Originally from Finland, now based in New York, songwriter and electronic music producer Karel Ullner is an ICMP alumnus enjoying great success on the other side of the pond.

Karel studied for two years in the US before joining our BA Creative Musicianship programme as a guitar student.

Since completing his studies he’s now back in New York and taking on Billboard’s dance charts with his EDM and electronic pop.

His track, ‘We Get High’, hit number four back in 2017 and he’s recently broken the top 20 as one half of duo, Karel & XoJani, with their release ‘Dancing’.

The publication recently celebrated the pair as Billboard Upstarts. Commenting on how his studies at ICMP shaped him and his music, Karel said:

My time at ICMP was a life-changing experience. ICMP created an environment with room for me to think about what I was learning about music and all the ways I could apply these new learnings. It was also great to meet so many students from around the world with different perspectives as people and musicians. It helped me think outside the box in many different ways." 

"FreeSpirit" is the first released single of 2019 for the duo 'Karel & DJ Braj'. The track was inspired by music that soundtracked their 'late night liquor runs' and continues to push their brand of Trance and Deep House to new places. Some major artist influences include Above & Beyond, Deadmou5, and CamelPhat. With further releases planned for 2019, the duo continue to be ones to watch.

Read our full interview with Karel and learn how his experiences as an ICMP student steered him towards billboard success.

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