The arts industry in the North isn’t lacking in talent it just needs nurturing better - Supriya Nagarajan

One way of introducing emerging music composers to the industry is through mentoring, which involves nurturing talent and building confidence - helping people find their way in an often intimidating world. Sadly, these opportunities are few and far between, with artists in the north, and in particular, those of diverse backgrounds, struggling to access the support they need.

Arts organisations are often required to offer mentoring, yet each has a thin slice of cake, spread out across various agendas including economic status, locality, gender, and diversity – which are all divided into many boxes.

The reality is that whilst these opportunities are ‘offered’ to a diverse group of people, organisations rarely reach out directly to communities, meaning those who don’t know where to look for guidance will never find it.

The arts industry often feels like a race, but it’s one where people often start off on completely unequal footing. Some people begin the race far below the start line, meaning by the time they cross it, it could take a whole lifetime to catch up with those who’ve had easier access to opportunities early on.

While rejection can be frequent, people who regularly apply to opportunities learn to face it head on, gaining the confidence to keep sending applications.

For most people, however, putting themselves in the spotlight, and therefore open to potential rejection, can be scary, and this rings particularly true for people of colour, who represent just over one fifth of individuals working in music. If these composers aren’t exposed to mentorship, resources or guidance in the first place, or even made aware of where to look, then they don’t gain the guidance they need to grow.

There needs to be much more proactive outreach from these arts organisations and mentors to ensure that isolated communities can have a fair shot at applying and accessing the support they need.

From my own experience, I’ve found that the best way to find the people who need mentoring most, is to reach out to those who are shy of applying or weren’t aware that these opportunities even existed.

Speaking directly to people, and allowing word to spread within communities has a much more effective reach than simply putting something on a website, and it means those who aren‘t organically exposed to these opportunities can receive the support they need to grow.

The benefit of mentoring is invaluable, the newfound confidence that can be gained from mentoring is evident in one of my own mentees, Satnam Galsian, an independent Punjabi folk artist, who’s now released multiple records.

If we want to continue to see brilliant emerging artists in our region, we need to make sure their talent is nurtured, and allowed to grow.

Supriya Nagarajan is the founder and CEO of Yorkshire-based South Asian arts organisation Manasamitra.