TULU The Unit Creative Hub & Recording Studio

TULU Presents: The Unit

Who are TULU?

The Underground Link Up is a creative development network for professionals within the music industry. We strive to ensure each and every artist we work with is empowered with the knowledge, strategy and expertise to take their career in whichever direction they have always dreamt.

TULU is operated both virtually through our tiered service levels and also from our creative hub, ‘The Unit’ in Warwickshire. The Unit is home to our recording studio, visuals suite, podcast recording facilities and TULU HQ office. 

Our services and strategies range in depth and complexity which means we can work alongside any artist in any stage of their career without taking percentages out of their future earnings. Each and every service level has been designed and crafted over four years of research and development. The artists’ goals and career progression remains front and centre of every decision we have made, every service implemented and every brand we have affiliated with.

Ultimately, TULU is a very disruptive organisation to the music industry, we are seeking to abolish unnecessary practices and gatekeepers in the industry which make it difficult for independent artists to pursue their career. It's simple, we provide a platform for artists to connect, create and collaborate with other creatives, brands and industry professionals to take their career to the next level.

TULU originally started out when Gee, the founder and CEO of the company ran an event at university in 2017 and after meeting Vince, the company CSO in 2018, we began hosting regular events across the UK and even a full UK tour in 2019. Our attention was continually drawn towards our growing network of artists and creatives, so when COVID hit in early 2020 and put a stop to live events, our focus shifted towards supporting these artists in a different way. We simply empowered our artists with the knowledge and industry know-how to keep their dreams alive and the money coming in amidst a global pandemic.

We noticed so many artists on our network needed a central space to release their inhibitions and set their creative sparks alight. So, on January 8th 2021, after a traumatic end to the year for both owners on a personal level, the team took the rather daring step to sign the lease for an empty industrial unit in order to build such a place. 

What is The Unit?

What is The Unit?

With just one builder to help, the TULU team spent the next 5 months building the purpose-built recording studio and creative hub; now aptly named The Unit. Throughout this time, the local Warwickshire community rallied behind the project; we had electricians completing our wiring free of charge, glass companies donating glass for the interior windows and a local carpet man ensured the carpet throughout The Unit was of the best quality for a recording studio.

TULU were also successful in receiving a grant from the Warwickshire County Council in order to equip the space out with brand new recording equipment, office furniture and IT hardware. The council believed in our project as they saw the plans to aid the development of musicians and music industry careers in the local area. 

There was a huge emphasis placed on ensuring the space was designed in a way which drew out creativity from an individual, allowing them to relax and enjoy the whole environment. With a feature wall at every turn and a multitude of different lighting options, The Unit can bring bright open spacey vibes or warm and cosy surroundings, whatever the artist needs to feel at their most creative. 

Our team of in-house engineers took the lead on selecting the studio equipment and making sure the rooms were designed and acoustically treated appropriately.

Since opening its doors in June 2021, The Unit has become the central point for creativity amongst emerging and established artists, photographers, videographers, influencers and brands through writers camps, content creation days, recording studio sessions and music video shoots. Many artists have referred to The Unit as their home, citing the team as one big supportive family with the resources and facilities to assist them in taking their career to the next stage. 

Alongside Gee and Vince at The Unit are the three in-house audio engineers: Ali, Seán and Padz, who share a wealth of music theory and production knowledge which means any artist who comes to The Unit is in very good hands.

Throughout 2021, TULU refined their service offering meaning any artist at any stage in their career with any budget can be supported by TULU in achieving their goals. From just joining the network all the way to a fully managed project release strategy, there is an abundance of ways in which we support our artists. 

This year has seen the number of brands we affiliate with increase to enhance our services, from PR to playlist pitching and from festivals to release analytics dashboards. 

We now operate over three different services at three different budget points: TULU Town, TULU Plan-it and TULUniverse.

The Project Fund

We have thrived for our first year at The Unit and it has been one of the most exciting and rewarding years of the team’s lives and we know this is just the beginning. There is still a huge amount to do in order to take TULU and The Unit from where it is now, to where we know it will get to!

Now it is just the small matter of raising £10,000 in order to keep The Unit in operation and to ensure we can continue to support the growth and development of independent artists within the music industry. We want to continue offering artists the multitude of different opportunities and facilities all whilst keeping the cost for the artist to a minimum.

The funding raised from this campaign will be used to directly impact the work we do for the artists on the network. Once we have reached our goal, donors will receive a directory of all the amazing talent we work with and they can select who they would like to receive the support from their donation. They will then receive updates on what has been achieved for that specific artist. Support will come in the form of; subsidised studio time, free workshops and training sessions, subsidised services and added budget towards marketing their projects but the list goes on and will be decided depending on the specific requirements of that artist.  

One of the long term goals for TULU is to franchise The Unit; we aim to have Unit Creative Hubs in all major cities of the UK, maintaining the same ultra creative and homely vibe throughout. 

Other than the Adapt and Diversify grant awarded by Warwickshire County Council and some support from friends and family, TULU has been wholly self-sufficient in funding their operations. This is a statement we are incredibly proud to make. We both left our comfortable, full-time jobs in stable companies in February 2021 (mid-pandemic) in order to keep TULU flourishing in the way it has been and now we are asking you to believe in the journey, just as we always have.

We are able to offer an array of rewards for our funders and we hope you can see the benefits and opportunities The Unit provides to creatives within the music industry. As we grow, so do the artists, the opportunities and the impact TULU has on the local community, not only for the creatives, but those looking to work within the music industry too.

The TULU Team have spent time perfecting every detail found within the business and at The Unit so we believe TULU is one of the most exciting and disruptive new businesses the music industry will see this year. We just need a little support to take this next step!

Peace and love,

Gee, Vince and the TULU Team x