10 Anthems for Startup Founders
One of my favorite inventions in modern sports is the walk out song. The idea originated back in the 70s, when Chicago White Sox organist Nancy Faust started playing different songs to entertain fans when the players came up to bat. In the late 80s and early 90s, teams began using short clips from recorded songs for player entrances. But it wasn’t until 1995, when a brash rookie named Derek Jeter requested Montell Jordan’s This is How we Do It for his very first professional at-bat, that the trend of players choosing their own entrance music caught fire.
Today, walk out songs can be found across sports and around the world. They’ve even found their way into Startupland™. Back when I was at 500 Startups, founders got to choose their walk out songs when presenting on demo day (I’m pretty sure a few teams spent more time debating their entrance song than practicing their pitch… 🤦♂️).
So for something a bit different this week, here are 10 songs that (I think) perfectly capture different aspects of a startup founder’s journey.
1. Anthem for the Founder Going Into a VC Partner Meeting
Raising venture capital is an enterprise sale. And in any enterprise sale, you have to be ready to overcome objections.
Hit Me With Your Best Shot by Pat Benatar
Well you're a real tough cookie with a long history
Of breaking little hearts like the one in me
That's okay, let's see how you do it
Put up you dukes, let's get down to it
Hit me with your best shot
Why don't you hit me with your best shot
Hit me with your best shot
Fire away
2. Anthem for the (Repeat) Solo Founder
Some founders are destined to walk the startup path alone. 80s hair band Whitesnake knows all about that.
Here I Go Again by Whitesnake
Here I go again on my own
Going down the only road I've ever known
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone
And I've made up my mind
I ain't wasting no more time
3. Anthem for the Founder in Search of Product-Market Fit
Replace the word “music” with “product-market fit” in Eminem’s 2002 anthem Till I Collapse and you’ve got a song that captures the struggle of every early founder.
Till I Collapse by Eminem ft. Nate Dogg
Music is like magic, there’s a certain feelin’ you get
When you real and you spit, and people are feelin’ your sh*t
This is your moment, and every single minute you spend
Tryna hold on to it ’cause you may never get it again
So while you’re in it, try to get as much sh*t as you can
And when your run is over, just admit when it’s at its end
4. Ballad for the Sacrifices of a Founder
Long before they became a household name in the United States, French band Pheonix released a song that captures the challenges and sacrifices of a founder’s journey.
If I Ever Feel Better by Pheonix
It's like somebody took my place
I ain't even playing my own game
The rules have changed, well, I didn't know
There are things in my life I can't control
I feel the chaos around me
A thing I don't try to deny
I'd better learn to accept that
There's a part of my life that will go away
5. Anthem for the Founder Who Wasn’t Discouraged When a VC Said No
This song was originally written about a girl who moved on, but it could easily apply to a diligent founder who didn’t slow down when they heard no from an overconfident VC.
Break my Stride by Matthew Wilder
Ain't nothin' gonna break my stride
Nobody gonna slow me down
Oh no, I got to keep on moving
Ain't nothin' gonna break-a my stride
I'm runnin' and I won't touch ground
Oh no, I got to keep on moving
6. Anthem for the Founder Going Fearlessly Against the Incumbent
Look no further than the Beastie Boys for a song that perfectly captures the feeling of a founder boldly going after an overconfident incumbent. “That startup can’t possibly beat us. It must be…sabotage.”
Sabotage by Beastie Boys
So listen up 'cause you can't say nothin'
You'll shut me down with a push of your button
But I'm out and I'm gone
I'll tell you now I keep it on and on
'Cause what you see you might not get
And we can bet so don't you get souped yet
You're scheming on a thing that's a mirage
I'm trying to tell you now it's sabotage
7. Anthem for the Bootstrappers Who Started with a Side Hustle
Drake’s massive hit Started from the Bottom resonates with plenty of founders, but it’s a perfect fit for those whose companies started off as a side hustle.
Started From the Bottom by Drake
I done kept it real from the jump
Living at my mama house we'd argue every month
I was tryna get it on my own
Workin' all night, traffic on the way home
…
And we started from the bottom, now we're here
Started from the bottom, now my whole team f*ckin' here
Started from the bottom, now we're here
Started from the bottom, now the whole team here
8. Ballad for the Founder Who Moved Away
Many founders leave home in pursuit of their startup dreams, only to find mixed receptions when they return. Rick Nelson’s 1972 ballad Garden Party, written after he was booed at a concert where he chose not to sing some of his earlier hits, could just as easily capture the feelings of founders returning home after achieving startup success abroad.
Garden Party by Rick Nelson and the Stone Canyon Band
I went to a garden party
To reminisce with my old friends
A chance to share old memories
And play our songs again
When I got to the garden party
They all knew my name
But no one recognized me
I didn't look the same
9. Anthem for Technical Founders Coming Into Their Own as CEOs
My kids told me that I was not allowed to publish a list of songs without at least one from KPop Demon Hunters (if you don’t yet know what that is, this is the best explanation I’ve come across). So here it is: the anthem for all the technical founders who had to listen to finance bro VCs repeatedly telling them that they needed to hire a “business cofounder”.
Golden by HUNTR/X
I'm done hidin', now I'm shinin' like I'm born to be
We dreamin' hard, we came so far, now I believe
We're goin' up, up, up, it's our moment
You know together we're glowing
Gonna be, gonna be golden
10. Anthem for Every Founder
Last but certainly not least, there’s one song that universally describes the plight of the underdog, while also capturing the challenges involved in staying focused enough to come out on top. It needs no further introduction…
Eye of the Tiger by Survivor
So many times, it happens too fast
You trade your passion for glory
Don't lose your grip on the dreams of the past
You must fight just to keep them alive