Hoopr

Hoopr is a Mumbai-based music licensing platform founded in 2021 by Gaurav Dagaonkar and Meghna Mittal. It operates Hoopr Smash, a self-serve marketplace offering 18,500+ pre-cleared tracks including Bollywood, regional Indian, and independent music. The platform serves over 400,000 creators and 200+ brands across India with AI-powered music discovery and compliant pay-per-track licensing.

How Hoopr Works

Hoopr operates two main products: the core Hoopr platform for creators and Hoopr Smash, a B2B self-serve licensing marketplace for brands and agencies.

Hoopr Smash works as follows:

1. Browse and discover: Brands search a catalog of 18,500+ tracks categorized by use case, mood, and occasion. A real-time trending tracks segment helps brands stay culturally relevant.
2. License instantly: Tracks are licensed through a pay-per-track model or via Super Saver Combo packs for brands that produce content regularly. The entire process from discovery to license takes under 15 minutes.
3. AI-powered tools: In December 2025, Hoopr launched Brand Match Score, which analyzes a brand's digital footprint (social presence, past campaigns, tone of voice, historical music usage) and assigns a match score to every track. The AI Content-Idea Generator then recommends campaign concepts tailored to the selected song.
4. Rights compliance: Every track is rights-cleared. Hoopr has licensing arrangements with labels including YRF Music, Saga Music, Merchant Records, and Amara Muzik. The platform also partners with the Indian Performing Right Society (IPRS) to ensure rights holders receive royalties.

The platform addresses a specific market gap. In India, 87% of music usage in branded content remains unregulated, causing an estimated Rs 3,600 crore in annual revenue loss for the music industry. Hoopr positions itself as the compliant alternative.

Real-World Example

A mid-sized Indian e-commerce brand needs music for 20 Instagram Reels per month. Through Hoopr Smash, they purchase a Super Saver Combo pack that allows them to license multiple tracks at a bundled rate. Each track comes with full commercial clearance for social media use.

Without Hoopr, the same brand might use popular Bollywood tracks without licensing, risking content takedowns and legal notices. In 2026, Zee Music Company moved the Delhi High Court against Libas for alleged unauthorized use of copyrighted music in promotional content. A single takedown can cost a brand more in lost campaign momentum than an entire year of Hoopr licensing fees.

For independent artists on the platform, a track placed in a brand campaign through Hoopr Smash generates direct earnings. Hoopr has disbursed over Rs 4.5 crore to its 1,500+ onboarded artists. The platform targets contributing an additional Rs 1,000 crore in royalty-led revenues for artists and labels by FY'30.

Why It Matters for Independent Artists

Hoopr presents a growing monetization channel for independent artists, particularly those working in Indian regional music, Bollywood-style productions, or fusion genres. The platform has onboarded over 1,500 artists and disbursed Rs 4.5 crore in direct earnings.

Key considerations for artists:

• Revenue model: Artists earn through sync fees and royalties when their music is licensed. Hoopr's IPRS integration ensures performance royalties flow back to rights holders.
• Catalog focus: Hoopr prioritizes Bollywood, regional Indian, and independent music. Artists producing content in Hindi, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, or other Indian languages have a natural fit.
• AI discovery: The Brand Match Score system means tracks that match brand identities get surfaced more. Producing music with clear mood, tempo, and cultural context increases placement chances.
• Growing market: Hoopr plans to onboard 1,500+ brands by FY2026. More brand clients means more licensing opportunities for artists in the catalog.
• Institutional backing: Hoopr received support from the MeitY SAMRIDH programme, lending institutional credibility to its infrastructure.

If you produce music for the Indian market, Hoopr is worth exploring. For broader sync licensing strategies, read our guide on how to get your first sync license. You can also compare different licensing models in our article on sync licensing companies vs music libraries.

Company Type and Licensing Model

Hoopr operates two distinct products. The core Hoopr platform (hoopr.ai) is a royalty-free music subscription service for individual creators, offering 12,000+ tracks and sound effects for use in videos, vlogs, podcasts, and apps. Hoopr Smash (hooprsmash.com) is a B2B self-serve sync licensing marketplace for brands and agencies that need to license commercial Bollywood and regional Indian music for branded content.

