My 300: Helping build our future at Midemlab
Donation protected
Hello everyone! I am excited to announce that I recently graduated from the Musicians Institute with a certification in Audio Engineering. Through this experience, I am humbled to acknowledge that I cannot complete my vision alone. Sometimes I feel like the character Laurel played by (Whoopi Goldberg) in the movie "The Associate". And then many times I feel like Xerxes in the movie - "300" fighting against insurmountable odds. Although I am creating a real viable music technology idea with excellent potential, technology spaces in Silicon Beach (Santa Monica) come across great ideas all of the time.
For me, the Midemlab event will provide the type of platform that is needed to not only introduce an exciting new music technology that will ultimately help move the needle of diversity in technology spaces but more importantly, it will allow music artists to earn a living doing what they love; like bringing joy into our lives as they have been doing during these times. Therefore, I need you to be apart of my 300. I need your help in preparation for the Midemlab 2022 conference.
What is Midemlab?
Midemlab is like the American Idol of new music technology. It is the leading international competition for innovative startups in the music and entertainment industry. Even if my entry is not one of the winners, "previous participants have raised a substantial amount in funding or initiated crucial partnerships following their appearance at Midemlab. And others have been acquired by major players and are now well-established in the music ecosystem. Previous Midemlab winners include Soundcloud, Kickstarter, The Echo Nest (acquired by Spotify), Next Big Sound (acquired by Pandora) Asaii (acquired by Apple), and BandPage (acquired by YouTube)". https://www.midem.com/en-gb/innovation/midemlab.html
My Midemlab Entry
My Dynamic Playback Streaming Technology (DPST) has the unprecedented ability to create data points based on consumer specification which is then generated into a unique version of a song during dynamic playback. This proprietary process is designed to envelop music lovers with the ultimate, in-depth, personalized music experience in which to increase engagement and encourage the purchase of music within the majority of every instance of streaming. This is the perfect bridge between the independent music artist and the extra added value music streaming platforms and record companies need to increase their premium users-base which directly affects the overall rate of artist compensation. There is a test site on a basic WixSite domain at www.nquist.net to learn more.
Something to remember regarding the potential viability of my project, you should know that before the ubiquity of music streaming, I once made a proposal to a prominent figure from the Motown era. And I will never forget when they express their thoughts regarding my ideas concerning the future of music consumption as "who in the world would want to sit at their computer and listen to music?" We all know the ending to that statement. Not only did the new generation of music consumers want to sit at their computers and download and listen to music, but the music industry has completely changed to the point where artist sitting in their bedroom (think Billie Ellish) can create music and have a digital distribution company upload their songs to all major streaming platforms; but what about artist compensation?
I believe this is not going to be another one of those moments. Everything comes full circle. And now here we are over 20 years later. The question is will history repeat itself or will individuals like yourself see the future this time around by helping me through the incubation stage of this endeavor and turn this idea into enough traction to either win at Midemlab or prepare for partnerships with accelerators such as Techstarts Music Los Angeles https://www.techstars.com/accelerators/music after the Midemlab Event.
Sample video of my concept for the Midemlab Event.
A Little About Me
In conjunction with certification in Audio Engineering, I have accumulated an eclectic background acquiring years of intense B2B marketing experience while continuing my progress coding in Python, Csound, and Juce specifically for the development of DSP applications for digital audio workstation (DAW) plug-ins and music streaming platforms. As a musician and member of the Audio Engineering Society and American Musicological Society, I am authoring Rhythm of the Spheres: Percussive Rudiment Theory and the Cosmos; a revolutionary breakthrough in musicological academia specializing in the science of music. https://priestessnia777.wixsite.com/rhythmofthespheres
Most important, as a survivor of the dot com bubble in the 90s' when 20-something African-American's were not socially expected to excel in areas that did not involve what was considered typical means that I am very familiar with the road to creating technology in a world where there are few prominent women and other persons of color. This should not be prevalent today for the same reasons I observed then. I find that writing and recording music can be just as complex as coding. Likewise, coding can be just as much a creative endeavor as creating music, yet the tech industry which is just as much a creative, artistic outlet for talent as Motown was in its day, continues to overlook this perspective. This is, in part, one of the reasons why there remains such a great disparity.
In retrospect, Detroit was like the Silicon Valley of the 60s’. Motown Records was like Apple and Microsoft for African-American's where their talent was welcomed with open arms and cultivated into a thriving industry that became a very lucrative and viable source of income for the community. Now, in today’s backdrop concerning generations of generational wealth that has been lost, my 300 will help me build new music technology which can and will assist in just one of the many small ways in which this time has made even more clear that there is a need to level the playing field and bring substantial revenue back into affected communities.
Just know that the majority of the greatest discoveries and changes to the world have come through people no one would have ever thought would be the one to bring about that level of change.
