iWorld
Hoopr.ai launches ‘Originals’, makes it easier for music artists to get discovered
Mumbai: Hoopr, a music licencing company, will feature artists from diverse backgrounds, professions, and other walks of life through Hoopr Originals. The idea is to help discover undiscovered talent in India.
Hoopr will also provide the artists with an additional chance to unlock revenue through sync. Their original tunes, which will be on Hoopr, will be accessible for users to licence and use in their videos, vlogs, and other content. In addition to helping them spread their music globally, the site will also help them get discovered.
Hoopr CEO & co-founder Gaurav Dagaonkar said, ” With Hoopr and Songfest, we have worked with numerous celebrities over the past few years, such as Shaan, Divya Kumar, Ash King, Monali Thakur, Mame Khan, Shamali Kholgade, and several large influencers too. However, as we have been building Hoopr over the last eight to nine months, we’ve seen incredible depth and diversity in terms of new songwriters, composers, music creators, and producers across India.
“So, we felt that Hoopr must be a platform that helps project this talent and gets these amazing artists discovered. Hoopr Originals is that platform, which will help new artists who are creating tracks for Hoopr get exposure in the industry. These artists are creating songs that encompass many languages and bring with them a unique blend of musical influences. An example of us doing this recently includes the song, Kyun main Kahoon by Abhinav Singh. Abhinav is a great singer songwriter, but he also holds an important role in the corporate world. There are many such talented individuals across the country, and we’re excited to produce their music and get it out there.”
In addition to releasing songs by Abhinav Singh, Hoopr has also released songs featuring artists such as Anirudh Bhola and Adarsh Shinde and paved the way for up-and-coming artists to collaborate with established names in the industry such as Mame Khan. Furthermore, Hoopr will be releasing songs that feature artists as diverse as Rupinn Pahwa, Shubhangi Tewari, Rishi Pathak, and Fuzzculture in the near future.
Dagaonkar adds, “We have worked on creating music videos with Hoopr originals artistes and will continue to do so. Additionally, we’re also excited about distributing these tracks worldwide.”
Hoopr is a music licencing platform that provides music that can be used across a wide variety of content, including videos and vlogs by individual creators, professional ads, TV series, movies, live game streaming, etc. The Mumbai-based company provides music that has all the appropriate licences, so anyone who uses it doesn’t have to worry about royalties, copyright issues, etc. Crucially, this means that using music from Hoopr helps users avoid takedowns and lawsuits.
The platform features a variety of music, from contemporary Indian pop to traditional Indian classical, from electronica to music that is unique to the various rich cultures that exist across India. Subscribers to Hoopr can access 25,000 music tracks and 3,000 sound effects from artists all over India. The music on Hoopr is also completely exclusive to the platform.
It is noteworthy to mention that many of the films that recently won awards at the India Film Project used songs from Hoopr. The artists of these songs got their due credit and recognition, which might not have happened if they weren’t on the platform.
Dagaonkar, an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad, and Meghna Mittal, formerly of Hubilo and Yessworks, launched the company in 2021, which raised $1.5 million in its seed round in December 2021.
Hoopr added that it is seeing 100 per cent month-on-month growth in the number of users since its launch, and these users include content creators, filmmakers, enterprises, and brands across India. Some of its users include content creators such as Ashish Vidyarthi and Tanya Khanijow, along with brands such as New Jagran Media.
eNews
Piyush Thakur steps down as Inshorts’ chief revenue officer
Former vice president and cro says exit marks a new chapter after close to a decade of building revenue and partnerships at Inshorts Group.
NOIDA: Piyush Thakur has stepped away from Inshorts Group after nearly 10 years with the company, marking the end of a long tenure that culminated in his role as chief revenue officer.
In a farewell note, Thakur said he was “turning a new page” after almost a decade at Inshorts, calling it one of the hardest professional decisions he has made. He added that his exit was not driven by uncertainty about the future, but by reflection on a long association with the company.
Thakur joined Inshorts in October 2016 as vice president and spent around seven years in the role before being elevated to chief revenue officer in April 2024, a position he held until April 2026.
He said his tenure was defined by “thousands of mornings, late nights, product debates and breakthrough moments”, as the company evolved into a large-scale digital news platform used by millions.
In his note, Thakur emphasised that Inshorts’ growth was a collective effort across teams, adding that engineers, designers, sales teams and customer support staff all contributed to building the platform. He said the company’s success was not the result of individuals but of “everyone who stayed, passed through, and left their mark”.
Before Inshorts, Thakur worked across several digital media and business development roles. At ESPN, he served as senior regional manager from October 2015 to October 2016, focusing on growth initiatives, strategic opportunities and video distribution.
At Times Internet, he worked for nearly three years, including as head of business development from April 2015 to September 2015 and chief manager from January 2013 to March 2015. His responsibilities included monetisation of mobile platforms, managing media and developer partnerships, and driving revenue across digital properties such as The Times of India and The Economic Times.
Earlier, he worked at Brandmovers as head of business development from June 2012 to June 2013, handling digital, mobile and social media marketing solutions, client development and strategic consulting. During this period, he also worked on advertising revenue, brand strategy and CRM-based solutions.
At Inshorts, Thakur’s role focused on revenue strategy, mobile and media partnerships, and growth initiatives across platforms. His profile highlights experience in mobile product management, digital business models, partner ecosystems and revenue expansion in high-growth environments.
