NEXA Music – Season 2 The journey continues for discovering original English music talent

A unique initiative by NEXA to provide aspiring Indian musicians a platform to create international quality English music

Selected artists to be mentored by global music icon A R Rahman, supported by famous music composer Mikey McCleary and celebrity artists duo Clinton Cerejo and Bianca Gomes (Shor Police), Uday Benegal, and Monica Dogra.

Season 2 will see the super winners of Season 1 also take the center stage as they become contributors to the NEXA music lounge

NEXA Music season 2 will have two pillars – NEXA Music Lounge* and NEXA Music Lab**

Mumbai, May 12, 2022: After the immense success of NEXA Music Season 1, Maruti Suzuki India Limited announced the launch of the NEXA Music Season 2. A first of its kind initiative, NEXA Music is a platform curated to promote aspiring Indian musicians to showcase their talent and create original international global standard English music.

The NEXA Music Season 1 saw an overwhelming response of over 1000 entries globally, out of which 24 musicians were selected and mentored by the global music icon A R Rahman, supported by Clinton Cerejo. A total of 34 new English songs with music videos were released in season 1 which garnered more than 75 million views on the NEXA Music YouTube channel. Furthermore, two dedicated playlists were also created, one with the 10 marquee songs from headline artists and super winners and the other with 24 Songs from Lab artists on leading audio streaming sites like Spotify, Amazon Music and Apple Music.

Season 1 of NEXA Music also provided an on-ground music event experience with 4 live gigs featuring artists from NEXA Music across Mumbai, Gurugram, Chennai and Bangalore.

Announcing the launch of NEXA Music Season 2, Mr Shashank Srivastava, Senior Executive Director (Marketing & Sales), Maruti Suzuki India Limited said, “NEXA Music holds a very special place in our hearts. We are thrilled to announce the Second Season of NEXA Music and excited to begin our country-wide search for fresh, emerging talent. NEXA Music is one of a kind platform that encourages music enthusiasts and artists to channel their love for self-composed English music. Under the mentorship of esteemed musicians like A R Rahman, the shortlisted artists will get the opportunity to create original English compositions of global standards and be able to share them internationally. I am confident that Season 2 will receive a phenomenal response and will provide our customers with a NEXA global experience.”

On the Occasion Mr. A R Rahman said, “India is buzzing with youth, energy and undiscovered raw talent. I am happy to be part of NEXA Music in its Season 2 and look forward to finding unique voices and brilliant talent across the country. Qyuki and NEXA are building a much-needed tradition by fostering the next generation of Indian musicians.”

The jury comprising of A R Rahman, NEXA and Qyuki will shortlist 24 contestants from all the entries received. The selected 24 artists will undergo a mentorship program at the ‘NEXA Music Lab’ to further brush up their singing talent. The original tracks of the shortlisted 24 artists will be professionally reproduced in a music video featuring the artist. Out of the 24 artists, the top 4 will be shortlisted and declared as the Super Winners of Season 2. These artists will get to compose an additional new original English song under the mentorship of the music producer and will be featured in their respective music videos.

Season 2 of NEXA Music will center around the pillars of NEXA Music Lounge and NEXA Music Lab to discover and celebrate upcoming artists.

NEXA Music Lounge, The Lounge is headlined by top Indian artists in the English music space.  Season 2 will see super winners from Season 1 take the center stage by contributing their original compositions to the NEXA Music Lounge. The super winners of Season 1 who will be headlining Season 2 are Nisa Shetty, Simetri and Heat Sink. They will be accompanied by celebrity artists duo Clinton Cerejo and Bianca Gomes (Shor Police), Uday Benegal, and Monica Dogra under the mentorship of world-renowned music icon A R Rahman. The album name of these marquee songs will be titled “Elevate” which signifies the journey an artist goes through on NEXA Music, which elevates them to the next level both creatively as well as literally.
NEXA Music Lab** NEXA Music Lab will play a key role in Season 2 in attracting and recruiting new emerging talent across the country to participate in this musical journey.  The Lab process, from hunt to selection, will also form an episodic show. The 24 shortlisted participants will be mentored by music composers from international music publishers like the iconic Fairwood Music and Konic Records, Turnkey Music and Publishing Pvt. Ltd., and global music icon A R Rahman.

Launched in 2015, NEXA is designed to offer a global car buying experience to customers. Every NEXA experience is a testimony to unmatched hospitality, innovative technology and a global lifestyle. With over 407 showrooms across 250+ cities, NEXA is the 3rd largest retail automobile brand (in terms of volume). NEXA persistently stays true to its philosophy of ‘creating the new to inspire the next by providing a premium experience to everyone who enters the world of NEXA.
NEXA introduced three experiential pillars which catered to the expectations of the discerning customers; NEXA MUSIC (Creation of New English Music that is Original and Inspiring), NEXA LIFESTYLE (Creation of new lifestyle experiences that are Avant-Garde and Aspirational & NEXA JOURNEYS (Creation of exclusive Journeys that are Unique).
NEXA product line-up includes a complete range of premium best-sellers – IGNIS, BALENO, CIAZ, S-CROSS and XL6. Every vehicle in NEXA is curated with the best of technology, design, and features for customers’ delight.

Co-Founded by Samir Bangara, A.R.Rahman and Shekhar Kapur, Qyuki is a data-driven new media company which discovers & invests in India’s most influential creators to help them rapidly grow their audience, create content and launch new IPs. Qyuki has to its name several premium formats like ARRived – a singing talent hunt show with A. R Rahman as a mentor, Jammin’ – a collaboration-focused music show where legendary Bollywood composers and India’s top Internet icons create original tracks – and NEXA Music – a nationwide talent hunt for English-language singers. In Jan 2020, Qyuki created a breakthrough format of fan festival called Epic Fam Jam, which brought together India’s biggest online sensations – in thematic mini-worlds of their own for superfan meetups – topped with incredible live performances. Qyuki also exclusively manages a host of talent across various digital platforms including YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat.