Do Brands Have the Right to play in the Music-for-Purpose Space?
A conversation with Roscoe Williamson, Global Strategy Director at MassiveMusic
Interview published on 30th October 2025 Music has always had a cause - the power to move people, shift systems, and soundtrack change. But as brands rush to align with purpose, a deeper question emerges: who really has the right to play in this space? In this conversation with Roscoe Williamson, Global Strategy Director at MassiveMusic, we explore where creativity meets conscience - and what happens when sound becomes a strategy for something greater.
THE FUTURE IS SOUND (TFIS) : Roscoe, for those who don’t know you, tell us a bit about your background and what brings you to THE FUTURE IS SOUND.
ROSCOE WILLIAMSON (RW) : I started out in composition and sync, but through a deep academic dive into creativity and innovation, and by helping to build a global music agency (MassiveMusic), I’ve arrived at this intersection between music, culture and strategy. These days my work is about how sound can make a genuine difference to brands and organisations - how it shapes behaviour, emotion and connection. THE FUTURE IS SOUND sits right in that space, where creativity meets conscience and technology.
A lot of our work looks at how sound can serve people and the environment rather than entertain.
TFIS: Some of the projects you’ve been involved in touch on those ideas. Can you give us a sense of what that looks like?
RW: A lot of our work in this area looks at how sound can serve people and the environment rather than just entertain. We’re exploring how music and sound can better support conservation, our work with the National Trust focuses on reconnecting underrepresented socio-economic groups with nature and heritage, and in the past we’ve looked at how trauma-sensitive music can help people in conflict zones.
The rise in functional music has also made it possible to test the mental and physiological benefits of sound, which when applied carefully and authentically in a brand context, can genuinely help people. One project I’m particularly proud of was with the charity Mind, where we created a functional, music-based intervention app called Mindscape. We worked with musicians and psychologists to design a spoken and sonic experience for people experiencing anxiety attacks at home. It’s still available on the Alexa Skills platform.
We worked with musicians and psychologists to design a spoken and sonic experience for people experiencing anxiety attacks at home.
TFIS: What separates authentic, purpose-driven sound from something more performative?
RW: Intent. You can tell when a brand is trying to force a purpose message into something. We do everything we can to avoid any form of impact-washing. The best work happens where brand truth meets human or environmanetal tension – where sound can genuinely help to ease or illuminate that tension by bringing attention to it at scale. That’s when it feels authentic and can genuinely makes a difference.
TFIS: AI is changing how quickly we can make and manipulate sound. How does that affect authenticity?
RW: There’s no doubt that a huge amount of content will be scored by generative AI in the future, but it puts more weight on the how and why. Anyone can now generate something that sounds OK-ish, but the provenance of that data is still a major legal and ethical question for most platforms. Once that’s resolved – and it will be – the real question becomes why the music exists. To avoid a bland sea of sonic homogeneity, the intent behind a brand’s tonality will matter more than ever, as will the story behind it: why this particular aesthetic, who created it, what it stands for, and what it represents.
This event sits at the frontier of what’s emerging creatively, technologically and culturally in sound.
TFIS: Why do events like THE FUTURE IS SOUND matter?
RW: This event sits at the frontier of what’s emerging creatively, technologically and culturally in sound. It creates space on those outer fringes to stop, reflect and listen. I’ve found it’s often from those edges that the first signals appear – ideas that, if nurtured, can grow into the ones that make the biggest impact.
TFIS: Looking ahead, what are you most excited about in terms of future trends in this space?
RW: I’m fascinated by how the intersection of AI and fan participation will evolve. Whether that’s through biometric sensors at live performances, where the crowd becomes part of the creative process, or through the co-creation of brand and artist archives over time. That kind of interaction really excites me. It opens new ways for people to feel part of something bigger and for meaningful causes to reach audiences in more participatory ways.
TFIS: Finally, do brands have the right to play in the music-for-purpose space?
RW: Not automatically. They have to earn it. The way to earn it is through empathy, partnership and genuine application. Music is one of the most powerful emotional tools we have, but it shouldn’t be used to sell sincerity for sincerity’s sake.
As the lines between art, technology and impact continue to blur, voices like Roscoe’s remind us what really matters - intent, empathy and purpose. The brands that will thrive in this new era of sound aren’t those who shout the loudest, but those who truly listen.
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