NE FEATURES BUREAU
CHENNAI, JULY 26
YouTube has announced on Tuesday the new Foundry class of 2022, its global artist development program that focuses on discovering and supporting talent worldwide. Indian artists, Noor Chahal and Kayan, are among the 30 artists spanning genres and continents who have been selected for the Foundry Class of 2022.
here to ✨ bless your feeds ✨
proud to announce that Noor Chahal has made it to the class of #Foundry2022, meet the class: https://t.co/bqBaZEDOX9@youtubemusic pic.twitter.com/9OOpCxiPUj
— YouTube India (@YouTubeIndia) July 27, 2022
Created in 2015, Foundry is YouTube’s incubator for independent music, supporting indie artists at all stages of their careers through annual artist development classes and ongoing release support campaigns.
Foundry artists are next generation entertainers, recognized for their innovative approach to music and storytelling. To date Foundry programs have supported 250 independent artists, with alumni including Arlo Parks, beabadoobee, Clairo, Dave, Dua Lipa, ENNY, Eladio Carrion, girl in red, Gunna, Kenny Beats, LostStories, Natanael Cano, Omar Apollo, REI AMI, Rema, Rina Sawayama, ROSALÍA, Seedhe Maut, Snail Mail, Tems, Tenille Arts and many more talented musicians.
Pawan Agarwal, Director, Music Partnerships (India & South Asia), YouTube, “Helping discover and break new artists, while helping them navigate every stage of their career is one of YouTube Music’s core goals. This is especially important for independent artists, who are navigating today’s increasingly digital landscape to find stability, creative fulfillment, and a global community of fans. Foundry gives independent artists a springboard to success and we’re excited to support such emerging artists and reduce barriers along their journey.”
YouTube’s latest Foundry class includes a global collection of artists from the US, India, Korea, Japan, Brazil and Sub-Saharan Africa. Featuring genres such as country, afropop, soul, latin urban and many more, the new class of musicians includes
- Amari’ Noelle (US)
- Ashley Cooke (US)
- ART (DE)
- ÀVUÀ (BR)
- BabyTron (US)
- BIBI (KR)
- Black Sherif (SSA)
- Bruses (MX)
- Danielle Ponder (US)
- French The Kid (UK)
- Genesis Owusu (AUS)
- Haru Nemuri (JP)
- Joeboy (SSA)
- Jossman (CO)
- Kader Diaby 4Real (FR)
- Kaike (BR)
- Kayan (IN)
- Magdalena Bay (US)
- Mehro (US)
- Nemahsis (CAN)
- Noor Chahal (IN)
- Obongjayar (UK)
- RIMON (NL)
- Roxane Bruneau (CAN)
- Skiifall (CAN)
- Snow Tha Product (US)
- Sudan Archives (US)
- Thuy (US)
- TSHA (UK)
- Yoss Bones (MX)
Meet the Foundry Class of 2022 HERE
Noor Chahal said, “Being an independent artist always comes with an essence of absolutely being true to your music as well as your audience. An artist’s success cannot be measured by definite parameters, everyone has their own definition of success. I see Foundry helping my music reach new people and ensure that my potential does not go undiscovered or unacknowledged. Every independent artist needs a push like that and I am nothing but grateful to YouTube for this opportunity.”
Kayan said, “Freedom. To do what I want. It also challenges me in so many ways which teaches me a lot. I guess if you’re happy doing what you’re doing you’re successful, having said that. It doesn’t hurt if I can pay my bills, fund my own music, own all of it and still have the drive to want to do better. YouTube is a crucial platform for artists. To connect with my audience and fans and to have a place to share my work with them is super important. Also to understand my audience better and work with that kind of information is such a great strength to have. Foundry is the perfect program to help me really grow what I’m working for.”
Foundry is designed for independent artists who have a vision for their own success and to help them navigate the demands of today’s music industry. YouTube provides partner strategy support, marketing promotion, and seed funding for content development that can be used for experimenting with new music to diversifying video creation formats.
2021 Foundry alumni Seedhe Maut shared, “We constantly strive to push our creative limits to the maximum, and our vision has always been about creating as well as experimenting with music that pushes our boundaries. Being selected as part of Foundry gave us the opportunity to expand our vision and share our music with a wider community. YouTube as a platform has been exponential in sharing our work and connecting with more people across the globe.”
The combination of access to resources and great teams at YouTube enables artists to create and launch their music with greater global impact, sharing their music and connecting with their fans no matter where they are from. Independent doesn’t mean being alone which is why Foundry is dedicated to helping artists build a foundation for growth, engagement and global success from day one.
