SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: SPR Founders write their first book!

Available in Paperback and eBook

Nope, your eyes aren't deceiving you. It's our third blog in three days! That's because we have so many things going on that we simply can't wait around until Monday to let you in on the latest--which happens to be the news that we have written and published our very first book called Shut Up and Startup! What better way to end the year, right? Which also means it's a great time for you to check it out and let us know what you think. The reason for writing the book was that I felt there were so many business books out there that left me confused and overwhelmed when I was trying to build SmartPhoneRecords. So I decided that I would pen my thoughts and ideas with anyone who may be considering starting a business of their own, but in a much simpler way, using practical approaches that I adopted along our journey. 

There's always someone out there who dreams of starting a business but has no clue how or where to begin. If this is you or even someone you know, it's definitely worth checking out! Preorder now at www.shutupandstartupbook.com to start the New Year off on the right entrepreneurial foot. Best 50 pages you'll read all year! Don't forget to let us know what you think at @SmartPhoneRecs on Twitter or info@smartphonerecords.com. We appreciate you!!

2.0 Feedback - Keep it coming!

Happy Tuesday everybody! I know we usually post on Mondays but we wanted to send out a quick one to let you know that we're getting some great feedback about the new version. We are working hard to correct the few glitches that have been reported and should have everything smoothed out in no time. We thank you for every email and tweet of support that we've received as well as those who have pointed out the things that need fixing. Keep them coming! Reach us on Twitter at @SmartPhoneRecs or by email at info@SmartPhoneRecords.com. We appreciate you!     P.S.--For those who inquired, be sure your audio file is in .m4a format and your track image is 1024x1024. In case it helps, there are websites that convert audio files for free like audio.online-convert.com and sites that resize photos for free such as imageresize.org Please try it out and let us know what you think. Thank you for your patience!

SPR 2.0 Available Now on the Android!

SPR Fam! Happy Holidays to you. We're happy to announce the Android version of SPR 2.0 is AVAILABLE NOW on the Google Play store!! You'll instantly notice a few changes that we've made since the last time you've seen it and we know you're gonna love it. In the next few days we'll be sending out a FAQ list on how to get the most out of your updated platform, but in the meantime, be sure to download it and check it out! One last thing--we have another special announcement coming on Wednesday to jump off the New Year so stay tuned...      Don't forget, you can always find us on Twitter at @SmartPhoneRecs or by email at info@SmartPhoneRecords.com stay with us, there's more on the way!

SPR 2.0 is Here!

After years of constant work, fine tuning and overcoming many challenges, we are excited to announce that the new SmartPhoneRecords 2.0 app is finally here and now available on the iPhone! Loaded with new features and a brand new interface equipped with the absolute highest quality, this latest version is one you won't be able to ignore. Whether you make music or look to discover it, SmartPhoneRecords is the "one-stop shop" for all music enthusiasts!  Music artists are able to not only upload and sell their music from their smartphone, but can now access their account and upload new music from a PC as well, for FREE. We also provide the artist control from beginning to end, as we've included a publishing side to the process where they can view and monitor their streaming and sales activity through their very own analytics page. Yes, "for real." We are just getting started and still have more to come. We'd like to thank our team and everyone around the world for their patience, understanding and for supporting SPR through our transition. We do it all for you! Don't forget, we welcome all feedback and if you have any questions or concerns, we are here for you. Send us an email at info@SmartPhoneRecords.com or you can find us on Twitter at @smartphonerecs. Thank you, again. Download the app now and together let's make history. P.S.--For those who have an Android, we got you! We're putting on the final touches now and should be available within the week. Stay with us!

LA Techweek

SPR family. Before we begin our Monday blog, we want to take a moment to focus our attention on something we believe is much more important. To anyone who has been affected in any way by the tragic events that took place this past Friday in Paris, we send our deepest condolences to you, your families, and all of your loved ones.  Our thoughts and prayers are with you and will continue to be during this time, and beyond. 

Additionally, we'd like to thank everyone who stopped by our booth at the Santa Monica pier last week. This was by far one of the best techweek we've attended. Being on a pier with such great energy surrounded by one of California's most beautiful beaches was definitely a relaxing change of pace. We look forward to attending next year. 

