Music Sans Frontieres

UCLan's Northern Lights Business Support client, Invisiblegirl Records, has been rocking the international music industry courtesy of a compilation of worldwide music comprising of talented and creative artists, stretching from across the planet.

Julia Adamson, who runs the record label, identified an opportunity on Myspace, one of the world's most successful social network websites. A near-mandatory tool for bands of all shapes, sizes and popularity, it was here that she searched through specific genres (including; electronica, experimental, ambient, new wave, punk, alternative, acoustic, classical, industrial and improvisational) of composers and musicians to discover 14 artists hailing from all corners of the globe.

It was then that Julia released the A Place in Space compilation and made it available for download on iTunes and as MP3s, with the album itself having its own MySpace page where six songs can be previewed. An instant hit, her work has drawn national and international press coverage including Pune Mirror, a popular daily newspaper distributed throughout India.

Commenting upon the success of her work, Julia said: “After discovering the potential in this opportunity I never realised how time and labour intensive the album would be in terms of administration and dealing internationally.

"Finding the artists was a pleasurable experience, as my love of music doesn't need encouraging.  Administering the song registrations and asking the artists to join the relevant music agencies in their countries, conducting the research for this and communicating with many artists whose first language isn't English was the bigger job in hand, but I still wouldn’t say it was taxing as they are all friendly people.

“To the many unsigned bands out there I hope this instils confidence and proves that scouts actually do utilise and trawl social network websites to find that outstanding piece of music. This compilation's success has been outstanding, so much so I am considering releasing a second compilation.

“UCLan's Northern Lights Business Support programme has helped develop my poise and self confidence in how I approach business situations.  In particular, my business mentor has highlighted the importance of a thorough business plan and how they should continue to develop over time. The standard of their business advice workshops and networking activities are excellent, something which I will continue to take advantage of.