium, sings on the track “Close to Me,” with two additional vocalists, Luciano Thomas and an anonymous artist who goes by “No 1 Knows,” from California."

"Innovate or perish, they say. But in this environment, being innovative isn’t enough – not even close. What you really want is to be known as a disruptor. Think of brands like Uber, AirBNB and now, Vampr – they have seriously upset the status quo by taking on the accepted norm, turning it on its head, and recreating it in their own image."

"This app aims to open up avenues for aspiring artists who live in remote locations, allowing them to collaborate with other musicians"

"If a musician is looking for a co-writer, they can pick a music genre, tap the app, and it immediately brings up results. The user can sample music the songwriter has made, check out their tastes in music, make a connection, and start messaging."

"Creating connections is one of the biggest challenges in the business, especially for unsigned musicians... No matter how fragmented distribution channels are, people will always rely on collaborating with other people—from marketing, cover art, sound mixing, to production"

"Vampr is all about the simple joy of playing music with people. It’s as much a social network as it is a music app"

"Need a guitarist to help you finish off your new track? It’ll help you find someone who’s keen to jump on board... while the app can also be used for other purposes like linking up with graphic designers for an album cover"

"Vampr gives user-friendly support for all those songwriters, indie musicians, DJs, rappers, folk artists, who are struggling to connect and break into the necessary circles they need to… Yes, there are other music social networking apps but the proof is in the pudding. Well, it’s in the app"

"Many popular platforms are constrained by the early 2000s model of boring design, drop-down menus and other stagnant user-interfaces... Melbourne-based startup Vampr has taken inspiration from the contemporary dating app model to develop an app that allows musicians to more easily connect with each other"

"Barry Palmer [Hunters and Collectors] guitarist, has launched a musicians' collaboration app called Vampr with Josh Simons of Melbourne rock group Buchanan, with seed funding from the seemingly unlikely source of Wang Chung bassist Nick Feldman"

"The app has already been making waves in the US, where it picked up the audience choice award at Silicon Beach Fest 2016"

"A social networking application to connect musicians for work and social purposes"

"What if connecting with musicians and music industry executives was only one swipe away? With Los Angeles based startup app Vampr, it is"

"In this piece Josh Simons discusses his new iOS app, Vampr, built with the intent of helping musicians connect with like-minded collaborators, delving into how the app functions and how its users can use it most effectively within their musical community."

"From Craigslist flakes to finding out your new guitarist friend hates the genre of music you play, it’s about time independent artists had pocket-based access to a new world of potential musical matches"

"An iPhone app for musicians to make fast and fruitful connections with like-minded collaborators"