Two Beats Ahead

What Musical Minds Teach Us About Innovation

By: Panos A. Panay, R. Michael Hendrix

Narrated by: Landon Woodson

Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

Discover what the musical mind has to teach us about innovation in this fascinating book, featuring interviews with Justin Timberlake, Pharrell Williams, T Bone Burnett, Gloria Estefan, Imogen Heap, and many more.

Musicians may just hold the keys to innovation in business. They don’t think like we do, and in the creative process, they don’t act like we do. It’s no coincidence that some of the world’s most respected creators are also entrepreneurs.

In Two Beats Ahead, Panos A. Panay, senior vice president for strategy at Berklee College of Music, and R. Michael Hendrix, global design director at IDEO, interview some of the nation’s top musicians and business leaders about how they approach innovation differently. They speak with hit maker Desmond Child about the importance of demoing and with industry legend Jimmy Iovine about listening and knowing your audience. Listeners will learn the secrets of collaboration from Beyoncé and Pharrell Williams, about “daring to suck” from Justin Timberlake, about the power of reinvention from Gloria Estefan, and the importance of experimentation from Imogen Heap and Radiohead. And they’ll learn the value of finding and producing talent with T Bone Burnett and Hank Shocklee, cofounder of Public Enemy.

A window into these brilliant mindsets, this book equips any entrepreneur or innovative thinker with tools they can put into practice to thrive in an evolving world.

©2021 Panos A. Panay and R. Michael Hendrix (P)2021 PublicAffairs

Critic reviews

“Two Beats Ahead is the first of its kind — a book that turns on its ear the popular myth that business and the arts are at odds with each other. There is so much we can learn from musicians about innovation and creativity in business, and in this groundbreaking and riveting book, Panos Panay and Michael Hendrix show us exactly what we’re missing.” (Amy Cuddy, social psychologist and best-selling author of Presence)

“I have always believed that the best outcomes in life come from the discipline of business combined with the chaos of art. All successful musicians are entrepreneurs and all great business leaders are artists. In Two Beats Ahead, Panos and Hendrix prove it. This is a must read if you want to enjoy finding the path of least resistance to the dream you are chasing!” (Kevin O’Leary, Shark Tank Investor, Chairman O’Shares ETFs)

“At its heart, this is a book about the creative journey. While the main ingredient is music, it is spiced with entrepreneurship, leadership and design and served through engaging stories. The result is one that will be of great inspiration to anyone looking to expand the reach of their creativity.” (Tim Brown, chair of IDEO and author of Change by Design)

“For a long time, researchers have known that musical intelligence can awaken the nonlinear whole mind to healing, creativity and innovation. This book is a roadmap for innovators, entrepreneurs and those seeking new avenues for exploring and reimagining the future evolution of human consciousness and its infinite possibilities.” (Deepak Chopra, MD)

Skill Overlap

Loving this book and what a great job they do of helping you see how different skills and mindsets can be applied to all sorts of product innovation, companies and more!

Nice musical story

I enjoyed listening to the book. I just wish the recordings that were listed in the book where available on the audio book. It would have been nice to listen to that at the end of each of the chapters.

Worthless blathering

Synopsis: Authors seem pleased with themselves about knowing famous artists. Save your money and time.