"...the people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world are usually the ones who can"
-Steve Jobs
Honor Wall: Thank You In Advance
$10 plus - Bronze contribution
$25 plus - Silver contribution
$100 plus - Gold contribution
$250 plus - Platinum contribution
Contribution priorities
Entries for Midemlab and applications start in February of 2021 and the actual event is in the Summer. I need to raise $16,000 but I am only raising $8,000 by January 15th, 2021 in this first phase so that I can immediately meet the Midemlab requirements of having officially initiated launch and transferring all my copyrights and other intellectual property to a California State LLC and cover other startup related expenses.
Charitable Organizations Supported
If I am one of the winners of the Midemlab event, then I will continue to pledge a portion of Nquist feature earnings to the following organizations. You may also contribute to them directly using the websites listed:
- Help America Hear
"HAH has begun to help those individuals with auditory impairments more directly by providing hearing aids and introducing the Help America Hear scholarship to help fund the educational opportunities of those with auditory impairments." You can also donate directly to the organization or personally sponsor individuals in need at http://www.helpamericahear.org
I chose this organization because my cousin Larry Ball is not just an inspiration as a musician and composer who first started his career on tour with Paul Simon at just 18 and subsequently became the bassist for Smokey Robinson for 25 years, but after he lost his hearing, his life shed light on the subject of maintaining regular medical care and proper hearing maintenance for all musicians and entertainment professionals. Most of all, through the remarkable advancements of our collective knowledge in the fields of science and medicine, with the use of cochlear hearing implants, Larry is currently able to continue a productive life composing and conducting as the music director for JT and Friends. Learn more about his story and services at www.larrydball.com
- Friends Helping Friends Transitional Housing (FHF). https://fhfla.org/
Provides transitional housing for people in need. They are a nonprofit organization focused on helping make the world around us a better, happier place through providing temporary independent living spaces in beautiful, peaceful neighborhood locations designed to facilitate an individual's successful transition to permanent residents. I chose this organization because whether it's displacement by natural disasters, losing employment due to the COVID-19 pandemic, or any of life's many unpredictable circumstances, homelessness can affect anyone. While I was a resident there in early 2018, I met my good friend Smith Wordes who, like many L.A. stories, formerly worked as a choreographer for Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, and Madonna until she was diagnosed with cancer and eventually ended up homeless before FHF helped her and I transition back to stability.
- National Center for Lesbian Rights.
"NCLR is a national legal organization committed to advancing the civil and human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and their families through litigation, legislation, policy, and public education. They were the first national LGBTQ legal organization founded by women, bringing a fierce, longstanding commitment to racial and economic justice and our community’s most vulnerable." This organization is especially important to me because of the support they provided during a time when I was fighting the government for my right to transgendered health care which was the foundation of changing national policy. More importantly, not only do they continue to demonstrate their commitment towards justice for all areas of LGBTQ equality, but their work is on a level like no other with LGBT youth who sadly find themselves homeless or abandoned and isolated by their own families. https://www.nclrights.org/get-involved#other-support
For me, the Midemlab event will provide the type of platform that is needed to not only introduce an exciting new music technology that will ultimately help move the needle of diversity in technology spaces but more importantly, it will allow music artists to earn a living doing what they love; like bringing joy into our lives as they have been doing during these times. Therefore, I need you to be apart of my 300. I need your help in preparation for the Midemlab 2022 conference.
What is Midemlab?
Midemlab is like the American Idol of new music technology. It is the leading international competition for innovative startups in the music and entertainment industry. Even if my entry is not one of the winners, "previous participants have raised a substantial amount in funding or initiated crucial partnerships following their appearance at Midemlab. And others have been acquired by major players and are now well-established in the music ecosystem. Previous Midemlab winners include Soundcloud, Kickstarter, The Echo Nest (acquired by Spotify), Next Big Sound (acquired by Pandora) Asaii (acquired by Apple), and BandPage (acquired by YouTube)". https://www.midem.com/en-gb/innovation/midemlab.html
My Midemlab Entry
My Dynamic Playback Streaming Technology (DPST) has the unprecedented ability to create data points based on consumer specification which is then generated into a unique version of a song during dynamic playback. This proprietary process is designed to envelop music lovers with the ultimate, in-depth, personalized music experience in which to increase engagement and encourage the purchase of music within the majority of every instance of streaming. This is the perfect bridge between the independent music artist and the extra added value music streaming platforms and record companies need to increase their premium users-base which directly affects the overall rate of artist compensation. There is a test site on a basic WixSite domain at www.nquist.net to learn more.
Something to remember regarding the potential viability of my project, you should know that before the ubiquity of music streaming, I once made a proposal to a prominent figure from the Motown era. And I will never forget when they express their thoughts regarding my ideas concerning the future of music consumption as "who in the world would want to sit at their computer and listen to music?" We all know the ending to that statement. Not only did the new generation of music consumers want to sit at their computers and download and listen to music, but the music industry has completely changed to the point where artist sitting in their bedroom (think Billie Ellish) can create music and have a digital distribution company upload their songs to all major streaming platforms; but what about artist compensation?
