#SoundUpIndia: Spotify’s New Initiative to Amplify 10 Female Podcasters Completely Free!

After the last April program for women ‘AmplifiHer’, Spotify has once again come up with its new initiative ‘Sound Up’. To change the underrepresentation of females in the podcast industry, Spotify states that they “want to provide a platform for women who are telling their own stories or changing the conversation altogether.” This virtual redefining initiative will provide an opportunity to 10 women in idealising their podcasts and transform them into a reality, and that too completely free! Now, guess who’re the pretty mentors? Well, it’s none other than Mae Mariyam Thomas and Riya Mukherjee.

After opening its market in six places, Spotify’s ‘Sound Up’ is finally available in India. The program will begin with virtual training in 2021 from October 4 to October 29, 2021, consisting of live virtual classes, recorded videos, and assignments with the commitment of 8-10 hours a week. The scheduled classes will be held in the evening for the workweek and flexible in the rest. After phase one, it will be followed up with phase two in 2022 which may or may not be virtual. Selected applicants from phase one will be joining a one-week in-person workshop, panels, and activities around podcasting, led by experts and professionals. This will help the chosen aspiring podcasters to learn about the art of podcast creation, from initial ideation to storytelling, interviewing, editing, and producing. According to Spotify, after 8 weeks of immersive sessions, “participants will have to submit a final trailer and pitch proposal of their podcast to be selected for the subsequent Sound Up sessions in 2022. All candidates for the virtual program will be provided with a recorder, computer, headphones, and internet access.” 

Now, let’s get to know the trainers! Mae Mariyam Thomas is the podcaster of ‘Maed In India’, India’s first indie music podcast that showcases the best Indian independent musicians. Apart from being a music enthusiast, she’s also an entrepreneur and presenter with over 3K followers on Instagram.

Riya Mukherjee is the Founder and Partner of Riya Mukherjee Word Pictures (RMWP), a shareholder and the Chief Creative Officer of Yellowbulbs, a shareholder and Strategic Advisor of Filmboard Movies. She’s also a radio and audio professional, an Ex EVP and National Creative Head at RadioMirchi, and was a part of the Cannes Radio Jury. Also, she hosts ‘Riya’s Retro’ on Gaana, and was an advocate at Spotify’s ‘AmplifiHer’. On Instagram, she has over 1K followers. 

The application deadline for ‘Sound Up’ is till July 26, 2021. Ladies, this is a great opportunity for y’all! Don’t miss out on it because it can change your life. You can be an amateur to a pro podcaster with this absolutely free training. This is just a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and you need to cherish it. For more details click HERE! Spotify is always known for its extraordinary initiatives and among them, the recent one is ‘Ruk Jaana Nahi’. So, if you want to know more, then check out #RukJaanaNahi: Hope-Cast by Spotify India to Mark Stories of Humanity with Rajkummar Rao