What Q Music does

Q Music is a Chicago-based, bootstrapped booking agency and digital marketplace that connects independent DJs, live musicians, and performers with hospitality venues and private event clients. Founded in 2014 by musician Saam Hagshenas, the company operates as the primary contractor to clients and engages artists as independent, non-exclusive subcontractors, capturing the spread between client fees and artist payouts as its commission-based revenue. The platform spans five US markets (Chicago, New York, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami) and serves marquee hospitality clients including Soho House, Ace Hotel, and Hotel Zachary, alongside a long tail of weddings, corporate events, and private celebrations booked through a self-service inquiry portal.

The company operates a multi-portal platform ecosystem consisting of a main booking platform (qmusic.co), a Private Event Inquiry Platform (events.qmusic.co), an Artist App (artist.qmusic.co), a Venue App (venue.qmusic.co), and a Q Music Pay invoicing portal integrated with Bill.com for direct deposit. The platform includes a proprietary artist vetting and curation system that evaluates talent on experience, professionalism, and industry feedback, and supports integrations with Google Calendar, Spotify, and Apple Music for booking confirmations and music preference matching. The go-to-market is hybrid: self-service for private event clients and a sales-led approach for hospitality venue curation.

Q Music generates revenue through marketplace commissions on each booking, with pricing kept confidential and tailored to artist, event type, and duration. Beyond core booking, the company sells add-on services including Audio Branding, Music Programming, and Playlist Curation, positioning the platform as both a transactional marketplace and a recurring brand-experience partner for venue clients. The company has raised no external capital and operates as an independent, founder-led LLC domiciled in Illinois.

Name

Q Music

Legal name

Q Music LLC

Website

https://qmusic.co

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Q Music is a Chicago-based booking agency and marketplace connecting independent DJs and musicians with hospitality venues and private event clients. Founded in 2014, it operates a multi-portal platform across five US markets under a commission-based agency model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Music Booking & Live Entertainment Services

NAICS

Musical Groups and Artists (711130)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)

akta.pro primary industry

Party DJ, Music & Audio Services (HSACACAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Music Discovery & Curation Platforms (Recommendations, Playlists) (MPAIACAH)

Keywords

• Music booking platform
• DJ booking service
• Live music agency
• Audio branding services
• Music programming

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Booking Agency Services: Q Music contracts directly with clients for entertainment services and then separately engages artists as independent subcontractors. The amount charged to clients differs from what is paid to artists, with Q Music's business margin being proprietary and confidential. This is a commission-based model where Q Music acts as the primary contractor.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Q Music is a music booking agency and online platform that connects DJs and live musicians with venues, event organizers, and brands. It provides a curated marketplace where venues can search and instantly book from a roster of 500+ artists, alongside additional service lines including audio branding, music programming, and playlist curation for businesses. The platform combines artist booking (typically completed in about three minutes), payment processing via Q Music Pay, and direct artist-venue relationship management under a non-exclusive model.

Product overview

Q Music operates as a multi-platform booking agency with a unified ecosystem comprising the Q Music Booking Platform (web-based talent marketplace), dedicated Artist App (for talent management and invoicing), Venue App (for venue clients), and Private Event Inquiry Platform. Additional services include Audio Branding, Music Programming, Event Entertainment, and Playlist Curation. The company currently operates in Chicago, New York, Detroit, Los Angeles, and Miami markets, serving both private event clients and hospitality venues.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Venue App

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

AI capability2 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Partner VenuescoreOthersQ Music has a network of partner venues integrated into their event inquiry platform. When clients select partner venues during booking inquiries, Q Music has venue details on-hand and can process bookings faster.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Cloud Cover Music: Cloud Cover Music provides licensed streaming music and curated playlists for businesses including bars, restaurants, and hotels. It competes with Q Music's playlist curation and music programming services for hospitality venues with a similar value proposition of professionally curated commercial music.
• GigSalad: GigSalad is an online marketplace that connects event planners with local entertainers including DJs, musicians, and bands. It is a direct peer because it operates the same core model as Q Music — marketplace matching of vetted entertainment talent to event demand — but at a broader national scale.
• The Bash (formerly GigMasters): The Bash is an event entertainment marketplace that connects users with DJs, musicians, photographers, and other event professionals. It is a direct peer because it competes head-to-head with Q Music in the private event entertainment booking space, using a similar talent-matching and review-driven model.
• Soundtrack Your Brand: Soundtrack Your Brand provides licensed background music and audio branding for businesses such as restaurants, hotels, and retail. It is a direct peer to Q Music's audio branding and music programming services for hospitality venues, addressing the same end-customer pain point of curated commercial music.

Broad incumbents

• Mood Media: Mood Media is a large incumbent in in-store audio, video, and scent media for retail and hospitality environments. It overlaps with Q Music's audio branding offering for venues but as a broad commercial media provider rather than a curator-driven independent platform.
• Thumbtack: Thumbtack is a large horizontal services marketplace where consumers can find and book event entertainment alongside many other service categories. It is a broad incumbent that competes for the same private event clients as Q Music but with significantly larger scale and marketing reach.
• Bark.com: Bark.com is a global services marketplace that matches customers with local professionals, including event entertainment providers. It overlaps with Q Music on the private event booking use case but operates as a broad multi-category platform rather than a curated entertainment specialist.
• Spotify for Business: Spotify's commercial offerings (including background music and curated business playlists) compete with Q Music's audio branding and playlist curation services. As a global audio incumbent, Spotify brings massive scale and licensing leverage that Q Music cannot match, though it lacks the curated-via-real-DJs angle that differentiates Q Music.

Emerging players

• Peerspace: Peerspace is a marketplace for booking unique event venues and spaces. It is an emerging adjacent player that shares Q Music's B2B/private event customer base but focuses on venue sourcing rather than entertainment talent, making them complementary more often than competitive.
• Resident Advisor: Resident Advisor is a global electronic music platform with venue and DJ listings, event ticketing, and artist promotion. It overlaps with Q Music on connecting DJs to hospitality and event venues, particularly in the electronic music niche, though it is more of a discovery/promotion platform than a booking agency.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/theqmusic

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Q Music