This workshop will dive into an undeniable trend-to-watch in the 2020s: the convergence of music culture and startup culture. A growing number of artists of all shapes and sizes, from global celebrities to bedroom producers, are drawing directly from the business strategy and rhetoric of fast-growing tech companies like Uber, Airbnb, Netflix and Discord in shaping their careers. We'll unpack this emerging, complex philosophy, through case studies of how artists are co-opting tech-startup tactics like rapid prototyping and lean/agile development, open-source software development, direct-to-consumer outreach, marketplace dynamics and machine-learning algorithms to grow their creative businesses. We'll also critique the systemic challenges that the music industry faces in treating their artists properly as de facto tech entrepreneurs and in bringing this as-yet radical career approach to life.