SANTA BARBARA, CA -- (Marketwire) -- 11/29/12 -- The founders of new music curation and sharing app Mixtape (www.mixta.pe) agree: there's no shortage of playlist apps these days. Dozens of options exist for smartphone users to assemble a track list and publish it for personal or public enjoyment. What's missing is an option to let users recapture and share the nostalgic fun beyond the walls of a particular music service.

Mixtape is a cross-platform digital throwback to the once ubiquitous cassette mix, reviving the lost art associated with the 80s staple of friendships, first dates, breakups and makeups. Launched November 8th in the Apple iTunes App store and in conjunction with the New Noise Music Conference & Festival (www.newnoisesb.com), an annual event in Santa Barbara, California organized by co-founder and music industry vet Jeff Theimer, Mixtape taps into either Spotify or Rdio for users to capture and send a sentiment or message with a hand-picked selection of tracks, custom title and cover art. Mixes can be shared via tagging on Facebook or Twitter, where the recipient can hook up their own Spotify or Rdio account to listen to full tracks, otherwise they get 30-second samples. Mixtape's seamless integration across both Spotify and Rdio are what really sets it apart as a playlist-sharing platform.

"If a Mixtape is created from a user signed in with Spotify and shared to a user signed in with Rdio, they can listen to the same tracks," says Mixtape co-founder and CEO Nick Long. "We want to become the place where users can share music and engage with each other regardless of what music service they pay for," also adding that they are currently adding more services such as Mog and Deezer. Additionally, mixes can be conveniently pulled directly from the tracks recently scrobbled on Last.fm or the bands and performers a user likes on Facebook.

Long, who along with Mixtape designer and co-founder Darien Edwards previously launched glmps (www.glmps.com), emphasized Mixtape's purpose: "As digital music has become more prevalent and accessible, we've become somewhat dissociated with it. It used to take hours to put together a cassette mix. Meaning is lost when you hit randomize or a friend shoots you an email that links to a 500 song playlist they found online. We want to change that and make the mixes personal again, for the creator and the recipient."

The opportunity for Mixtape to connect artists directly with their fan base via easily crafted and tailored mixes could provide a huge boon to artists as well. "By sharing mixes of their own tracks or the music they personally like and listen to, we see a great opportunity for music professionals and artists to expand their connection with their fans," commented co-founder Mike Gaertner. "Services like Twitter and Instagram have allowed artists to build their brands by offering an intimate snapshot of their personal lives. We think sharing personal music tastes offers another great avenue for artists to connect with and grow their fan base." This has already been recognized by artists 3OH!3 and Kevin Devine who have shared Mixtape mixes for launch.

Social interaction helps drive music discovery on Mixtape. Popular mixes and tracks are featured throughout the app, mixes are curated by featured artists and bloggers along with popular Mixtape users. Long, Edwards, Theimer and Gaertner are joined by co-founder Amy Long who provided initial inspiration for the service.

About Mixtape:
Available now, Mixtape is the fastest way to curate and share music mixes with friends regardless of the music service they're using. At launch, Mixtape will be available exclusively on iOS devices, tapping into Rdio and Spotify for music content. Mixtape current available in the iTunes app store (http://mixta.pe/ios). For more information about Mixtape or to schedule an interview with one of its founders, please contact Mike Barash at 650-520-0120 or mike@knock2x.com.