A B2B music-discovery platform

A&R Bar

Where the music industry discovers what's next.

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The problem

The music industry is drowning in supply

The volume of new music released globally has roughly tripled in the last five years, and AI-generated tracks now flood the same distribution channels as human artists. Spotify alone receives an estimated 120,000 new tracks a day.

Labels' A&R teams are smaller than they were a decade ago. The cost of finding and developing genuine talent has never been higher, and the ratio of signed to released artists has never been worse.

The industry needs a way to identify human performers who can actually hold a stage, not just a TikTok feed. No infrastructure does this today.

The concept

A venue that finds what algorithms can't

A&R Bar is a flagship 11,500 sq ft immersive performance venue in Las Vegas and a content-generation studio for a B2B music-discovery platform.

Why now

The window opens once

  • AI-generated music is structurally undermining the traditional A&R model. Labels need new sourcing infrastructure now.
  • Immersive venue technology has matured, and is now economically viable at 450-seat scale.
  • Las Vegas is the global capital of premium experiential entertainment.

The experience

Live artists. Digital collaborators. The next-gen music experience.

Pro-am musicians paired with immersive technology, delivering epic performances, all fully protected and optimized for A&R distribution.

The flagship

Las Vegas, the flagship

Flagship venue positioned in an iconic Las Vegas location, in the city that has become the world capital of premium experiential entertainment. Construction commencing Q2 2027.

Annual visitors to Las Vegas (2025)
38.5MAnnual visitors to Las Vegas (2025)
Strip music-tourism revenue (2025 est.)
$1.5BStrip music-tourism revenue (2025 est.)
Seats per show · 4–6 shows weekly
450Seats per show · 4–6 shows weekly

The vision

From flagship to network: six cities, six years

Vegas is the launchpad. The global network is the moat.

  1. Las Vegas 2028
  2. Bangkok 2029
  3. Budapest 2030
  4. Hong Kong 2031
  5. Istanbul 2032
  6. São Paulo 2032

Cities chosen for capital efficiency and artist flow, not postcode prestige.

The platform

B2B SaaS for music discovery, artist development and protection

Labels subscribe to access curated artist catalogues, backed by verified live-performance video and audience data. Every artist agreement, subscription and licensing deal is anchored on a tamper-evident blockchain ledger that protects both artists and labels, forming a defensible moat against generic music-tech platforms.

Platform benefits

Built for artists. Designed for the industry around them.

A&R Bar gives human performers a verified, protected path to development, booking and discovery, while giving labels, agents, managers and industry partners trusted access to live-performance talent, secured engagements and actionable market intelligence.

For Artists

A verified path to development, booking, protection and industry access.

  • Verified Human Profiles

    Professional artist profiles backed by authorized A&R Bar performances and real performance history.

  • Protected Creative Assets

    Creative work, gig agreements and engagement records secured through Hedera-backed infrastructure.

  • Development & Wellness Access

    Access to development teams, educators, coaches, professional services and complimentary wellness support.

  • Booking Credibility

    Certification for third-party bookings, agent and manager guidance, and secured gig contracts.

  • Growth Support

    Marketing booster campaigns, VIP equipment rental rates and preferred access to partner services.

For Industry Partners

A trusted discovery layer for labels, agents, managers and the teams around artists.

  • Curated Talent Access

    Direct connectivity to verified artist profiles built around human performance, not algorithmic noise.

  • Performance Intelligence

    Performance synopsis sheets, live-performance records and eligibility data for selection panels.

  • Direct Booking Pathways

    Streamlined session, audition and engagement booking with artists and their representatives.

  • Protected Engagements

    Hedera-secured contracts and tamper-evident records for professional, transparent collaboration.

  • Market & Platform Data

    Global market analytics, cross-segment service access and integrated A&R Conduit APIs.

The team

The people building this

  • David Obad

    CEO

    20 Years as President of NCompass Executive Recruiting, Founder of Jam Junkies Radio, and Co-Creator of A&R Bar Ventures.

  • Lance Stacy

    COO

    30 Year Hospitality Ops Journeyman, Director of Gourmet at LivingSocial, Founder of Barfly Social Club and Co-Creator of A&R Bar Ventures.

  • Joshua Ochoa

    CTO

    Former Tencent Motion Research and Watchmen VFX. Immersive performance-technology specialist. Los Angeles.

  • Stefan Rakoczi

    CIO

    30 years building fintech, IT and hospitality businesses across 10 countries. Architectural leadership. Chiang Mai.

  • Anibal Fernandez

    CGO

    Two decades scaling global hospitality and entertainment. Senior Vice President of Hard Rock International's Cafe Division.

  • Curtis Schlaufman

    CMO

    Brand and growth marketer across crypto, fintech and deep tech. VP of Marketing and Communications at DeFi Technologies and Valour.

  • Scott Carlson

    Board

    40 Year Entertainment Industry Veteran serving as an Executive Producer, Talent Manager, Record Label Founder and a Genuine Raconteur.

  • Jason Mandel

    PR

    Co-founder of LaunchSquad (100+ person PR and go-to-market firm; prior brands include Uber and Netflix).

Register interest

See the full picture

The full deck and financial model are available under NDA. Register your interest and we'll be in touch.

We'll only use your details to follow up about A&R Bar.