Founded in 2018 in Delhi, OSM Records is the label behind hit songs like Knock Knock, Tom Cruise, Shaqi Balma, and Single Hai G, and is giving platforms to new talents.
Co-founded by an entrepreneur, a producer, a model, and an actor, Manpreet Kaur, and her friend Himanshu Shekhar, OSM Records has been in the music industry for the last 5 years now and has come up with songs that are catchy, fun, melodious, and quite a hit among music enthusiasts. It has worked with singers like Milind Gaba, Gurmeet Singh, Gary Sandhu, and more and is definitely here for a musical run.
Abhishansa Mathur was in conversation with Manpreet Kaur about her journey of founding OSM Records, challenges, milestones, and more. Here's the excerpt from the interview.
1. Can you tell us something about yourself?
As an entrepreneur, a producer, a model, and an actor, I believe I’m a creative multi-hyphenate. I love music in all its forms and also theater & performance arts. In my leisure time, I love reading and spending time with my dogs.
2. Please share the What, When, & How of OSM Records? Can you walk us through your journey so far?
I started my career in client servicing with a telecom firm and, from there, I moved to modeling and hosting TV shows across the country. It eventually evolved into acting, primarily in the Punjabi entertainment industry. Thereafter, I started my own content creation firm – Vipra Dialogues, with my longtime friend Himanshu Shekhar as the Founder.
Vipra was a runaway success with a team of over 40, consistently churning out videos that went viral and kept the audiences asking for more. We started OSM in 2018, and our first song was chartbuster! We have launched multiple artists, such as Suyyash Rai and Chitranshi Dhyani.
3. What challenges did you face while running OSM Records?
It was pretty challenging as entertainment is a very cut-throat and largely male-dominated industry. With so many labels, artists, and choices available, it will be lost in the crowd unless your offering stands out.
Getting the right mix of lyrics, music composing, videography, artists, singers, and promotions is a very daunting task. And one has to keep up with the latest trends and have a pulse on the market to know listeners’ preferences to create a unique offering that can be universally appreciated. Beyond that, our style is experimentative. We love to innovate and support artists and music we truly believe in that may or may not fit into a box. So, I’d say being a trendsetter is also a very challenging job😊
4. What, according to you, makes OSM Records stand out amongst other brands?
OSM has a niche in nurturing and introducing new artists and exploring experimental music and videos. Unlike traditional music companies, we focus all our efforts on the artist to create something unique collaboratively. Our music choices are instinctive rather than market-driven and have been acknowledged and hailed for that by our peers.
5. Can you give us a background on what goes behind working on a music video?
It all starts with the idea behind the song. First, we ideate on the concept of the song, followed by the lyrics. Then comes the singing and the videography aspect. According to the mood and tune of the song, the theme of the video is conceptualized and then directed toward a cohesive final product. And at times, inspiration strikes you uncannily when you least expect it. We could be grabbing a coffee or traveling somewhere and suddenly, you feel an epiphany, and the whole process falls into place.
6. How are you using Social Media to promote your label?
Social media is integral to our business, and as a new label promoting upcoming artists, people don’t know about us or our offerings. So, social media is the most essential tool for reaching out to people who appreciate music and who we know will like our style if they listen to it once. We have almost a million subscribers on YouTube and a sizeable following on Instagram and Facebook.
Apart from putting out our music, we constantly have giveaways and engagements for our followers. Social media serves as a direct feedback mechanism, and we love to hear from our audience! Our team tries to respond to all queries, but sometimes it can be overwhelming. We love when people mix the songs with reels and create their own versions that we often share through our social media platforms. Beyond promoting our label, we’ve also found a great source of talent, as many times, people send us their videos from across the country!
7. What Music trends do you foresee?
I believe that the confluence of international and Indian music will continue to thrive in the coming time. The new generation will bring in new music tastes for the listeners. Music has always been global, but the footprints of country music combined with our desi music have already started to be released but will continue to grow more. I feel we are going to witness a lot more rap, countryside music, and similar releases by talented artists.
8. What is your 5-year plan for OSM records?
OSM metamorphized from Vipra Dialogues. We would like to move into movie production next. Stay tuned for more updates on this!
9. Can you share your business model with us?
We are in the music industry; the basic business model remains the same across the board: we spot new talent, prepare them, and try and hone their skills to help them face the competitive scene globally. We have been successfully doing that for the past 2-3 years. We are not only open to curating new music but are creating and giving platforms to new talents.
10. One advice/suggestion you’d like to give aspiring entrepreneurs out there.
Be true to yourself and what you want to achieve. There is no way around hard work, but, at the same time, smart work is also needed to succeed in today’s world.
11. Any milestones?
We have miles to go before we sleep. We aren’t focusing on any specific milestones currently. We only think if we are in the right direction but not in terms of taking stock to check how far we have reached or how far we are in terms of our goals for ourselves. We believe in the process of truly enjoying and relishing the journey we are on at the moment.
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