MÜNE Shares His Story and Gifts a Mix for This Is Home

Indore native MÜNE becomes the first Indian artist signed to Ultra Music with “Better With You,” and now he shares a beautiful mix along with his story.

Growing up in Indore, India, Pranay Sharma, aka MÜNE, appreciated music and technology but had limited access to both. In his teen years, he’d walk several miles to the local Internet Cafe to get his fix, which is also where he got started in music production. Eventually, he graduated to a computer at home, but even this was way behind the curve compared to the tech used by most producers at the time.

Undeterred, MÜNE took these limitations as a challenge and also as a reason to focus his attention on music fundamentals over the tech involved and found inspiration from radio, records, pop culture, and nature. He admired the production skills of Avicii, whose music was emotionally upbeat, and musically driving and fun. So when Avicii passed, Sharma, who was no stranger to emotional obstacles already, became quite depressed.

As time passed, Sharma realized he had two choices: to let depression consume him or to find a way to uplift himself. He chose the latter and put his energy into music production. This resulted in richer, deeper musical creations that felt more meaningful and that helped lift him back into his happy place in nature with a focus on music.

Now, he’s carving out his own space in the scene, and when we heard “Better With You” featuring Tors we were moved and just had to know more. Read on for our interview with MÜNE below and listen to his lovely guest mix as well!

Stream This Is Home 008 || MÜNE [Indore] on SoundCloud:

Hey Pranay, thanks for talking to us today. 2020 has been the year where nothing went according to plan. When the year started, what were your expectations? How have they played out?

Thanks for having me guys! I thought it was going to be another same old year with me making music, but even with everything going bad in 2020 my biggest dream came true. I signed the contract and officially became an Ultra Music artist.

Something you’ve been public about is your own mental struggles and how nature and music have helped bring you light. Can you talk a little about how you take inspiration from the world around you into your music?

Since my childhood, I have always been mesmerized by nature. Beautiful clouds in the evening, warmth in the early morning, or visiting places where there are lots of trees, fewer people, and no buildings. Whenever I feel low or need inspiration, I just visit my favorite place to sit and watch the sunset. This brings me peace of mind so I can think and get lost in the music. Imagine how it gonna feel with a view like that!

When you were struggling the most with your mental health the music world shared your struggle when we lost Tim Bergling (Avicii). He was a tremendous inspiration to you and that was a difficult loss, at an already difficult time. How did you handle that and how did it eventually become a driving force in your escape from the darkness you were feeling?

I was devastated when I heard that Tim was no more. I still cry sometimes while remembering him ‘cause he’s the reason why I’m doing what I’m doing today. Nothing made him happier than making music, so I did the same and started to put everything into my music to continue his legacy. I miss him every day and it’s a fact no matter how much success I get in the future, ‘to meet him one day’ will never come true now.

While 2020 has had obvious challenges, you’ve had a tremendous year highlighted when you signed with Ultra Music in May. How have you leveraged this new support and what are you most proud of accomplishing this year since May?

Yeah, signing with Ultra still feels unreal and I’ve learned a lot of new things about the industry and the fact that now I have to push myself more. Thankfully after signing, I’ve finally been able to buy a new laptop and a midi keyboard for my production, and now I can use those big ram eating plugins to develop more good sounds and learn new things every day.

When you produced the single “Silence” last year you found a vocal pack that spoke to you. This year you produced a track with absolutely amazing vocals provided by Tors. How did it feel to go from “stock” vocals to such a deep and meaningful collaboration?

For me, vocals and lyrics are the most important part of the songs. Through them, you can connect with your listeners and tell your story through music. Creating a vocal track with Tors was something I’d always wanted, they are amazing and did exactly what I hoped.

When you were learning to produce music, you walked miles to an Internet cafe to learn. But this year you proudly unveiled a new and modern production setup at home. Do you think your music is more meaningful because you didn’t have the up-to-date tools to start? Can you share some of the hurdles when being unable to use modern equipment?

My situation taught me that you don’t need expensive music tools to make music, you just need any kind of pc or laptop and a DAW. The creative process takes place in your head and of course, having good studio monitors and an interface can make your working process smooth and fast, but I’m grateful that I started my music journey with an old Pentium processor PC. Even if I could only open one or two VST at a time, export the sound as a WAV file, and then put it into the main project, this was my process. It taught me several things and all I’d say is… it doesn’t matter if you don’t have things or not, if you really want to achieve it you’ll make it work.

India has one of the largest populations in the world and a very diverse landscape. For those who haven’t been able to visit, what’s the dance music scene like where you’re from?

Electronic music is still growing in India, and most Indian people are more into Bollywood music. Those who listen to western or electronic are more into pop or EDM and future bass, I’d say.

As this crazy year comes to an end, and with so many accomplishments having happened recently, what are your hopes and dreams for MÜNE in the new year ahead?

I hope to inspire more people with my music and journey. It would be awesome to get into the Billboard charts with my new music and verified on my social accounts. [Laughs] One day I hope to collaborate with artists such as Kygo, Ed Sheeran, Justin, Selena, Taylor, as well as being nominated for the Grammys.