Licensing Operations Manager

ABOUT GRAI GRAI is reimagining how music is discovered and shared, created around the social layer of it. We're pre-launch, moving fast, and building the infrastructure for how the next generation of artists connects with their audience. WHAT YOU'LL OWN: - Own the operational side of music licensing across recorded music and publishing, ensuring deals move smoothly from negotiation through execution and ongoing administration. - Develop and execute our licensing strategy, identifying the licenses we need and driving them to completion with labels, publishers, and other rights holders. - Manage the end-to-end contract lifecycle — from negotiation support and execution to renewals, obligation tracking, and payments. - Partner with other teams to implement licensing deals and ensure they're reflected accurately across internal systems. - Oversee royalty administration, reporting, and payment schedules, ensuring everything is executed accurately and on time. - Research rights ownership, licensing questions, and commercial terms to support internal teams and external partners. - Build scalable licensing operations by improving processes, implementing automation, and leveraging AI where it creates value. - Own the health of our licensing portfolio, proactively identifying risks before they become issues. Ideally, you'll have: - 5+ years of experience in music licensing, Business Affairs, publishing administration, rights management, or royalty operations. - Strong understanding of music copyright, licensing, and royalty administration across both recorded music and publishing. - Experience reviewing and managing commercial music agreements. - Experience working in a fast-growing startup or scale-up where you've built processes, moved quickly, and owned outcomes. - Exceptional organizational skills, commercial judgment, and a bias toward execution. - Comfort working cross-functionally with legal, finance, product, and commercial teams. - Experience using AI and modern workflow tools to improve operational efficiency. NICE TO HAVE - Experience at a music tech company, DSP, publisher, record label, distributor, or licensing platform. - Knowledge of copyright registration and rights databases (ISRC, ISWC, IPI/CAE, DDEX, CWR). - Experience with rights metadata management and catalog operations. WHY GRAI Joining GRAI means becoming one of the people shaping how our business operates - not just executing existing processes. You'll have the opportunity to: - Build a function from the ground up. - Work directly with founders and C-level. - Help create a best-in-class experience for publishers and labels. - Grow alongside a fast-moving startup that's redefining how people experience music. - Competitive compensation + equity - Flexibility in how you work - US/remote