The licensing models differ by product:

• Hoopr (creator platform): Subscription-based. Creators pay a recurring fee for access to the royalty-free catalog. Licensed content remains protected from copyright claims as long as the subscription was active when the content was published.
• Hoopr Smash (brand marketplace): Pay-per-track licensing. Brands purchase individual track licenses or buy Super Saver Combo packs for bundled, multi-track licensing. Transactions complete in under 15 minutes. This is not a subscription model.

Hoopr Smash is not a production music library or a custom scoring house. It is a sync licensing marketplace that clears existing commercial music (Bollywood, regional Indian, independent) for brand use. The core Hoopr platform functions as a royalty-free music library for creator content.

Catalog Size and Genre Coverage

The two Hoopr products have separate catalogs:

• Hoopr (creator platform): 12,000+ royalty-free music tracks and sound effects covering pop, hip-hop, folk, electronic, and regional Indian styles. This catalog is designed for YouTube videos, vlogs, podcasts, and social media content.
• Hoopr Smash (brand marketplace): 18,500+ pre-cleared commercial tracks including Bollywood film music, regional Indian music, and independent music. The catalog includes tracks from artists such as A.R. Rahman, Vishal and Sheykhar, Amit Trivedi, Diljit Dosanjh, Badshah, Bohemia, and Jasleen Royal.

Genre coverage across both products includes:

• Bollywood: Film soundtracks, item numbers, romantic ballads, dance tracks
• Regional Indian: Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Bengali, and other regional language music
• Independent: Non-film independent artists across pop, rock, and fusion genres
• Pop and hip-hop: Contemporary Indian pop and hip-hop tracks
• Folk: Traditional and folk-inspired Indian music

Hoopr Smash has licensing arrangements with labels including YRF Music, Saga Music, Merchant Records, and Amara Muzik. The Merchant Records partnership added 450+ songs to the catalog in June 2025.

Client Base

Hoopr serves two distinct client segments:

• Creators (Hoopr platform): 400,000+ individual content creators including YouTubers, Instagram creators, podcasters, vloggers, and filmmakers who need royalty-free music for their content
• Brands and agencies (Hoopr Smash): 200+ brands and agencies including Myntra, Meesho, Amazon, Flipkart, Cadbury, Sunsilk, ITC, Marico, Ultratech Cement, and Himalaya

Hoopr plans to onboard 1,500+ brands by FY2026. The platform targets the Indian market where 80,000 brands and 550,000 creators produce content daily, with 87% currently using music without proper licensing.

In November 2025, Hoopr appointed Deborah Smith as Head of International Licensing and Sync, indicating expansion beyond the Indian market.

How They Pay Artists

Hoopr uses multiple payment mechanisms for artists on its platforms:

1. Direct earnings from sync fees (Hoopr Smash): When a brand licenses a track through Hoopr Smash, the artist receives a share of the licensing fee. Hoopr has disbursed over Rs 4.5 crore (approximately $540,000 USD) in direct earnings to its 1,500+ onboarded artists since launch.

2. Performance royalties through IPRS: Hoopr partners with the Indian Performing Right Society (IPRS) to ensure rights holders receive performance royalties. When tracks are used in broadcast or public performance contexts, royalties flow back to composers and lyricists through IPRS.

3. Subscription revenue (Hoopr creator platform): Artists whose tracks are included in the royalty-free creator catalog receive payments based on usage. The specific per-stream or per-use calculation method is not publicly disclosed.

4. No upfront fees: Hoopr does not charge artists to join the platform. Artists are onboarded through an application and curation process. There are no submission fees.

Hoopr targets contributing an additional Rs 1,000 crore (approximately $120 million USD) in royalty-led revenues for artists and labels by FY'30.

Use our sync licensing fee calculator to estimate potential earnings from different placement types.

Comparison Table

Videos

Similar Sync Licensing Companies

• Epidemic Sound - Global royalty-free music subscription platform for creators
• Artlist - Subscription-based royalty-free music and SFX library
• Musicbed - Sync licensing platform with indie and singer-songwriter focus
• Songtradr - Global music licensing marketplace with brand and agency tools

Related Resources

• How to Get Your First Sync License - Step-by-step guide to landing sync placements
• Sync Licensing Companies vs Music Libraries - Comparing different licensing models
• How to License Your Music for YouTube Creators - Understanding the YouTube music licensing ecosystem
• Library Music and Production Music for Passive Income - Understanding upfront payments vs royalty models
• Sync Licensing Fee Calculator - Estimate licensing costs for different placement types
• Hoopr Smash Official Website - Browse the catalog and licensing options