Interview | Lucia Mulchansingh

From studying Songwriting to working in her current role at Absolute Label Services, ICMP alumna Lucia Mulchansingh's musical journey has touched on a variety of industry areas. 

Her current role with Absolute as a Streaming and Digital Service Provider (DSP) Relations Lead has seen her recently named as a Rising Star by industry bible, Music Week. 

In our interview, Lucia tells us more about her job, how to get ahead in the industry and how studying with ICMP helped her launch her career. 

How did your musical journey start? 

I've always been interested in singing, went to some cool gigs, and developed a big record collection. As I was finishing school, the Vocal Diploma was something I wanted to pursue and ICMP as a university looked really great too. 

I really loved the course, it was great fun, being able to sing and perform every week with like-minded people. You could really dive into it and this led to the Songwriting BA, then the Masters in Songwriting. 

The Songwriting MA really appealed so I could work on that side of my craft. It was really cool to balance songwriting with learning about the industry as a whole. 

I don't think you get that anywhere else, speaking to people in the industry and learning from their firsthand experience - it's just really valuable. ICMP were good at offering these in-person conversations with experts and allowing you to access their knowledge." 

What was your focus for your final music project? 

It was on synesthesia and how it plays into music creation, looking at artists who have it, how they work it into their craft and my experiences with it too. So how I could experiment with it and use it to create music. 

How did you progress in the sector after completing your studies? 

On leaving ICMP, I didn't know what I wanted to do. I needed some help with my CV/covering letters, and wanted to understand more about the different roles that were out there - so I spoke a lot with the Careers and Industry Hub. 

Because so many people are after work in the industry, it's important to know the direction you want to go in. I worked out that distribution was a good route to take rather than going with a major. With a smaller distributor, it's easier to get broader experience from the get go. 

I started as an intern at Absolute while working in retail at the same time. I was a  general digital intern and worked across digital submissions, content and marketing. It really helped me to focus and they were great as they were keen to make sure I could pursue my interests - which is what led me to where I am now. 

What do you do every day? 

On a day to day level, our team pitch artists to the DSPs, majors and local DSPs to try and get editorial support from platforms, whether that be on playlists, billboards, or for events.

We're holding meetings all the time, trying to build relations with different platforms and people, as well as putting together bespoke campaign ideas for each artist. We're looking to develop tailored plans for where they are and what their vision is. 

What have been the main challenges?

When I started, it was a little overwhelming due to how much there was to get to grips with. I'd be going along to meetings with my line manager, and you want to come across well and understand the campaign. However, it's just as important to be relatable rather than know everything note for note. 

Making yourself a good contact, approachable and someone you want to work with is key.  

What have been your favourite campaigns? 

Raelle is an emerging artist who was at breakthrough level last year. We started from scratch, she has great music, an amazing voice, we got her some Rising campaigns, conversations with platforms, then she just excelled. It was amazing to be part of her journey, it's so rewarding to see that level of exposure with someone who has started from the ground. 

That was a great one to work on. Then from the more established side, we worked on the Busted campaign in 2023. That ran through the whole year, I loved that, I grew up listening to Busted. Getting to work with them was so much fun, we also got great results too. 

Congrats on the Music Week feature - what does that mean to you at this point in your career? 

It puts me on the road map in a sense, as a lot of my job is relationship-based, so it's important to have myself out there in this way. It's a good way of getting my name more well-known. 

Have you any advice on progressing your industry career? 

All I'd really say is since I left ICMP, I've continued to do courses and add to my skills - on YouTube rights for example. I knew it would be relevant for me so I pursued the course and it seemed to really impress the business when I first started. 

I think it definitely helped me in my role. I'm constantly building on my skill set and taking courses. Doing so shows that you have the initiative to learn new skills. 

Being friendly is also a really important thing. I was worried about being the least experienced on certain subjects but I think being easy to get along with is just as if not more important as having the latest industry knowledge."

What else have you got coming up? 

We're working with Feeder on their new music, Kaiser Chiefs is a big one for me as they’re doing an album soon, Shaznay Lewis from All Saints alongside some more emerging artists. I'm expecting more meetings, more gigs and hopefully some award shows this year too!

Visit absolutelabelservices.com for more information.