My family and friends all joke that I like to start conversations with "What if..." followed by some outlandish thought or idea. For some reason my mind naturally wants to solve problems. It's a bit of a compulsion, honestly.
GROOVS started with "What if..."
"What if...playing a musical instrument was integrated with meditation practice?"
It was an idea sparked by the book, Effortless Mastery by Kenny Werner, an accomplished jazz pianist. One line stuck with me: "When you don't try as hard to be good, you play better." It was about how to get out of our own way. He even provided links to various traditional guided meditation practices designed to reduce this mental interference. As inspired as I was by the book, I wasn't doing the meditations.
What inspired me most was the story of his teacher, who for months instructed him to perfect a single note on the keyboard. Months! The goal was to play that one note effortlessly before moving on to the next. A bit extreme, I admit. But from my own experience playing music, I know that hitting the right, beautiful note at the right time can be incredibly rewarding. There's all kinds of music with minimal notes that sound amazing. That's when it hit me.
"What if I have a library of inspiring backing tracks in the style of Radiohead, Moby, Jungle, etc. where I mindfully repeat very simple melodies, harmonies, and rhythms using a piano or guitar?"
"What if...practicing music meditation every day not only trained my mind, but also helped me grow as a musician?"
Long story, very short: after cycles of prototyping and iterating, I decided that the first version of my app shouldn't require an instrument, making the practice more accessible to non-musicians. I figured, most humans love music, and they're probably tapping along as they listen anyway. So..."What if...we make tapping just a little more intentional?"
"What if...meditation could be as enjoyable as listening to your favorite music?"
That's where we are today.
P.S. And for you musicians out there, don't worry. We have plans for you too!
Founder
I spent a decade producing video games at Monolith Productions, shipping award-winning titles like No One Lives Forever, Tron 2.0, and F.E.A.R. In 2007, I co-founded Mindbloom, a wellness startup that used game mechanics to help people improve their lives. It was acquired in 2014. Somewhere in between, I started learning instruments, founded a youth music program called Rockclub, and began co-producing records with Francis of Delirium. I've also spent years working with a somatic coach and studying how the mind gets in its own way. GROOVS is where all of that converges.
Every GROOV is human-made. I write and produce most of them myself, and I collaborate with other musicians who are paid for their work. No AI. Supporting real musicians is part of the mission.
Science Lead
I'm Chris's son. I grew up around Rockclub playing bass, and learning firsthand how easily your head can get in the way of a stage performance. Meditation apps never worked for me, but music always did. When I started hearing my dad's tracks for GROOVS, practicing mindfulness with music just made sense.
My background is in psychology, cognitive neuroscience, and data science. On GROOVS, I make sure we never say something the science doesn't support.
Music designed for training your mind
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