Overview
Background
The music industry has become increasingly digital and collaborative, yet independent artists often struggle to connect with the right partners, find quality sample packs, and get exposure for their work. Existing platforms are either too focused on social media visibility without offering creative collaboration tools, or they’re purely technical without fostering community engagement.
My role
UX Researcher, Information Architect, Interaction and Visual Designer, Prototyper, Usability Tester and Project Manager.
Duration
December 2024 – January 2025 Revisited (Apr -May 2025)
Responsibilities
Interviews, surveys, competitive analysis, sitemaps, labeling, User flows & wireframing, UI components, color, typography, iconography, Prototyping, testing and feedback synthesis, Project management
Target Users
Independent music producers seeking collaboration partners.
Songwriters looking to share lyrics and get them composed.
DJs and remix artists hunting for fresh samples.
Music enthusiasts exploring underground talent
The problem
The goal
User research
Summary
Key findings
Fragmented tools: Users often switch between 3–5 apps to collaborate, share files, and promote music.
Collaboration barriers: Finding trustworthy, committed collaborators is a major challenge.
Limited promotion opportunities: Artists struggle to reach a wider audience without spending heavily on ads.
Sample pack accessibility: Creators want a space to share and discover samples without high commission fees.
Workflow disruption: Switching platforms breaks creative momentum and slows projects.
Sample Interview Questions
How do you currently find and collaborate with other artists?
Which tools or platforms do you use most for music collaboration and why?
What’s the biggest challenge you face when sharing files or project updates?
How do you promote your music once it’s finished?
Have you ever shared or downloaded sample packs? What was the experience like?
If you could have one feature in an ideal collaboration platform, what would it be?
Can you describe a time when a project stalled because of workflow or communication issues?
Primary User Groups
From market research, competitive analysis, and informal interviews with independent musicians, three primary user groups emerged:
Independent Producers
create instrumentals, beats, or remixes, often looking for vocalists or songwriters.
Songwriters/Vocalists
write lyrics, record vocals, and seek producers to bring their ideas to life.
Sample Creators & DJs
develop and share sample packs, loops, and effects, often seeking a platform to distribute them and gain recognition.
Competitive Audits
In evaluating Bandcamp, SoundCloud, Audiomack, and Next Flame, the goal was to understand how artists currently share, promote, and collaborate on music. While Bandcamp and Audiomack focus heavily on music distribution and monetization, SoundCloud emphasizes social discovery and sharing. Next Flame uniquely positions itself by centering collaboration, sample sharing, and creative networking rather than just distribution. This creates a niche opportunity to fill the gap between music streaming and creative co-creation platforms.
King Keys – Independent Producer
King is eager to find vocalists for his beats but wastes time searching across platforms with inconsistent results. Disorganized file sharing and fragmented feedback channels slow progress, and promotion remains disjointed. His experience underscores the value of an all-in-one platform for collaboration, file management, and release promotion.
Temi – Songwriter/Vocalist
Temi starts inspired but struggles to find committed producers, relying on scattered social media outreach. File sharing across multiple tools creates version control issues, and promoting finished songs is costly and ineffective. Her journey highlights the need for a centralized space to connect, collaborate, and promote efficiently.
From the user journeys and empathy mapping, several recurring challenges emerged from difficulty finding reliable collaborators to managing messy workflows and struggling with promotion. To frame these insights as opportunities, I translated them into “How Might We” questions. These open-ended prompts guide ideation by focusing on possibilities rather than limitations, ensuring our solutions address real user needs while leaving room for creative approaches.
The HMWs highlight the core areas where NextFlame can deliver the most impact
Backgrounds
The color palette was designed with dynamic gradients and subtle motion to bring the interface to life. Moving elliptical gradients create a sense of depth and energy, reflecting the vibrant, creative atmosphere of the platform while maintaining legibility and user focus.
Watch closely
Color pallete
FFF6C7
Accent / Hover states
FDFDFD
Primary CTA /Buttons on dark bg
141414
Primary CTA /Buttons / Text on white bg
C9F7CA
Success buttons
Before moving into low- and high-fidelity wireframes, I began with quick hand sketches to explore layout ideas, feature placement, and user flows. These rough concepts allowed us to rapidly visualize possibilities, test multiple directions, and refine the core experience without being constrained by design polish.
This user flow illustrates the path an artist takes to initiate collaboration on Next Flame.
Starting from the landing page, the artist logs into their account and navigates to the collaboration page. From there, they browse and select an artist of interest and clicks "Connect", leading to that artist’s profile page.
On the profile, they compose a message in the dialog box and click “Send” to establish a connection and begin the collaboration process.
Overview
Study Type: Unmoderated usability study, remote
Participants: 6 individuals (mix of emerging artists, producers, and casual listeners)
Duration: 15–20 minutes per session
Prototype Tested: Low-fidelity wireframes of Next Flame (landing page, login, collaboration flow, sample packs page)
Feedback
Summary
After logging in, the user navigates to the Sounds tab to explore available samples.
Using the newly added filter search, they type in “drums” to quickly refine results. From the filtered list, the user selects a track and takes advantage of the new preview feature, allowing them to listen to a sample instantly before deciding to download or use it. This streamlined experience makes discovering and testing sounds faster and more intuitive
Accessibility features
To make Next Flame inclusive, I prioritized accessibility from the ground up. Features such as high color-contrast modes improve readability, while keyboard navigation and screen reader support ensure that essential actions like collaboration and browsing samples are available to all users. Clear, descriptive button labels (e.g., “Click to Collaborate”) help users with cognitive differences better understand their next steps.
Responsive design
The platform’s fully responsive design allows seamless access across desktop, tablet, and mobile devices, ensuring that all users can navigate and interact with Next Flame comfortably, regardless of their device.
Multi language support
The platform offers experience in multiple national languages
Impact
The high-fidelity prototypes allowed us to identify key usability improvements and validate design decisions with realistic interactions.
Early feedback showed increased clarity in navigation, better discoverability of collaboration features, and more intuitive sample browsing.
These refinements have the potential to boost user engagement, reduce friction for new users, and foster meaningful creative connections on the platform. By addressing accessibility and responsiveness at this stage, we’ve also ensured that Next Flame is inclusive and usable across diverse user groups and devices.
Feature enhancements
The sample browsing experience will be expanded with advanced sorting options and personalized recommendations. We also plan to explore collaborator ratings and reviews as an added layer of trust-building.
Development, pilot launch
Build NextFlame and launch
View next project
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Now lets
work.
Ivan Kwetey
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