Key Takeaways

  • Alex Pall scraped the back end of music aggregator Hype Machine to build a direct contact list of college bloggers, generating over 30 number-one tracks.
  • Pall and Drew Taggart built their distribution engine in their first year of obscurity, outpacing major record labels through personalized cold emails.
  • When founding Mantis VC, the duo rejected celebrity consumer deals, opting instead to back enterprise infrastructure and cybersecurity startups.
  • In venture rounds, Mantis VC deliberately avoids lead investor seats, choosing to play as a supportive co-investor at Series A.
  • Their distribution playbook follows The Chainsmokers' Hype Machine Viral Charting Method.

The Chainsmokers' Hype Machine Viral Charting Method

Step 1: Identify Trending Target Tracks

Monitor aggregation charts (such as Hype Machine) to find indie electronic tracks that influential music blogs are already actively posting and writing about.

Step 2: Produce Rapid Remixes

Reach out directly to the original artists to secure permission, then create high-energy remixes of the specific tracks that are already gaining organic traction on the platform.

Step 3: Mine the Curator Directory

Access the platform backend to scrape and compile direct contact information for every individual contributor and college-aged writer across all indexed blogs.

Step 4: Execute Hyper-Personalized Direct Outreach

Send witty, bespoke emails directly to each blogger referencing their specific college and previous posts rather than blasting generic corporate label promotional copy.

When This Works (and When It Doesn't)

Used to break obscurity and systematically secure viral chart rankings by transforming content curators into passionate distribution partners.

This framework works best when distribution channels are decentralized and gatekeepers are under-appreciated individuals rather than corporate executives. College bloggers in the early 2010s wanted recognition, good music, and personal connection. Pitching them directly bypassed traditional record label bureaucracy. As Drew Taggart noted, Alex Pall created an engine that drove massive reach: “Alex had developed like the most powerful promotional platform probably more than any other label at the time.”

Where does this approach fail? It collapses when platforms centralize discovery behind black-box algorithmic feeds like modern TikTok or Spotify editorial playlists. You cannot scrape an algorithm's contact info. If gatekeepers receive hundreds of automated pitches every day, personalized cold emails lose their novelty unless your product creates immediate value for their audience.

Transitioning from music to technology investing, the duo applied this operational mindset to Mantis VC. Instead of launching another celebrity consumer brand, they looked at enterprise software. As Pall explained, “more water companies is not what the world needs.” They spent time around founders like Brian Chesky, Drew Houston, and Michael Seibel, finding their niche as non-lead Series A participants. Pall compares their role to a dependable basketball specialist: “We invest in Series A stage companies. We don't take lead positions. We like being the sixth man of the year on these teams. It's sort of like I think of ourselves as Robert Horry, Robert Horry has a ton of championship rings, and you could be successful and you don't have to be Shaquille O'Neal on every team.”

What to Do With This

Pick your target channel's actual gatekeepers tomorrow morning. If you sell developer tools, do not email generic press inboxes. Open GitHub, find contributors maintaining open-source libraries in your stack, and scrape their personal blogs.

Send ten hyper-specific notes referencing a technical commit they made last week. Pitch a direct integration that improves their existing project rather than asking for a generic shoutout. Treat curators like collaborators, not a broadcast list.