Celebrating BSU's Musicians

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From Newton Park to the charts: BSU alumni are making waves in the music industry

Thursday, 26 June, 2025

As the South West welcomes thousands of music fans to Worthy Farm once again for its highly anticipated 2025 festival, BSU is celebrating a few of its many alumni enjoying their own successes in the music industry. 

Ren 

Welsh rapper and BSU graduate Ren is enjoying huge success as a multi-award-winning singer-songwriter, musician, rapper, producer, and director.  

Ren Erin Gill, known professionally as Ren, came to Newton Park Campus to hone his skills, studying BA (Hons) Commercial Music. While at BSU, surrounded by a strong cohort of classmates, he formed the indie hip-hop duo, Trick The Fox, with fellow student and now musical director and bass player, Charlie Fowler. He also busked on the city’s streets where he was spotted by a music producer that would turn out to be instrumental in Ren signing his first record deal.   

Ren’s big breakthrough came in 2022 when he released "Hi Ren", quickly going viral on social media and charting worldwide in YouTube's trending music video chart.  

In 2023, Ren clinched a UK number one album, fending off tough competition, however, Ren’s journey to the top with his self- written and produced album, Sick Boi, was not easy. His tracks share a candid description of his battle with chronic illnesses that had previously forced him to quit the music scene altogether.

Speaking to BBC News when Sick Boi hit UK number one, thanking his fans for their support, Ren said: 

"We tuned into Radio 1 and have just heard the news that Sick Boi is number one. I am buzzing! This is the best moment of my life! Want to say a huge thank you to the community, couldn't have been done without them. This feels incredible, it's so affirming." 

You can listen to Ren’s songs on his YouTube channel, @RenMakesMusic

Pritt 

From Commercial Music to radio, BSU alum Pritt has been celebrating great success.  

Pritt’s confidence soared while studying at BSU, learning about the music industry and joining a band called Tiger Trail set her up for a successful career to come.  

Fast forward a couple of months, she was selected for Sian Anderson’s NEXXT STEP: Women in Music in London to create an EP with nine women in six weeks. The EP accumulated one million streams in just six months. 

Speaking about the experience, Pritt said:

“This opportunity changed my life in the sense of how I saw the industry and how I understood it. Things started tumbling into effect, won Chip’s Artist Search in 2019, and people started noticing my music!”  

In 2021, Pritt made BBC Asian Network’s Future Sound Artist and was the first Tamil woman to ever be on the list. Reflecting, Pritt said:

“It was a huge milestone for me and my culture to be honest. A lot of my hard work felt like it was being paid off and then I was offered the radio presenter position as a guest speaker, so the audience could get to know me.”  

Pritt’s first Tamil cover ‘Unakkul Naane’ hit over 70 million streams, putting her on the map internationally. She released her single ‘Kaalam’ in May 2023 which racked up half a million streams and counting.  

Pritt has toured home and abroad with her music, and has featured in publications such as GQ India, GUAP, Pop SUGAR, Clash Magazine, Trench Magazine and EAR MILK and worked with brands like Nike, Adidas, Apple, Mix Cloud, Pirate studios, PUMA, Levi’s, Kurt Geiger, and many more. She also performed at The Great Escape, Reading and Leeds Festival in 2023.  

Making waves in the industry, Pritt was featured on Hello! Magazine’s “Rising Stars of 2024” and made Amazon Music’s ‘Breakthrough Artists’ list, and has her own radio show where she curates playlists to put Tamil and South Indian artists on the map. 

Catch Pritt's radio show on BBC Sounds, and listen to her music on her YouTube channel, @urgirlpritt 

Elderbrook 

Electronic musician and DJ, Alexander Kotz, known professionally as Elderbrook, is a BSU Commercial Music alum who is thriving in the industry. 

After studying his passion at BSU, Elderbrook released his first EP in 2015. His track "How Many Times" went on to be remixed by German duo Andhim and was ranked one of Mixmag's best songs of 2015. 

In 2016, he collaborated with many artists, including Gorgon City, and he remixed tracks by a number of well-known artists, such as Clean Bandit. 

2017 was to become a year to remember when Elderbrook shot to commercial fame after collaborating with CamelPhat. With the British electronic house duo co-writing the song, and Elderbrook on vocals, they created "Cola". The song went on to become one of the biggest selling songs globally that year. It became a club anthem throughout Europe and the US and received critical acclaim. Its accolades include: 

• number one on the Billboard's Dance Club Songs  
• number one on the UK Indie chart 
• number 18 in the UK singles charts  
• nomination for a Best Dance Recording at the 2018 Grammy Awards 
• nomination for an Ivor Novello 
• and going platinum 

Elderbrook has gone from strength to strength, his collective catalogue has been streamed over a billion times. Speaking about his work, Elderbrook said: 

“I’ve been touring around a lot in Europe, the States and Australia mainly. And writing with and for people like Diplo, Milky Chance, James Blunt, Craig David and others.” 

You can catch Elderbrook’s music on his Youtube channel, @elderbrook-music. 

Do you want to follow in their footsteps? BSU's BA (Hons) Commercial Music could be the first step on your journey.