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Who is Austen Smart?
A note from me
My name is Austen Smart.
Since I was a young boy I believed three things:
1) I could do almost anything I imagined
2) That everyone was the same (and therefore could be great)
3) That I could instigate the things that mattered.
I tested that belief again and again:
- Playing Fabric in London. 5X.
- Building the world's first graded DJ exams with ABRSM.
- Becoming a published Faber author.
- Collaborating with artists like Groove Armada one year into our music journey.
- Creating Courses on Spotify, which became an entirely new vertical inside the app.
- Building a life I'm proud of, with the people I love.
Different arenas. Same way of moving.
The biggest test was a single piece of paper I wrote titled, "Build the Spotify music school".
When that became real, I knew I could one day tell my children, honestly, that they can do anything in this life. And imagine whole new worlds.
Eventually, I stopped and looked back. I asked what was actually working underneath all of it, what were the tools that I would use. And asked could I now turn my focus to the thing I care about most, helping others make moves.
The answer was yes.
So here I am.
About the company I founded
Founded with my brother Scott Smart, and a couple of school friends, we were professional DJs coming into this - originally called FutureDJs, WHATCLASS was built to reimagine music education.
With over £5M raised, the company was backed by leading investors from Airbnb, Disney Plus, and Live Nation - we built the world's first ever education partnership with Spotify and forged a link through to graded, artist led exams.
Smart International Business Development
More than forty years ago, my late father, Ernest Smart, began trading internationally, working across markets from Iran to Japan, South Africa to mainland China. There were few countries he had not travelled to in pursuit of building meaningful, creative businesses. With a background in art materials, he went on to found Smart International Business Development, known as SIBD.
My brother and I both worked within the business at different stages of our lives, learning first-hand what it meant to operate globally, build long-term relationships, and bring ideas into the world with care and integrity.
When he passed away, we took over the business with a clear intention: to honour his indomitable spirit and continue doing what he loved most, helping great products reach the market and inspiring young minds through creativity, invention, and play.
Shifting how the world learns music
From performing at world-renowned nightclubs to transforming music education I have long been involved in shaping the future of how we learn. As an artist, entrepreneur, and ultra-marathoner, I combine creativity, creative leadership and resilience to build groundbreaking initiatives, including the world’s first graded DJ exams.
The vision was always clear: make world-class music education accessible to all.
What to expect from working with me
1. Are you are feeling stuck?
I will help you press play on the one thing you already know you are here to do.
I break you out of loops and reconnect you to your own signal. When you press play properly, momentum follows. Decisions get cleaner. The noise drops away.
2. Do you want a new playbook?
Not theory. A living guide drawn from the exact tools, practices, and strategies that have worked in my own life across music, business, leadership, fatherhood, and ultra-endurance.
We dig into beliefs, purpose, vision, and direction. Then we turn belief into strategy. Because belief without strategy is dangerous, and strategy without belief never lasts.
3. Need to find space in to think?
Music is made in the space between the notes. So is leadership. So is great marketing. So is courage.
You learn how to recognise emotional states, shift energy and breakthrough the noise.
"Thank you so much for everything you shared. You’re a true rockstar and a living example of what it looks like when someone fully embraces their true magic".
Yosra Altahan – Meta Product | Climate Management
Ready to make a move?
Ready to create what's next?
Ultra running taught me what business never could: how to push limits, think bigger, and press play on life.
My keynotes and 1-2-1s aren’t just talks. They make you move and break loops.
I’ve worked with world leading brands, built game-changing partnerships, and tested my resilience on the toughest trails and in the hardest moments of entrepreneurship.
I bring that energy to every session, showing teams, brands and leaders how to play big.