I believe this is not going to be another one of those moments. Everything comes full circle. And now here we are over 20 years later. The question is will history repeat itself or will individuals like yourself see the future this time around by helping me through the incubation stage of this endeavor and turn this idea into enough traction to either win at Midemlab or prepare for partnerships with accelerators such as Techstarts Music Los Angeles https://www.techstars.com/accelerators/music after the Midemlab Event.
Sample video of my concept for the Midemlab Event.
A Little About Me
In conjunction with certification in Audio Engineering, I have accumulated an eclectic background acquiring years of intense B2B marketing experience while continuing my progress coding in Python, Csound, and Juce specifically for the development of DSP applications for digital audio workstation (DAW) plug-ins and music streaming platforms. As a musician and member of the Audio Engineering Society and American Musicological Society, I am authoring Rhythm of the Spheres: Percussive Rudiment Theory and the Cosmos; a revolutionary breakthrough in musicological academia specializing in the science of music. https://priestessnia777.wixsite.com/rhythmofthespheres
Most important, as a survivor of the dot com bubble in the 90s' when 20-something African-American's were not socially expected to excel in areas that did not involve what was considered typical means that I am very familiar with the road to creating technology in a world where there are few prominent women and other persons of color. This should not be prevalent today for the same reasons I observed then. I find that writing and recording music can be just as complex as coding. Likewise, coding can be just as much a creative endeavor as creating music, yet the tech industry which is just as much a creative, artistic outlet for talent as Motown was in its day, continues to overlook this perspective. This is, in part, one of the reasons why there remains such a great disparity.
In retrospect, Detroit was like the Silicon Valley of the 60s’. Motown Records was like Apple and Microsoft for African-American's where their talent was welcomed with open arms and cultivated into a thriving industry that became a very lucrative and viable source of income for the community. Now, in today’s backdrop concerning generations of generational wealth that has been lost, my 300 will help me build new music technology which can and will assist in just one of the many small ways in which this time has made even more clear that there is a need to level the playing field and bring substantial revenue back into affected communities.
Just know that the majority of the greatest discoveries and changes to the world have come through people no one would have ever thought would be the one to bring about that level of change.
"...the people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world are usually the ones who can"
-Steve Jobs
Honor Wall: Thank You In Advance
$10 plus - Bronze contribution
$25 plus - Silver contribution
$100 plus - Gold contribution
$250 plus - Platinum contribution
Contribution priorities
Entries for Midemlab and applications start in February of 2021 and the actual event is in the Summer. I need to raise $16,000 but I am only raising $8,000 by January 15th, 2021 in this first phase so that I can immediately meet the Midemlab requirements of having officially initiated launch and transferring all my copyrights and other intellectual property to a California State LLC and cover other startup related expenses.
Charitable Organizations Supported
If I am one of the winners of the Midemlab event, then I will continue to pledge a portion of Nquist feature earnings to the following organizations. You may also contribute to them directly using the websites listed:
- Help America Hear
"HAH has begun to help those individuals with auditory impairments more directly by providing hearing aids and introducing the Help America Hear scholarship to help fund the educational opportunities of those with auditory impairments." You can also donate directly to the organization or personally sponsor individuals in need at http://www.helpamericahear.org
I chose this organization because my cousin Larry Ball is not just an inspiration as a musician and composer who first started his career on tour with Paul Simon at just 18 and subsequently became the bassist for Smokey Robinson for 25 years, but after he lost his hearing, his life shed light on the subject of maintaining regular medical care and proper hearing maintenance for all musicians and entertainment professionals. Most of all, through the remarkable advancements of our collective knowledge in the fields of science and medicine, with the use of cochlear hearing implants, Larry is currently able to continue a productive life composing and conducting as the music director for JT and Friends. Learn more about his story and services at www.larrydball.com
- Friends Helping Friends Transitional Housing (FHF). https://fhfla.org/
Provides transitional housing for people in need. They are a nonprofit organization focused on helping make the world around us a better, happier place through providing temporary independent living spaces in beautiful, peaceful neighborhood locations designed to facilitate an individual's successful transition to permanent residents. I chose this organization because whether it's displacement by natural disasters, losing employment due to the COVID-19 pandemic, or any of life's many unpredictable circumstances, homelessness can affect anyone. While I was a resident there in early 2018, I met my good friend Smith Wordes who, like many L.A. stories, formerly worked as a choreographer for Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, and Madonna until she was diagnosed with cancer and eventually ended up homeless before FHF helped her and I transition back to stability.
- National Center for Lesbian Rights.
"NCLR is a national legal organization committed to advancing the civil and human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and their families through litigation, legislation, policy, and public education. They were the first national LGBTQ legal organization founded by women, bringing a fierce, longstanding commitment to racial and economic justice and our community’s most vulnerable." This organization is especially important to me because of the support they provided during a time when I was fighting the government for my right to transgendered health care which was the foundation of changing national policy. More importantly, not only do they continue to demonstrate their commitment towards justice for all areas of LGBTQ equality, but their work is on a level like no other with LGBT youth who sadly find themselves homeless or abandoned and isolated by their own families. https://www.nclrights.org/get-involved#other-support
Organizer
Vanessa Adams
Organizer
Santa Monica, CA
