Music executive Thabiso Khati is sharing the personal story behind ROSTER in a new Meet the Founder video, tracing the journey from an internship at a major record label to building an app that helps music professionals run their business from end to end.
Over three decades, Khati’s career has taken him through senior roles at Gallo and Universal Music Group Africa and the co-launch of Cashtime Life with K.O. Alongside the successes, he kept encountering the same obstacles: disconnected systems, revenue slipping through the gaps and missed opportunities.
“I built ROSTER because I’ve lived those problems, as an operator and an executive. I know what they cost,” says Khati, ROSTER’s founder and CEO.
Those experiences shaped a practical ambition: give the people behind the music better tools to protect what they create and manage the business around it. ROSTER is the platform he wished he had throughout his career.
Built for emerging markets, ROSTER brings catalogue, rights, contracts, bookings and income information into one connected workspace. It serves artists, managers, labels and their teams, with specialist AI agents supporting the operational work that sits behind releases, performances and the development of a career.
“My mission is simple: help the people behind the music protect their work, seize opportunities and build lasting businesses,” Khati says.
The animated film, narrated in Khati’s own voice, introduces that mission through his experience of the industry and his belief that the business supporting the music deserves the same attention as the talent.
