Producergrind Buyout Drama: The Soap Opera We Never Knew We Needed!

The recent buyout of Producergrind by Cymatics has caused quite a stir in the music producer community.

ProducerGrind + Cymatics

So a few months back Cymatics just bought out ProducerGrind but before diving into the implications of the buyout. It’s important to grasp and understand who these companies are and what they mean to producers.

ProducerGrind emerged as a pretty dominant force within the hip-hop, music, production, and community, focusing content, primarily on interviews with well-known producers and tutorials with upcoming producers, their content offered invaluable insight into the creative process of industry, giants, and the platform became a cornerstone for beginner and aspiring pro producers to learn how to make beats and for registered producers to find inspiration and knowledge about the music industry

Cymatics on the other hand is a very well-established name in the EDM music production market known primarily for its comprehensive suite of sound packs sample libraries and plug-ins Cymatics has catered to producers primarily of electronic music of all genres since 2015 the company has consistently provided high-quality resources, tutorials, and master classes for beginners, intermediate and advanced producers to enhance their production and their sound.

I won’t get into it too much in this post. Still, there is a behind-the-scenes relationship between the two companies. You can check out more about that in a later post.

Having been a longtime supporter of ProducerGrind, and Cymatics this merger or acquisition comes as a bit of a surprise to me as I found. The two brands were incredibly talented at what they’ve done in their respective niches while Maddox primarily focused on sound design and course creation. The ProducerGrind had put a lot of energy into their podcast and connecting with trap producers primarily in the Atlanta trap subgenre.

I've taken some of the Cymatics courses, and I found the 2022 Melody Creation course particularly insightful for learning how to create new melodies. Additionally, ProducerGrind offers tons of packs that I use daily. Currently, my position on this merger is somewhat neutral, although you might notice a biased tone throughout this article.

I want to emphasize that I have nothing against Stephen at Cymatics, Dylan TV, or anyone on the ProducerGrind team; I love their products and will continue to support their venture because they produce great content. That said, some people within the producer community feel that this acquisition represents a larger problem within the music industry as a whole. I won’t delve into that here, but you can find more information elsewhere.

Instead of focusing on the negatives, this could be a positive development for both Cymatics and the team at ProducerGrind. Yesterday, TB Digital joined Busy Works Beats for a live session to address some of the rumors surrounding the recent acquisition. I admit that I was a bit disappointed in ProducerGrind due to the lack of content over the past year or so and had assumed there might be some internal struggles.

However, I refrained from jumping to conclusions. Of course, I kept my opinion to myself, but others in the community have been more vocal about their feelings. Some have suggested that they might have inside knowledge of the situation, revealing that ProducerGrind was experiencing a sort of creator's block, working to determine the next steps to advance the brand.

I respect the creative process; however, in this digital era, taking more than a week off from a consistently producing YouTube channel almost guarantees its demise—either for the channel itself or the company behind it. Therefore, the news of the acquisition shouldn’t come as a surprise.

Dylan, the founder of ProducerGrind and Cymatics, had hinted at a potential merger during the Timberland interview.

Initially, I viewed this development as a win-win for both the producer community and the companies involved. Cymatics stands to gain expanded reach by connecting with the producer audience and their content, which could lead to broader promotion of products, services, courses, tutorials, and podcasts. This could result in increased market penetration and revenue for both companies.

With the influx of cash, ProducerGrind (PG) can leverage the resources provided by Cymatics to enhance their podcast content. While TB referred to this as community service, I believe it could be extremely effective in attracting new clients to both ProducerGrind and Cymatics. They could incorporate demos and tutorials into their current model, offering exclusive content tied to interviews. Additionally, premium subscribers could access more behind-the-scenes material featuring their favorite producers. This approach could create an immersive experience for producers and significantly change the game with the right planning and organization.

