Spotify launches Sound Up to Boost Underrepresented Women Podcast Creators in the Country

By: WE Staff | Tuesday, 29 June 2021

Spotify launched Sound Up in India to support underrepresented women podcast creators in the country. Sound Up is a global programme that identifies underrepresented communities and helps participants hone their podcasting skills through training, mentoring, workshops, and full-program support from the audio streaming platform.

Spotify will focus on women as an underrepresented community in India, with the goal of bringing more female talent into the country's thriving audio ecosystem, according to the company.

"Since its launch in 2018, Sound Up has successfully supported the voices of underrepresented communities with an aim to tackle inequity. The programme seeks to identify opportunities for new talent, and we are eager to find and represent unique female storytellers from India. Ultimately, we want to create a cascading effect where, as we support more women, they in turn act as role models and empower other women in their network to dial up the female voice in the audio industry," said Natalie Tulloch, Global Lead-Sound Up at Spotify, in a statement.

"And to ensure everyone has equal access to resources and technology, Spotify will provide computers, internet access, and podcast recording equipment to the Sound Up participants," she added.

The India Sound Up programme will kick off with four weeks of virtual Sound Up sessions that will include scheduled live courses, recorded lessons, one-on-one meetings with the Spotify team and facilitators, and light homework assignments.

Participants will submit a final trailer and pitch proposal eight weeks after the completion of virtual classes for the chance to be selected to attend the subsequent Sound Up sessions in 2022.

Candidates interested in applying can do so online until July 26. The programme is free and open to Indian residents who identify as women and are over the age of 18. After July 26, ten finalists will be selected to participate in the programme later this year.

Mae Mariyam Thomas, a renowned radio presenter, journalist, podcast producer, and audio content and production consultant, and Riya Mukherjee, an eminent writer, producer, and original content creator, are among the Sound Up facilitators in India.

Sound Up has previously been offered to women and non-binary people of colour in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Sweden; young people of colour from the Periferias in Brazil; and members of the LGBTIQA+ community in Germany.

Sound Up is one of many initiatives launched by Spotify to support and advance women in the audio industry.

Earlier this year, Spotify launched AmplifiHer in India, a long-term initiative that includes women across music and podcasts, inspiring upcoming talent through their own career paths and stories of success and failure, as well as EQUAL, which caters to female artists and podcasters by prominently featuring them on the platform.