A new Austin startup is taking aim at one of the biggest problems in the music industry — the fact that most artists can’t make a living from their art.
Prosper XO, founded by lifelong artist and music industry insider Lauren Bruno, is building an artist-centric platform designed to connect musicians with sponsors, give them greater access to their audience data, and — ultimately — change the economics of streaming.
Lauren’s no stranger to the grind. She began performing and writing music in second grade, went on to study songwriting and music business at Berklee College of Music, and has built a career at the intersection of creativity, advocacy, and innovation. Based in Austin, she also founded a local organization that connects the arts community with social justice movements, bridging the gap between music and meaningful change. From booking festivals and managing artists to navigating the music tech startup world, she’s seen first-hand what it takes to survive as both an artist and a business.
Her lived experience — including the hard truth that 61% of musicians in America live below the poverty line — is what drives Prosper XO’s mission.
Why It Matters
If you’ve ever streamed a song on Spotify, you’ve probably never thought about the fact that most artists earn less than a penny per stream. To hit minimum wage, a musician would need 800,000 streams a month — a number out of reach for the vast majority of working artists.
Prosper XO wants to flip that model. In its early stages, the platform is focusing on:
Connecting artists with sponsors who want to directly support music at the local level.
Returning valuable listener data to artists, data that’s currently owned and monetized almost entirely by platforms like Spotify.
Providing legal resources so artists can protect their work and careers.
Lauren has been building Prosper XO in phases, with the long-term goal of creating a true Spotify alternative — one that could work with existing streaming platforms but puts artists first.
The Texas Angle
Austin’s creative ecosystem — with its mix of tech innovation, local business support, and deep-rooted music culture — makes it the perfect launchpad. Prosper XO is hosting monthly meetups at Capital Factory, inviting musicians, entrepreneurs, and allies to help shape the platform’s future.
And while Prosper XO is a music-focused startup, its vision is part of a much bigger Texas story: women founders reimagining industries from the inside out.
📍 Learn more or get involved: prosperxo.com
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