Former MLBer ROYCE CLAYTON worries that the game "is getting stale," so he came up with a solution that includes "customized walk-up songs, produced through his company" Musiq Locker, according to Brad Balukjian of ROLLING STONE. As his playing career wound down in '07, Clayton "started considering his options." Recognizing the "potential to merge baseball with other forms of entertainment, he began mulling how he might combine the game he loved with his passion for music." Clayton "knew little about the logistics of song rights and licensing," so he set out to "better understand the way the music industry works." MLBers could "choose their song from the massive libraries licensed by the publishers to the league, but Clayton wanted to find a way to change the equation." In '13, he formed Musiq Locker, which "inked an exclusive deal" with the MLBPA to "produce custom walk-up songs for every interested major leaguer." Clayton's company recently "finished producing songs" for free agent 1B CHRIS CARTER and free agent SS JIMMY ROLLINS, and "has tunes" for Red Sox DH DAVID ORTIZ, Astros RF GEORGE SPRINGER, Angels CF MIKE TROUT and Indians LF MICHAEL BRANTLEY in the pipeline. Clayton said, "We can be a key influence in making the game cool again." Balukjian noted Clayton wants to "take the genre to the next level by bringing players and musicians together to create custom walk-up songs, with Musiq Locker pairing players with a team of writers and producers to design a song tailored to each player's brand." The players "not only can match their songs to their brands and personalities, they also get a piece of any publishing royalties." And though there is "only enough time to play a snippet of the song at the ballpark, Clayton has full-length versions available online." To date, 12 players "have signed on" (ROLLINGSTONE.com, 12/11).
