The Art of Atmosphere

On a rainy day in November 2022, in a small yellow cabin on the outskirts of Stockholm, tech and music lover Emil had the idea to found a label that makes it possible for artists to live off creating. To work with music while pursuing the dream of doing it full-time, supported by an artist-centered but non-artist-fronted independent mood music label.

With a clear goal to start releasing music as soon as possible, a team of creatives and developers came together with a shared mission: to help artists manage their catalogue better. Through hands-on experiences inside the music industry, working with major labels and artists, the small team knew the real struggles of making it, having to create your own salary from day one.

Driven by curiosity, the thirst for development and the never-ending question of how to do it better, they set off to build a platform that could be used by both artists and a label team alike. They wanted to give artists more control over their creations and catalogue, and a better overview and understanding of their income through music.

Nova started taking shape around two main values that are still the very essence of the company today: enabling artists to live off creative music and doing fair, artist-friendly deals.

Sometimes, the term “mood music” can be frowned upon, with backlashes from the media and even the idea that it is fake music. Nova releases mood music, and for us, this could not be further from the truth.

Mood music is an umbrella term for a subsection of instrumental genres created with the intention to set the scene, create or support a certain vibe; painting a perfect backdrop for dinners, study sessions or sleep.

In between fighting off accusations about AI, minimized artistic value or exploitation of artists, we keep our values and standpoint steady. Fueled by trust and close relationships with our producers, we have only ever released organically made music we actually care about — and vow to always keep our roster’s skill and talent in focus.

We are of the opinion that musicians, producers and artists should be able to make music for a living. But the truth is that it is hard, almost impossible, and the majority of artists have to have a side job. Some work in supermarkets, as subway drivers or teachers. Within the industry, common side jobs include sound design, commercial music, mixing or creating foleys.

Nova enables artists to live off creative music — to spend every day in the Studio doing what they know best and what they love. To have a job that doesn’t feel like one because it is within the field they wanted to be in anyways.

Through close collaboration with musicians, artists and producers, we’ve seen people reach their goals, develop artistically and repeatedly outgrow our own goals. Driven by the need to shape a space for creatives that cares and looks out for their music, Nova has become much more than just a releasing label since its first release in August 2023.

As of August 2026, Nova spans distribution, publishing and rights management, with more to come.

We work with artist and music development on a day-to-day basis through our music team, alongside our team of ambitious developers building a platform that enables opportunities, showcases data and can support decision-making processes.

We have come far in our growth and we are proud of our progress. We think it’s time you get to know us and our roster of talented artists and producers!

Oftentimes, when creatives work on artist-fronted projects like albums, a lot of work gets put into something that might never see the light of day. Some of the producers we collaborate with are full-time musicians and artists who want to practice their craft while being efficient with their time, wanting to see outcomes and results. Others are creatives who just love to write music but don’t want to get into promotions, branding and the rest of the marketing hustle that comes along with modern artistry.

They want to play their instrument and be heard while also being rewarded for their time and effort. Both cases are more than welcome with us and get exactly the kind of support they need from our music team.

Driven by the same motivation — putting our producers’ opinions at the center — when we meet them to chat about music for our Journal, we let them decide whether they feel comfortable leading with their names in public or if they feel most seen through the anonymity of staying behind the curtain. For us it’s the same: the name you choose does not define your creativity or craftsmanship, anyways.

We want to showcase the talent we have in our roster and explore their views and opinions about this niche. It might be hard to understand how musicians and producers value the mood music sector, so we met them to find out.

Through Nova’s Journal we want to give them a platform to speak their mind, to discuss, to challenge, to explore. Stay tuned for interviews with our producers, insights into the industry and updates from the world of mood music. Glad to have you on our team! ■