Moreover, the two brands could diversify their product offerings. Cymatics produces fantastic sound packs and plug-ins tailored for Lofi and EDM and has been gradually exploring the trap market. On the other hand, ProducerGrind primarily focuses on trap music. Cymatics can expand its business model beyond just product sales now that it owns a content platform. This new avenue could generate additional revenue through advertising, brand partnerships, and possibly subscription-based services that educate their subscribers.

Meanwhile, ProducerGrind would gain access to a wealth of creators and resources, allowing them to showcase different styles of production beyond just trap music in the Atlanta scene. However, some members of the community express concerns about potential risks.

They believe that this acquisition could disrupt the independence of the producer community. Currently, independent creators like ProducerGrind enjoy editorial freedom; however, with larger companies recognizing the market's potential, this could lead to more buyouts and acquisitions. Such developments might promote products that serve the interests of parent companies rather than those of the creators, ultimately jeopardizing the objectivity of ProducerGrind's content and the community as a whole.

This type of long-term impact remains to be seen if Cymatics can successfully integrate ProducerGrind while maintaining its editorial integrity. This partnership can prove beneficial for both companies and the music producer community however, are always going to arise when you balance your commercial interest with the integrity of your content and the quality of such ultimately, the success of this merger will depend on how well the two companies can leverage their combined strengths and create value for the audience and innovation in the producer community.

Sparking mixed reactions from within the music production community many people believe that acquisition is a positive bringing together two influential players in the market, the combination of high-quality content and comprehensive production tools.

Sample plug-ins are seen as a win-win by some others. Worrying about the consolidation in the producer community the acquisition is an example of the trend in music is another primary example having acquired major brands, such as Ellis, pioneer, and Akai, ultimately some members, especially the community community have complained about the lack of product quality and higher prices. Additionally, with these types of mergers, we’ve also seen a premium valuation on products or ancillary services and the subscription-based pricing model. 

Looking back at the podcast boom between 2017 and 2020 we can see how that affected independent creators as many people started podcasts with the assumption they would get an endorsement or partnership with major brands some fear that the buyout will affect independent content, creators, and people and plug-in designers if larger companies can dominate the market smaller players might be forced to produce content that’s appealing to a buyout versus independent, subjective content.

I like the idea of an all-in-one creation, suite where a company like ProducerGrind, or Cymatics can offer a bundle subscription that gives access to producer, eyes educational content in addition to sign Maddox tutorials packs, plug-ins, and potentially tools that integrate with either the MPC or the DW However, I worry that the price point might be exclusionary.

I’d love to see from these companies more community-driven revenue streams, where either ProducerGrind or Cymatics is willing to dive into the producers and create a marketplace or a platform where producers can sell their preset samples, projects, or essentially their catalogs and generate additional revenue for the parent companies and for independent producers.

While this may be a controversial opinion, I believe that Cymatics could greatly benefit from fostering more relationships within the Atlanta producer scene. This is where TB Digital and Dylan from ProducerGrind excel—they build authentic connections with their subjects, resulting in compelling interviews that reveal a different side of the music industry.

My concern is that with the new energy being injected into the podcast, it might turn into just another platform for industry producers to collect checks instead of genuinely serving the producer community, which is how TB Digital describes the podcast. Considering Music’s recent acquisition of Moog, it’s too early to determine whether this merger will positively impact specific niches within their respective markets.

Only time will tell if Cymatics can learn from what they gained at ProducerGrind and effectively strengthen the community, increase their revenue, and provide real value to their customers. What are your thoughts on this? Comment below.

Note from the editor: 

As I just finished writing this post, I opened up my email to a sneak peek VST from ProducerGrind "Dark Sky", a granular FX plug-in one of the bonuses of their trap Genesis project. I can tell that this merger will be an interesting foyer for both companies. I use my computer as a sound module so it will be interesting to see which Cymatics plug-ins ProducerGrind adopts into their product catalog or if I’m going to get Cymatics emails through ProducerGrind. Only time will tell.