We also would like to give a shout out to Launching.io for featuring SPR over the weekend on their website. Launching.io is a new community dedicated to those searching for up-and-coming startups. It's companies like this that really help bring awareness to what we do and for that, we thank Launching.io for showing us love. Check it out here!

SPR @TechweekLA

SmartPhoneRecords @ Techweek LA

Hey SPR family! 

November is here, can you believe it? For us, that means it's time to launch so we're off to Southern California for the annual Techweek event. 

Techweek celebrates innovation in emerging tech hubs across America, and takes place throughout the city of Los Angeles all next week before converging at Santa Monica Pier on Thursday November 12th.

The Techweek Launch Championship is the battle royale of pitch competitions. It’s where top startups from around the country – and the world – compete to be crowned Techweek’s Launch Grand Champion. The Launch Championship is Techweek’s top attraction and offers a chance for its attendees to meet the founders of rising companies that will soon change the world. So, if you happen to be in the area, stop on by the pier!

SPR Co-Founder Shortlisted for Most Inspiring Women in Technology 2015 Appster Award!

Reyna Carrasco
SmartPhoneRecords
COO & Co-Founder

Hey SPR Family! We wanted to share some great news with you about our Co-founder, Reyna Carrasco. She's been nominated for 2015's Most Inspiring Women in Technology Appsters Award being held in London next month. Check the link to read all about it! Thanks to all who have supported us along the way. We appreciate it!!

SPR @ the Global Mobile Internet Conference

Hey Everyone!

Hope your week is off to a good start. We just wanted to remind you that Tuesday and Wednesday we will be attending the GMIC event in San Francisco at the Hyatt Regency. If you're in the area, stop on by and say hi!

Also, we've gotten many questions about our upcoming launch. We are working hard, getting closer and will have more info for you real soon. Thank you to all who have inquired. Hang in there with us! It will be worth the wait!

See you tomorrow!

Will SPR be Tech.Co Startup of the Year?!?

Hey SPR Fam!

Guess which app was selected as a semifinalist for Tech.Co Startup of the Year Award???? Yep, SmartPhoneRecords!

SmartPhoneRecords for Tech.Co Startup of the Year Award!

Tech.Co (formerly Tech Cocktail) is a media company and events organization for startups, entrepreneurs, and technology enthusiasts. Tech.Co dedicates itself to covering news, how-to’s, up-and-coming startups, and industry trends online, and hosting events in over 30 cities in the U.S. and abroad.  Should we be voted as a finalist, we will travel to Las Vegas to compete for Startup of the Year in October. Just being in the finals is an honor.

Check out the link and vote for us if you have a second!

Thank you!!
Team SPR

SPR Top 20 @ the GMIC!

Hey Everyone!

SmartPhoneRecords @ GMIC

Even though we've extended our launch date, it doesn't mean we're not carrying on with business, as usual. In fact, we wanted to tell you that SPR has been chosen as a Top 20 finalist for the Global Mobile Internet Conference next month in San Francisco! It will be our 2nd time going to this event and we are thrilled to be invited back. We'll keep you posted!!

Hey SPR Family!

We have some exciting news to share! We just found out that we will be able to squeeze a couple more features in our upcoming 2.0 version that we didn't plan on implementing until next year! The only downside is that it won't be ready for another 90 days (or so), but as always, we will be keeping you updated on our progress. It was a tough decision to make, simply because we have been anxiously awaiting next week's launch date, but we simply couldn't pass up an opportunity to upgrade your user experience in a major way. We are really excited for you to see what we've got in store for you!

With that said, we want you to feel free to reach out to us with any questions, comments or concerns. We are just an email away, so please, if we can be of any help, don't hesitate to contact us at info@SmartPhoneRecords.com.

A BIG THANK YOU to everyone for sticking with us! We couldn't be doing this without you. Just know it will all be worth the wait!!

