New Platform, R/HOOD, Lets DJs Find Curated Bookings by Swiping Right

One doomscrolling session through Instagram’s abyss of marketing bros and wellness influencers is all it takes to know that follower counts can be bought, borrowed and inflated.A new app, R/HOOD, aims to change that digital hellscape for DJs by finding them opportunities based on their merit and talent.

The company says its community recently passed 3,000 members and has worked with Adidas, Google, Doc Martens and other brands, who trust it to find unheralded talent.“What fueled us to start R/HOOD was the obvious lack of representation and fair play when it came to championing and providing talent with opportunities,” the platform’s co-founder Johan Wendner tells EDM.com.

“We wanted to create an incubator for talent meritocracy.Regardless of where you come from, your skill level or how much experience you have, there is a space for you at R/HOOD.” Every DJ starts by verifying their identity, getting approved and uploading an ‘Audio ID,’ a mix of 30 to 40 minutes that serves as a listening sample of their taste and technical skill.

Brands can browse those mixes and filter by genre, energy, style and geography, which gives them something to hear before they book, whatever the DJ’s follower count looks like.When it comes to the opportunities pipeline, a brand submits a brief for a gig, campaign, event or playlist, and R/HOOD’s model scores DJs on genre, audio quality, location, availability and relevance.

Matching briefs appear in a feed in the DJ’s app, where a right swipe applies and a left swipe skips.The company says each swipe feeds back into its AI model.

A human reviewer then checks the AI’s output before a ranked shortlist reaches the brand, which can listen to Audio IDs, message DJs directly and send offers.R/HOOD describes itself as an invisible blanket of protection between talent and the brands or promoters who hire them.

Payment is secured before any opportunity gets uploaded, so a DJ is paid in full the mome...