Arshad Mahmud’s MoUSICi aims to balance fresh content, effective distribution

A launch event was held on Friday where Mahmud spoke of his venture and recollected memories of industry during 1970s


Rahul Aijaz September 17, 2016
According to Mahmud, today’s young musicians have lost the motivation to create new music. PHOTOS: FILE

KARACHI: The Pakistani music industry may already have a few platforms to showcase new talent but what it lacks is a balance between music production and its distribution. Aiming to stabilise the music eco-system, veteran music composer and actor Arshad Mahmud has launched a new online platform called MoUSICi.

In this connection, a launch event was held on Friday where Mahmud spoke of his latest venture and recollected memories of the industry during the 1970s. “Back in the day, I had to compose three or four tunes every week to earn Rs70, which made about Rs280 per month,” he said. “That was a huge amount at that time and the industry flourished. But nowadays, our youth seems to have lost all motivation to create music. There’s no coordination between artists and that’s what MoUSICi aims to establish,” Mahmud explained.

Mahmud added that a lot of music that we listen to today, in programmes such as Coke Studio, was originally composed back in the 70s. “What we want to do is encourage young musicians and artists to make music on a regular basis, not just one or two songs in a year.”

MoUSICi offers multiple options to cater to instrumentalists, singers and music fans alike. What renders the website unique is that while other music streaming platforms like Patari and Taazi focus on distribution only, this one aims to become the nucleus which connects singers, composers, lyricists, musicians and sound engineers through the internet. It must be noted that the website features music from local artists only as, according to Mahmud, it has been designed to help encourage and promote local talent in particular.



Additionally, MoUSICi offers other perks like idea funding, wherein a user can pitch an idea or a song and the MoUSICi team will help generate funds to produce it. Mentoring sessions and talent hunts will also be conducted  to reap fresh talent and put new music on the website.

Emphasising upon the importance of mentorship, the musician stated that even legendary musicians such as Nisar Bazmi took an active interest in new talent and groomed it. “The concept of mentorship is diminishing with time so we hope to bring in some senior artists and have them train the young ones,” Mahmud explained.

When asked about his business model and how he plans to keep MoUSICi afloat, Mahmud shared that his team already has some funding and is in the process of looking for more. “Apart from that, if the lowest common denominator extends its support, subscribes and contributes funding to the artists, I think MoUSICi is going to be successful in its motive.”

Additionally, through fan clubs and crowd-funding, Mahmud intends to keep artists accountable to followers. “So the fans join your fan club and they contribute to the funding. In return, the artists have to create something for them… let’s say one song or a melody a month.”

An added feature of the website re-launches Mahmud’s now defunct World Music Magazine, wherein users archive some of the magazine’s most popular issues and spread awareness regarding the history of the music industry. There is also a MoUSICi lounge for socialising with other users, posting music demos, giving and receiving feedback, trading gear and events, etc. While it all may seem too much to juggle, Mahmud is intensely focused on bringing the passion of young musicians to the fore.  The website can be visited at mousici.com.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 18th, 2016.

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