Grammy Genius MixedByAli’s Music Tech Startup Gets $7.5M Funding Boost

Derek “MixedByAli” Ali, a multi-Grammy Award-winning audio engineer, has recently raised $7.5 million for his startup, EngineEars. 

Ali’s journey in music has been marked by his work with influential artists like Roddy Ricch, Donald Glover, and Kendrick Lamar.

Ali’s Journey To Music

Ali’s passion for music emerged from having little to no formal musical training and growing up with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

He found his calling in high school by experimenting with technology and music, leading to his early experiments with custom ringtones that laid the groundwork for a career.

A key moment in Ali’s career was his collaboration with Kendrick Lamar, working on projects from Lamar’s early mixtapes to his critically acclaimed albums.

This partnership led Ali to mentorship opportunities with Dr. Dre and a chance to hone his skills in sophisticated analog equipment.

These experiences lead to multiple Grammy Awards, affirming Ali’s talent and hard work in the industry.

EngineEars

In 2020, Ali co-founded EngineEars, a music tech startup born out of a desire to address the challenges and needs of audio engineers, producers, labels, and artists. 

The platform, which started as an Instagram community and evolved into global workshops, offers a suite of tools to streamline the business management aspects of music production.

It simplifies booking, file sharing, messaging, and payments, integrating various business needs into one cohesive system.

EngineEars succeeded in a recent $7.5 million seed funding round led by Drive Capital.

It was also supported by investors, including Kendrick Lamar, Roddy Ricch, YG, DJ Khaled, Mustard, and Russ. 

This funding will enhance the platform’s capabilities, including scheduling, calendar integration, and automated payment splits, and expand its reach to more studios globally.