Today's Highlights

Mae Thomas talks about Music Business & India's Music Business Leaders

By Onkar Gupte
May 16, 2018
Mae Thomas talks about Music Business & India's Music Business Leaders

Mae Thomas Host and founder of India's first Music Podcast - Maed In India

Our next Jury Member for 100 most powerful Business Leaders, Mae Thomas founder of the podcast 'Maed in India' and Creative Director at Indus Vox Media is closely associated with the growing indie music scene in India, her weekly podcast features music by up and coming indie musicians along with the best indie talent out there. Besides new music, Mae also conducts interviews  to give us an insight straight from the artists. Her show also airs exclusive acoustic sessions and is considered to be India's first indie music podcast. Mae completed her majors in Journalism from Cardiff University and first discovered podcasts back there. In India she has worked as a Producer and Presenter at Radio One. After leaving her job at Radio One, Mae used her new found experience in Radio production to start her own podcast. Maed in India started back in June 2015 and has completed around 133 episodes. She is known for her in depth and extensive research before interviewing her guests and has a knack of knowing small details about her guests much to their surprise. Mae is part of the esteemed panel of Jury members for India's 100 Most Powerful Business Leaders Music Conference to be held on the 12th and 13th June in Mumbai.
Music Inc. is a conference that aimed at finding solutions on how to improve the packaging of music as a product by aligning it to media, advertising, brands and technology. The conference is a push towards a collaborative effort for creating innovative music experiences. 
I had the chance to interview Mae M. Thomas about her work as Creative Director and giving us the first ever podcast on Indian Indie Musicians. She also talks about the future of Podcasts and what keeps her going ! Read Below.

In Conversation with: Mae Thomas

1. Tell us about your decision to start your own podcast Maed in India on Indian Indie Musicians.
M: I was freelancing after I had left Radio One and I was approached by a podcasting company called Indus Vox Media about doing a podcast. I had a bunch of ideas and doing an indie music podcast called Maed in India stuck! 
 
2. How has your experience been as the Creative Director at Indus Vox Media Podcasts.
M: Podcasting as a medium was liberating to work in after moving from broadcast radio. There was no restriction on the kind of shows we wanted to do, the way we wanted to do and how we wanted to do it. We weren't limited by time, format or content. Working with IVM Podcasts gave me a chance to open my mind to new audio spaces this country hasn't experienced before and to work with fascinating people that had something intelligent or even something silly to say. The difference between long form and short form content was that it wasn't just about being entertaining but being engaging. And working as IVM Podcasts' Creative Director, I got a chance to introduce some great talk to the world.
 
3. You are a pioneer when it comes to Music Podcasts in India, what keeps you going
M: Wow! I wouldn't call myself a pioneer but thank you. Well, it's music and musicians. It's still a struggle to be an artist in this country and I feel lucky that I get to talk to and listen to bloody good music by really talented musicians. And I want to tell the world about it. I couldn't have asked for anything better to work with. 

Future of Podcasting

4. What do you think, Is India finally catching up with the podcast Culture ?
M: Yes, I think it's nascent stages but podcasting is catching on. If you take the big boom of on-demand TV like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar etc as your gauge, on-demand audio content which is essentially podcasting, is what is growing now. People want to listen to engaging conversations and learn something new everyday. However right now, a lot of podcasts are mainly in English. Soon I want every rickshaw/taxi driver, watchman, peon, construction worker or maid to be listening to podcasts of their choice.
5. With the ever increasing bandwidth and net speed, do you think online Radio shows/podcasts will gradually replace FM Radio
M: I am not sure if podcasting will replace radio, but it will become an equal player. There is such disparity in India that there are still places with no electricity. And now with growing internet penetration, there is more and more accessibility and this will only lead to a more varied multimedia world we live in.
6. You are a part of this esteemed Jury to decide the next top Music Business Leaders, What is the most important quality a Business Leader should possess.
M: Well besides being able to make a whole lot of money in this industry. For me the most important quality is being a risk taker. To be truly successful, you must be willing to put everything on the line for something you believe in, to reap the ripest fruit and make the greatest change.
7. Any Suggestions to upcoming creators who would like to work around Music podcasts
M: Keep the show about the music. I also love stories and the humanity of people and their struggle. So to anyone who wants to work on music podcasts find out what interests you about music, and pursue that aspect of it. For e.g. say you like instruments and the tech side of music, then do that podcast. 
  For more Info on Maed in India click here.
Music Inc. is a conference that aimed at finding solutions on how to improve the packaging of music as a product by aligning it to media, advertising, brands and technology. The conference is a push towards a collaborative effort for creating innovative music experiences. 
 
Tags Today's Highlights Indie Indie Music mae thomas maed in india podcast jury member India's 100 Most Powerful Business Leaders music podcast indie artists

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