Have you ever wished you could serenade your sweetheart, sing a special song to your newborn child, or have a meaningful personal song for your parent’s special anniversary? But you aren’t a poet or a musician, so how can you do that? Ellen Hodges and Omayya Atout have created a unique company, Songlorious, so that you can!
Like so many others affected by the pandemic shutdown of live performances, Hodges and Atout were struggling to make ends meet. While they were lucky and still had their regular jobs, as musicians they depended on income from their gigs to supplement their income.
In April 2020, a friend asked them to write a song for his wedding, and agreed to pay them for it. This was a big “ah ha” moment and the very next day Songlorious was launched. Essentially this is an online service that employs musicians to write and record songs for special occasions, such as birthdays and weddings.
The business has been very successful. After only four months of business both Atout and Hodges were able to leave their jobs to devote full time to running Songlorious. The business has produced about 11,000 songs, and more than 160 musicians are available. Customers are able to listen to previous recordings and select a musician they really like. Lyrics can be provided by a customer and put to music, or the lyrics can be written by the musician.
The service provided by Songlorious is not a new concept, but Hodges explains that they have a competitive edge due to their speed and level of customization available. Last year the company brought in $700,000 in sales, and is on track to bring in $2.5 million this year.
Music is what brought Hodges and Atout together. They met online in 2019 while starting a band. They ended up falling in love and getting married. Besides loving music, the couple agrees that the best part of this adventure is hearing from their customers how much the songs mean to them and the recipient of the song.