Resident Advisor’s not-for-profit platform Doors Open has announced a new artist development initiative focused on sync licensing, screen composition and alternative income opportunities for independent musicians.
Called UNLOCKED: Artists with Leland, the programme launches with a free one-day seminar and masterclass event on June 18 at 160dl Studios in East London, bringing together artists, composers, music supervisors and industry professionals working across film, television, gaming and branded content.
The initiative arrives at a time when financial pressure across independent music culture continues intensifying.
Developed in partnership with award-winning London music supervision company Leland and supported by Arts Council England, the programme aims to help artists build practical pathways into sync and visual media work — areas many musicians want to explore but often lack access to or experience within.
The opening event will feature talks, workshops and networking sessions covering sync licensing, commissioning processes and screen composition practices. Participants will also receive a creative brief assignment with professional feedback following the seminar itself.
Speakers include acclaimed composer Nainita Desai, Jordan Crisp and Klaxons member James Righton, alongside representatives from BBH, PlayStation Studios, Ninja Tune, Siren Music, Feel For Music, Nothing Standard, First Artists, Stoddart Music and Wake The Town.
Five selected artists will additionally receive mentorship and financial bursaries through the wider programme.
The launch of UNLOCKED Artists with Leland was directly shaped by recent research from the Musicians’ Union and Help Musicians examining the economic realities facing independent artists today.
According to the findings, 70 percent of musicians still rely primarily on live performance income, while 86 percent report stress, burnout or declining mental wellbeing connected to financial instability.
At the same time, although nearly 70 percent of musicians expressed interest in diversifying their income streams, only 18 percent reported any prior experience working within sync licensing or visual media.
That gap is exactly where the new programme positions itself.
Rather than focusing only on traditional music industry structures, UNLOCKED encourages artists to think more broadly about composition, storytelling and collaboration across different creative industries.
Leland’s involvement gives the initiative particularly strong industry relevance. The company has worked on projects including Top Boy, Small Axe and The Mauritanian, while also operating across advertising, film and television campaigns internationally.
As more artists search for sustainable long-term careers outside increasingly unstable touring economies, programmes like this reflect a growing shift inside music culture itself — one where composing for visual media, gaming and branded content is becoming an essential parallel path rather than a niche side industry.
UNLOCKED Artists with Leland officially begins in London this June, offering independent musicians a rare direct connection to the worlds of sync, screen composition and creative industry collaboration.