SPR @ GOAB Philippines

SmartPhoneRecords at GOAB

We know it's not Monday, but we just received some great news that SPR has been chosen to participate in the "Geeks on a Beach" international pitching competition on August 20-21 in the Philippines. GOAB is a conference held in Boracay that was started in 2013 to bring together people "passionate about startups, tech, design and making the world a better place." If you happen to be near Boracay during this time, we'd love to meet you! Additionally, if you are familiar with this area and have suggestions of places we shouldn't miss while we are here, let us know! Thanks to ALL of you.

Say Whaaaaaat?! SPR Ranked 9.3 Out of 10 on PreApps!

We are AMPED to share the review of the upcoming SPR 2.0 version by Coleen Regan from the one and only PreApps website. For those of you who aren't familiar with this site, it's basically a place to browse to learn about upcoming (or soon-to-be-launched) apps throughout the worldwide mobile app industry. Not only were we ranked 9.3 out of a possible 10, but we are also in the top 5 of the list, as well!  This happens when viewers "vote" for the apps they like, so according to our placement, we must be doing something right! You can find the link to the write-up on us here, check it out and see what the hype is all about.

As you can probably tell, we couldn't wait for Monday to roll around to share the exciting news with you. Thank you for all of your support and patience while we've been working on this upcoming version. We promise you will NOT be disappointed! We are getting closer to launch everyday, so if you're an artist, be sure to sign up here and add your songs to the platform to be a part of our global launch next month!!

#TeamSPR

SPR is now on Preapps!

Hey there! Happy 4th of July! Independence Day is one our favorite holidays at SPR. Not just because of the fireworks & barbecue (which are always cool) but because of what the day represents--the ability to break away from the control of others, to pursue your own freedom and to blaze your own trail, and we'd like to think of SmartPhoneRecords in the same way.

With that said, our relaunch later this summer will create a shockwave throughout the music industry. Our goal is to make SPR a platform truly designed for all artists around the globe. If you would like your music to be part of our launch please press here to upload your tracks for free. You can also log on to our featured page on PreApps to become a beta tester before the launch. Progress is impossible without change and SPR is the very change the industry has been waiting for.

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.
                                       
-Margaret Mead

Start uploading your music today!

Be one of the first artists on the new SPR app. Upload your music now!

Beginning today, artists can now upload their music into the new SPR system via our website. Because we are in the process of trying to rebuild our record store, the SmartPhoneRecords app is currently not available in the app store, but this is not a bad thing! We want to give your future followers and listeners a wide variety of music to stream and contribute to when the app launches, so now is the time to customize your music and personal profile just the way you want it.

For details on what the new SPR app features and what it will look like, click here

SmartPhoneRecords.com

-Existing Artist-

And for artists with existing accounts, don't worry, we've got you covered. In the new V.2 system, we've made it even easier to sign in just by using your Facebook and Twitter accounts. More importantly, our mobile app is launching this summer and will have hi-fidelity audio capability, another feature our first version didn't provide. For this reason, we are asking all artists to resubmit their music (and add new tracks) via the website today and be a part of this new hi-fidelity platform experience . As for any sales you've already made, these will be transferred to your account as well, as we want this transition to our incredibly new and exciting mobile app process to go as smoothly as possible.  

------

One important note: because we have just launched this new campaign within the last 24 hours, there may be some glitches that we are unaware of, and this is where we could use your help. If at any time you are experiencing difficulty uploading your music or accessing the website, please shoot our team an email ASAP. We want to know about it! This process is as new for us as it is for you and we want to ensure we get it right. Our team is standing by ready to assist you so please let us know how we can help at: info@smartphonerecords.com

SPR @ Apps World North America

We're on the move again! Our next stop is San Francisco for Apps World North America at the Moscone Center. If you happen to be in the Bay Area tomorrow or Wednesday, please stop by! We hope to see you there. We also wanted to say a quick "thank you" to our new friends in Berlin who stopped by and showed us love. We appreciate you!

Lastly, if you haven't been on www.SmartPhoneRecords.com lately, check it out and see our new look that's coming in the new 2.0 version at the end of the month. And be sure to check back in the next couple of weeks to find out more about the details. Thank you for accompanying us on this journey!

SPR @ Collision

It's Monday and you know what that means...SPR blog day!

