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Music That Matters: How Grayson Music Is Making the World a Better Place through Melody

17/01/2023
Music & Sound
Toronto, Canada
243
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CEO Bridget Flynn tells LBB how music - when made and used with intention - can get audiences listening and ‘stop the scroll’

“To simply say that ‘music’ can help a brand’s content to cut through the noise isn’t enough”, explains Bridget Flynn, CEO of Grayson Music. “Only thoughtful, authentic, and intentional music can do that. When it's good - and it must be really good! - it will grab you. It will pause the scroll”. 

In our era of media oversaturation and distraction, few things are more valuable than attention. As the noise of the communications landscape looks set to continue building up in 2023, there remains no easy way of getting noticed. For brands seeking a slice of attention, there’s only one option: To create content that truly connects with people. Content that matters

That’s a mission which suits Grayson Music, the global creative audio agency HQed in Toronto, just fine. In fact, it aligns perfectly with the company’s stated mission objective: ‘To make music that matters to people’. “We believe that great songs need to be heard”, says Bridget. “All day every day, we collaborate and create together with this intention and purpose”. 

In order to - in its own words - ‘bring music to life and life to music’, Grayson Music forms part of a group alongside three other companies with access to unique and specialist skills. The Wilders is an award-winning team of music supervisors and composers working in television, film, podcasts and narrative audio, whilst SNGL is a community of artists and a platform built to cultivate powerful music opportunities in licensing. Meanwhile, The Music Assembly offers an extensive, handcrafted library of exclusive pre-cleared music. 

“While each company has its own mission, goals and expertise, there is a ton of creative synergy and cross-pollination between the group which leads to wider access to talent and expertise for all our clients”, says Bridget. 

In recent times, that offering has been paying dividends. Huge and varied brands including Reddit, IKEA, TikTok, McDonalds and countless others have all benefited from the audio excellence Grayson Music brings to the table. Reflecting on the agency’s most notable work from the past twelve months, it’s the original and bespoke music which stands out to Bridget. “We love any opportunity to craft a bespoke piece of music for a campaign, so our most memorable and significant projects usually involve an original song or unique adaptation”, she says. “2022 was a special year with a number of our projects being awarded for Original Music at the Clios, LIA’s, Shots, Gerety and Music+Sound Awards, so I can round out my personal top three”. 

Leading the pack is a particularly impactful spot for Budweiser, Tape Out Hate, which addresses racism in the NHL. The story told through the ad is broken down into two distinct chapters, which serve to guide viewers through a journey from emotion and frustration towards hope and triumph. “The creative director and composer for this project, Tyson Kuteyi’s approach was to write a song which at times almost feels like two different songs, yet with the use of powerful lyrics, a compelling solo vocal performance which builds to an uplifting gospel vocal performance it all comes together”, says Bridget. “The result is that the important story of these players is supported by rich, thought provoking music designed to inspire a movement the world can rally behind to evoke much-needed change in the world of hockey”.

Above: Budweiser’s ‘Tape Out Hate’ campaign hits home its message thanks in large part to a moving song written by director and composer Tyson Kuteyi. 


Moving on, the agency’s uniquely creative work with SickKids stands out to Bridget. “Tom Westin [Grayson Music’s CCO and founding partner] collaborated with Martina Sorbara (Dragonette) to create a beautiful song inspired and powered by the recorded sound of  Lily’s heartbeat, a SickKids patient who had congenital heart disease”, she says. 

Above: Lily’s Raincoat, for the Toronto-based children’s hospital SickKids, made a beautiful creative virtue out of a patient’s heart condition. 


And, last but by no means least, Grayson Music leveraged expertise across their sister company SNGL to put together a fantastically entertaining recap of 2021 for Reddit. “For Reddit’s 2021 Year in Review we teamed up with the SNGL crew and artist Molly Moore, to write the song ‘Is it Gonna Get Any Weirder’”, says Bridget. “The task of communicating a year’s worth of big news in a song could easily go very badly, but we worked hard to keep it fun, and ended up with a really cool song which was released and continues to have a life of its own outside of this sync”. 

Above: Reddit’s whistle stop tour through the online highlights of 2021 was made even more impactful thanks to ‘Is It Gonna Get Any Weirder’, composed alongside Molly Moore. 


Added together, all of these campaigns combine to highlight the value of an expertly-crafted piece of music in a creative project. Amidst a backdrop of seemingly endless content, that’s a lesson which is perhaps more valuable to brands than ever before. “Music is often looked at more as a commodity than as a key piece of the final creative product. When creatives are faced with this idea of infinite choice when it comes to music it can be overwhelming, as it’s so subjective and the pressure is on to get it right”, notes Bridget. “When we are given the opportunity to work closely, and directly connect, communicate, and collaborate with our creative partners at agencies and brands - especially early on in the process - magic happens. Every single time”. 

Ultimately, it’s easy to feel a sense of confident momentum around Grayson Music and the agency’s unique offering. “It is a tremendously exciting time right now. With our expansions in New York, Nashville, and LA, we are growing but deeply committed to staying true to our key values of craft and artistic integrity”, Bridget points out. “As we continue to uphold the value of music, we are simultaneously promoting wider access to revenue streams for both emerging and established artists. The goal is that by this time next year we will have a bigger dream team, a broadened global network of artists and creators, and the opportunity to continue to do meaningful work with our clients”. 

Success for Grayson Music, then, is likely to result in success for the industry and music more widely. Whatever is coming down the line next for the agency, the results are sure to be worth listening out for. 

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