Bootstrapped
Musicians & students
2014
Gamified learning
Music education
Sam Gribben bootstrapped the music-learning app and later accepted angel and seed investment to expand content and features.
DJs and electronic musicians used the initial pad-drumming lessons; word-of-mouth among producers and hobbyists helped drive adoption.
Startup Rollercoaster
The Spark
After leaving his role as CEO of Serato, Sam Gribben noticed that electronic musicians lacked an engaging way to practise finger-drumming. In 2015 he began developing Melodics, an app that gamifies practice on pad controllers.
The Peak
In September 2017, Melodics closed a US$1.2 million seed round led by Ableton, along with 500 Startups, Tuhua Ventures, K1W1, and Alex Rigopulos. The raise helped the company expand beyond pad drumming lessons into lessons for electronic drums and keys. By then it had over 100,000 users.
The Drop
Maintaining content production, supporting multiple instruments, and converting free users to paid subscribers were major challenges. Scaling globally while keeping users engaged required ongoing investment and innovation.
The Reset
Melodics expanded its lesson catalogue; introduced features like exercises, keys, drums; improved feedback mechanisms; and broadened platform compatibility. The investment from its seed round supported hiring and product development.
The Discipline
The company emphasised educational pedagogy, gamification (streaks, rewards, progress-tracking) to keep users practising consistently. It also built partnerships with hardware manufacturers and artists to produce lesson content and bundles.
The Climb
Melodics established itself as a recognised practice tool among digital musicians worldwide. Its user base passed 1,000,000 registered musicians. It continues updating content, improving instrument support, and focusing on habit-forming features and improving the learning experience.
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