Lead Backend Engineer, Content Management (PHP/Laravel)

EMPIRE is a premier and dynamic music company that prides itself on the development and support of independent artists. We are a rapidly growing firm that has been making waves in the music industry, with an extensive portfolio that spans multiple genres and reaches audiences worldwide. Our commitment to artistic creativity, innovation, and progressive business solutions forms the foundation of our corporate culture. We believe in fostering talent, not just in our artists but also within our professional teams. As we continue to expand, we invite you to join us on this exciting journey. The Role

We are looking for a

Lead Backend Engineer (Content Management)

to join our downtown San Francisco office. This senior, hands-on role reports directly to the VP of Engineering. You will own the architecture, development, and scaling of backend systems that power our music content management platforms for the music industry. You’ll partner closely with product managers, frontend engineers, and media/data operations teams to translate business needs into secure, efficient, and scalable backend solutions. The ideal candidate has deep expertise in PHP (vanilla and modern frameworks such as Laravel), strong systems design experience, and fluency in music industry concepts like rights management, royalties, and digital distribution. Responsibilities

Own the architecture, design, and implementation of robust, scalable backend systems and APIs that support our music content management and distribution systems. Build scalable, secure, and maintainable backend code using PHP (vanilla + Laravel). Drive backend performance, availability, and resilience across core applications. Establish and enforce best practices in code quality, testing, database design, and deployment. Mentor and guide backend engineers, providing technical direction and career growth support. Collaborate cross-functionally with product, frontend, and media operations teams to deliver seamless, integrated solutions. Lead evaluation and adoption of backend frameworks, libraries, and infrastructure tooling. Contribute to technical strategy and long-term planning for backend architecture to support company growth. Key Notes For Success

5+ years of professional backend engineering experience, including at least 2+ years leading PHP/Laravel development efforts. Strong hands-on experience with PHP (vanilla and Laravel), MySQL/PostgreSQL, and API design. Proven ability to lead and mentor technical teams. Expertise in designing and scaling content management applications, large-scale backend services, and media processing systems. Experience building and integrating RESTful APIs (GraphQL a plus). Proficiency in automated testing frameworks for backend systems (e.g., PHPUnit, Pest). Strong grounding in performance optimization, caching strategies, and database profiling. Excellent leadership, collaboration, and communication skills in cross-functional environments. Comfortable context switching between legacy code and newer codebases. Proven track record in data modeling, database design, and schema optimization. Nice To Have

Familiarity with modern music industry workflows and standards (royalties, rights management, metadata, DSP delivery). Experience integrating with third-party APIs common in the music ecosystem (e.g., Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Content ID). Understanding of music industry data formats (DDEX and other proprietary formats) Knowledge of DevOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, and containerization (Docker, Kubernetes, Terraform). Experience in compliance-heavy environments (GDPR, CCPA, SOC 2, handling of sensitive rights/royalty data). Background in distributed systems design, event-driven architecture, and/or microservices. Prior experience working on digital media or SaaS platforms for creative industries. Pay Range: $120,000 - $160,000/annual salary + benefits + discretionary bonus + profit sharing program We value diversity and always treat all employees and job applicants based on merit, qualifications, competence, and talent. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. Perks

Competitive Compensation Package Competitive Benefits Package Company Paid Life Insurance, Short-Term Disability, and Long-Term Disability Insurance Company Paid Health Savings Account (HSA) Contribution Healthcare Spending Account (FSA) Paid Time Off (Holidays, Vacation, and Sick) Company 401(k) Plan Wellness Resources Commuter Allowance Cell Phone Allowance

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