The live music industry runs on logistics — schedules, rosters, contracts, tech riders, last-minute changes — yet many touring acts, corporate bands, and event professionals still rely on spreadsheets, email chains, and chaotic group chats to keep everything moving.
A new platform called Soundcheck Live — built by cofounders Ben Ikwuagwu and Steven Tran — is going to change that.
Designed specifically for live performance teams, the Austin-based startup positions itself as an operations hub built for the realities of modern gigs — bringing communication, coordination, and booking workflows into one centralized system.
At a time when touring margins are tight and production expectations are rising, infrastructure tools like this may become as essential for musicians and their teams as ticketing platforms or digital distributors.
+Read more: "7 Mobile Apps to Help Create More Impactful Live Shows"
Why Now Though?
For decades, live music logistics have evolved far more slowly than streaming or fan engagement tools. While artists have gained access to powerful marketing dashboards and analytics platforms, the behind-the-scenes machinery of gigs often remained fragmented.
Agencies handling multiple shows at once increasingly report that traditional workflows — spreadsheets, text threads, and disconnected files — struggle to keep up with real-time changes and collaborative needs.
Soundcheck Live targets that gap.
The live industry has been digitizing outward-facing experiences for years, but its internal infrastructure is just starting to catch up. This platform was built to help bands, venues, and event professionals streamline communication, manage rotating rosters, and coordinate event details without juggling multiple tools.
What The Platform Actually Does
Unlike general project-management software, Soundcheck Live is structured around the unique chaos of live performance. Core features focus on:
- Centralized gig information and documentation
- Real-time scheduling updates
- Personnel coordination across rotating musicians and crew
- Shared communication channels tied directly to specific shows
By consolidating these workflows into one environment, the platform reduces miscommunication and improve preparedness before and during performances. It’s essentially an operational dashboard built for the “backstage” side of the industry — the space where logistics determine whether a show runs smoothly or falls apart.
Why Infrastructure Tools Matter For Independent Artists
A platform like Soundcheck Live might sound like its geared toward agencies or high-volume gigging acts, but their goals are aligned with the independent artist community pretty closely as well.
Here’s why:
- Touring is becoming more operationally complex (for everyone): Even smaller touring artists now manage variable teams and decision-making — session players, remote collaborators and freelancers, different pay arrangements. Centralized coordination is increasingly valuable.
- Professionalism is a competitive advantage: When indie artists present clear schedules, production notes, and shared documentation, that's something venues, promoters, and labels notice right away.
- Time saved is creative energy gained: Every hour spent tracking logistics manually is an hour not spent writing, rehearsing, or connecting with fans.
+Read more: "Small Venues in Small Cities: A Playbook for Building Community"
A Bigger Shift In Live Music’s Digital Stack
The need for Soundcheck Live makes clear that the live music industry has lately been suffering from a bit of disrepair. While Pop Music stars and their teams have streamlined massive production infrastructure organization and logistics, the rest of the industry is often stuck with complicated decision trees, higher than expected costs, and constantly changing schedules or timelines.
Specialized tech applications are becoming a crucial means to tackling these adaptations in the real world, and on the ground.
Just as a platform like Bandsintown is addressing the goal for musicians to have their tour dates posted wherever music discovery happens on the internet (Spotify, Apple, YouTube Music, etc.), Soundcheck Live enters the conversation at a moment when artists, venues, and production teams are looking for ways to simplify increasingly complex operations.
And as touring models evolve — from residencies to leaner independent runs — the demand for streamlined backend systems is only growing.
Try Soundcheck Live to optimize the chaotic, gig-to-gig lives of working musicians, and get 30% off your first three months with code: CHECK30