This week's post is short and to the point, and we hope your Monday turns out to be the same. We would like to invite anyone in the Las Vegas Downtown Square area to come check us out at the Collision Tech Conference. Booth D160 at the World Market Center on May 5th. We'd love to meet you!

SPR @ Apps World Germany!

Steve Wozniak @ Apps World Germany

Hey SPR Fam!

We are back from our trip and we'd like to thank everyone who stopped by see us at Apps World in Berlin. Steve Wozniak also made an appearance and passed along valuable information. It was inspiring to see one of the pioneers in the very industry that made it possible for us to have a business ourselves, share insight and answer questions. Germany has a lot of great talent and we look forward to hearing all of the up-and-coming artists on SPR in the near future. 

Berlin Wall 2015

Our next stop is the Collision Conference in Las Vegas at the Downtown Square booth number D160, so if you're in the area, stop by and check us out!

SPR Update!

New SPR Coming Soon

Over the last several weeks, we have mentioned that SPR is working hard to make your user experience even better. Although we are not quite done, we wanted to let you know that we are closer than ever to launching a brand new version for all of our U.S. based customers. This means more features, better quality, and an ever-so elegantly-designed interface that can rival even the most sophisticated apps in the industry.  Check out our website and begin the countdown!

Tune in next week for a post about our trip to Berlin, Germany. Thank you again for your time and talent. We appreciate you!

Big Day Coming Up!

SAVE THE DATE!

Thursday, April 16th
5:30-8:30
Columbia, SC

SmartPhoneRecords will be presenting on Demo Day (sponsored by USC's firedUp accelerator program) with a very first sneak preview of our 2.0 version!

Also, keep an eye out for a blog in the near future that will introduce our new development team. Lots of exciting new things are about to kick off that will undoubtedly help you get the most out of your SPR experience. Stay with us!

Thanks to everyone @SXSW

We would like to thank all of you who stopped by to show some love at the SXSW festival last weekend. We had always heard great things about it but never had the pleasure of attending or exhibiting.  It was an awesome and unforgettable experience, to say the least. To all of the amazing up-and-coming artists we met, stay grinding!  In the meantime, we are working hard everyday to help you reach the top. And don't forget, we will be releasing our latest version soon, so stick with us. We're just getting started.

The State & SPR

We'd like to give a special shout out to Columbia's very own "The State" newspaper for including us in their article about life in downtown Columbia. Checkout the article HERE

SPR @ SXSW Music Gear Expo!

SPR Fam,

It's been a few weeks since our last post and believe me when I say, it feels great to be back. We have lots of stuff going on everyday and can't wait to show you the next changes and updates that we are currently working on. We think you're really going to like what we've done. In the meantime, we are headed to the South by SouthWest festival (SXSW) in Austin, Texas from March 18th-21st! It's our first time and could not be more excited about it. We'll be a part of the Music Gear Expo which hosts a unique range of companies, from established names in the industry to independently owned up-and-comers. So, as always, if your attending the festival or in the Austin area, we would love to meet you! Hope to see you there. And don't forget that although our blog activity is a bit sporadic right now, you can always reach us at info@smartphonerecords.com. Let us know how we can help you!

Blessings In Disguise

Confession time! I'll be honest, when we first started SPR, there were some things that we overlooked. Although having plenty of work experience helps, nothing prepares you for the uncharted territory of building a startup until you actually begin the process. One of these "overlooked" examples is the SPR Community feature within the app. While scrolling through the list, you may have noticed users with names that appear as "?????????."  This is because the username is made up of foreign characters/letters that our English-based system is unable to recognize. In other words, we did not take into consideration that people from non-English speaking countries would use SPR. But thank goodness they did.

Another thing we didn't consider was the importance of allowing this community to be able to communicate with each other. Situations like these I like to think of as "blessings in disguise," because they present to us possibilities of providing more to our users by connecting people & music in a way that has never been done before.

Lastly, thank you for your patience these past few weeks. We have been blogging less frequently, but know that it's only because we've been working hard to improve SPR. Stay with us to see the latest updates coming SOON!

