Asian Arts Agency is proud to announce the launch of Emerge 2, the second edition of our flagship talent development programme for UK-based South Asian musicians. This initiative builds on the success of our groundbreaking talent development project, Breaking Barriers, and reaffirms our ongoing commitment to supporting and amplifying South Asian musicians in the UK music landscape.

The Emerge programme will support musicians, particularly those at the early stages of their careers. It provides crucial industry support, including training and development opportunities, mentoring, and tailored sessions to expand their knowledge and understanding of the industry. This support will help artists develop new work, grow their networks, and navigate the wider music industry with greater confidence.

The programme is a key part of our mission to empower South Asian musicians to create, perform, record, and distribute their music with increased visibility and long-term impact.

The eight artists selected to take part in Emerge 2 are: 

• Aayushi Jain – a folk singer-songwriter from Birmingham, who writes songs which blend elements from her Indian heritage with abstract symbolism to evoke a soft hypnotic atmosphere. 

• Ekta Rana – a London-based singer, songwriter, and composer who sings both Indian classical and modern music, including Bollywood, ghazals, and bhajans. 

• Lemona Chanda – a vocalist who sings light forms of music including thumri, ghazal, devotional, folk as well as Bengali music such as Rabindra Sangeet and Nazrul Geeti. 

• Muhammad Hasnain Ali – a digital media producer specializing in vocal mixing, background music composition, and visual content creation. 

• Narotam Horn – a composer and pianist, whose unique contemporary classical style is infused with the improvisational spirit and storytelling of Bengali folk music. 

• Dr Pavithra Prathab – a Veena artist with fluency both in Carnatic and Western classical forms of music. 

• Shivani Sen – a multi-disciplinary artist, singer-songwriter, poet and composer who currently focuses on vilambit khyal, a deep and meditative form of classical music. 

• Tejal Pankhania – player of sitar and surbahar, who has immersed herself in the rigorous study of Indian classical music, a foundation of profound taalim, developing a deep connection with the spiritual and meditative dimensions of her art.

Thank you to everyone who applied to be part of the Emerge 2 programme; we appreciate all your efforts to submit applications.

Emerge 2 is produced by Asian Arts Agency, a PRS Foundation Talent Development Network Partner, supported by PPL. 

Jaswinder Singh, Director of Asian Arts Agency, said: 

“We are proud to be part of the PRS Talent Development Network. Support from the PRS Foundation will enable us to create new music commissions and development support for more South Asian musicians and recognises our valuable input into this area. We look forward to continuing our partnership with them into the future and creating more opportunities for South Asian musicians. Through our work, we continue to address the underrepresentation of South Asian artists in the UK music industry and champion new, diverse voices.”