Mint Songs
Acquired3 known investors
Mint Songs was a music NFT marketplace for artists, acquired by Napster in February 2023 after winding down operations.
Also known as Mint Songs
Investors · 3
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Mint Songs was a Web3 music startup that operated an NFT marketplace and minting tools designed to help musicians create, sell or give away digital collectibles and build online communities around their work. The platform allowed artists to convert creative assets into NFTs and offer exclusive art and items to fans to own and trade. It was built on the Polygon network, which the company said made minting on the platform carbon-neutral at zero cost to the artist.
The company was co-founded by Dwight Torculas, who served as CEO, and Garrett Hughes, who served as chief technology officer. Nate (Nathan) Pham, previously in senior product roles at Pandora and UnitedMasters, served as head of product. Mint Songs worked with Web3 artists including Gramatik, Mark de Clive-Lowe and Black Dave on exclusive NFT drops.
In July 2022 Pham said publicly that he had left the company as part of a round of layoffs, and in September 2022 the co-founders announced in a letter posted to Twitter that Mint Songs was winding down its operations; neither founder gave a stated reason. Napster acquired the company in February 2023 as the foundation of its Web3 offering, with Hughes staying on as an advisor and Pham joining Napster to lead its Web3 product initiatives. Hughes subsequently joined the Web3 company RabbitHole as head of engineering.
Founding story
Mint Songs was co-founded by Dwight Torculas (CEO) and Garrett Hughes (CTO). At the time of the February 2023 acquisition, Hughes referred to what the team had built "over the last two years." The sources do not give a founding date or location.
Business model
Mint Songs operated a marketplace and self-serve minting tools for musicians, through which artists turned creative assets into NFTs to sell or distribute to their fan communities; the platform was built on Polygon and described minting as carbon-neutral at zero cost. The sources do not specify fees or other monetization mechanics.
Traction
According to co-founder Garrett Hughes at the time of the September 2022 wind-down, nearly 2,000 musicians had used the platform to create almost 90,000 NFTs, and the company had paid out roughly $100,000 to independent artists. Napster stated that even after the wind-down Mint Songs remained a "top 5 music NFT marketplace."
Latest developments
Napster disclosed on February 15, 2023 that it had acquired Mint Songs to serve as the foundation of its Web3 offerings. The transaction was the first deal by Napster Ventures, the investment and acquisition arm created when Jon Vlassopulos became Napster CEO in September 2022, and Napster described it as the first of a planned series of acquisitions. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed in the sources.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, risks & controversies
Market position
Mint Songs was one of a cohort of music NFT marketplaces that emerged in the early 2020s alongside Sound.xyz and Catalog; its founders appeared together with those companies' founders in an industry panel discussion. Napster characterized it as one of the more prominent Web3 music startups and described it as a top-five music NFT marketplace at the time of acquisition.
Technology
The platform was built on the Polygon blockchain, which the company said made NFTs created on it carbon-neutral at zero cost. It provided tooling for artists to convert creative assets into NFTs and a marketplace for fans to own and trade them.
Go-to-market
Independent and Web3-oriented recording artists seeking to mint collectibles and monetize fan relationships, and music fans buying and trading those collectibles. Artists who used the platform included Gramatik, Mark de Clive-Lowe and Black Dave.
Risks & controversies
The company conducted layoffs in July 2022 and announced the wind-down of its operations in September 2022 without publicly stating a reason. Napster said the sunsetting coincided with the start of acquisition discussions. Reported artist payouts of roughly $100,000 were small relative to the $4.3 million raised.
Compiled by commissioned research from 5 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Timeline · 3
launches, deals, and filingsNapster announced it had acquired Mint Songs to serve as the foundation of its Web3 offerings. It was the first deal by Napster Ventures. CTO and co-founder Garrett Hughes stayed on as an advisor and head of product Nate Pham joined Napster to lead Web3 product initiatives. Terms were not disclosed.
Co-founders Garrett Hughes and Dwight Torculas announced in a letter posted to Twitter that the company was winding down its operations. No reason was given publicly.
Nate Pham posted that he had left Mint Songs as part of a round of layoffs.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
▸Research sources · 5
primary sources listed
- Napster acquires Web3 music startup Mint Songs after eight-figure financing - Music Business Worldwidemusicbusinessworldwide.com · web
5 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Mint Songs do?
- Mint Songs was a music NFT marketplace for artists, acquired by Napster in February 2023 after winding down operations.
- Who are Mint Songs's investors?
- Mint Songs's investors include AAF Management Ltd., Coinbase Ventures, East West Ventures EWV.