Lost Stories become first Indian artistes selected for YouTube’s Foundry

Lost Stories have made history as the DJ and producer duo Prayag Mehta and Rishab Joshi become the first Indian artistes to be selected for YouTube's Foundry, the global artiste development programme which supports them as they build their careers on their own terms.

Through the partnership with YouTube, Lost Stories can create goals for themselves, develop different content strategies and engage with fans.

In a statement, Mehta and Joshi shared their excitement at their prestigious selection: "We are thrilled for the exposure and the chance to put India on the international music map. YouTube Foundry will help us to take our creativity and vision to the next level, and we see a universal opportunity to showcase our content and take our music across borders. We truly believe music has the power to unite the world as one global village, a quality that lies at the heart of all our creations."

According to a press release, the duo will work with YouTube to "maximize the impact of their channel, receive marketing promotion and education on best practices for growing and engaging their audience on an international scale, for an intensive period of time".

The Foundry's class of 2020 has a list of multi-talented artistes from around the world which includes Los Angeles singer-songwriter Adam Melchor, Puerto Rican rap artist Eladio Carrion, Brooklyn experimentalist Gabriel Garzon-Montano, Birmingham grime artist and actor Jaykae, Glasgow R&B singer Joesef, Los Angeles-based corridos trailblazer Natanael Cano, Japanese indie rock band Novelbright, Sydney pop-rock brothers Lime Cordiale, French pop-rap artist TESSÆ, Nigerian singer and producer Tems, and Korean-American multitalent REI AMI.

The YouTube programme was first launched in 2016 as a series of workshops and content creation sessions at YouTube Spaces in Los Angeles, New York and London, with the goal of providing artistes tools to grow their presence on the online channel.

Former alumni of the programme include Grammy award-winners Dua Lipa and Rosalia, along with artistes Maleek Berry, Chloe x Halle, and Jacob Collier.