SPR = Change

This week's entry is a little different because we wanted to give you an update on what to expect from our blog in the next several weeks to come.  A lot of exciting opportunities have come up that we will be participating in. This is great news, not only for us but for you as well, as it will allow us to help create a more efficient, and friendlier user-experience for all of our customers.  With that said, our entries may become a bit infrequent at times due to our future commitments but we will be sure to keep you updated along the way. In the meantime, don't forget that if you need us you can always send an email to info@smartphonerecords.com. 
Thank you for sticking with us! We are the future of digital distribution and we're just getting started.

Thanks for the Feedback

We want  to say thank you for all of your feedback, both the good, the not-so-good and for letting us know the ways in which we can improve. Running a startup and being an independent artist have a lot of similarities, namely, starting with only an idea from scratch and the desire to make it come true.

We did not create SPR to be a temporary solution for the music industry, but rather to change the game completely and in order to do this we need your help. So if you have any suggestions, ideas, feedback or want to let us know of the things we are doing right, please feel free to send us a message to 
suggestions@smartphonerecords.com Thank you

SPR @ AppsWorld Germany!

As we mentioned a few weeks back, we took our very first trip to London to exhibit at AppsWorld Europe in November. Much to our surprise, we have been invited to exhibit at AppsWorld in Berlin, Germany April 22-23 2015.

This will be our first trip to Germany and have heard that Berlin is a thriving hub for technology and start-ups. AppsWorld Germany will be bringing together over 150 exhibitors and 6,000+ attendees from across the app ecosystems in Eastern Europe and beyond. If you happen to be in the Berlin area during this time, please make sure to stop by, we'd love to meet you.

SPR Blog: SmartPhoneRecords is getting AMP'd Up

As you probably know by now, we usually post on Mondays, but we couldn't wait another week to share with you the news we received yesterday. (Drumroll please...) SmartPhoneRecords is the very first winner of the "National Amp your Brand" contest sponsored by the extremely talented Creative Eye Candy marketing and branding agency out of Cincinnatti, Ohio. As recipients, we will have the opportunity to team with co-founders Ben and Janet and their team at Creative Eye Candy to help the overall look of SPR become one of the industry's finest.

The SmartPhoneRecords App 2015  National Amp Your Brand Receipient

It takes a great team to build a great business and we are on a mission to make SmartPhoneRecords the world's number one source for digital distribution.  Teaming with Creative Eye Candy is just the beginning. In the meantime, we invite you to check out the press release and we'll keep you posted on our progress.

SPR @ COLLISION!

Viva Las Vegas! We're happy to announce that SPR will be participating in the 2015 Collision Conference held in Downtown Las Vegas on May 5-6. Collision is Web Summit’s "sister event," which has become Europe’s largest tech conference attracting over 20,000 attendees from around the world. Collision is the vision for a new type of tech conference for America: A meeting place for 10,000 people who are both building the companies of tomorrow and managing the companies of today.

Collision held its first event last May in Las Vegas and we look forward to attending this time around. If you're in the Las Vegas area and would like to attend as well, log on today for your discount code HERE and make sure you stop by and say hi! We'd love to meet you.

SPR's first, Martin Neuhold

I often read about other companies and how they began. It really intrigues me to learn about their journeys to success, including their "firsts" such as the first Tweet, or Instagram post. This got me thinking about ours as well. And, being that it is a new year, I can't think of a better time to give a shout out to the very first artist on SmartPhoneRecords, Martin Neuhold (@MartinNeuhold1).

Martin Neuhold on SmartPhoneRecords

I'll be honest.  When we first launched, I seriously doubted that SPR would work. Even with all the  testing that took place, there was no escaping the anxiety of we felt of actually going "live."  But that all changed the morning after we launched when we heard an unfamiliar alert sounding from our phone.  We instantly looked at one another, then at the phone, and saw our very first artist, Martin Neuhold. His music was actually in our record store. "IT WORKS!," we yelled out. We were blown away, and we were hooked. Martin, a self-described "chillout and ambient artist from Rosenheim, Germany."  From that moment we knew the game changed, and we knew things would never be the same. So be sure to checkout two of his tracks titled  "Dunluce" & "Hvalur" located in the record store. And a monstrous "thank you" to Martin for giving us a chance.