Sync Licensing
100% ownership of masters & publishing
One Stop
Venia is a singer-songwriter / audio engineer producing all tracks 100% independently with full ownership of masters & publishing. Can easily provide instrumentals & TV mixes quickly on demand.
SPOTIFY
~20,000 monthly listeners & over 120,000 streams for Sky Blue.
AWARDS
Sky Blue won best alt-rock song New Times Music Award of San Luis Obispo County (& best live performance).
FUN FACT
Performed The Killers for Blake Shelton, Ariana Grande, John Legend & Kelly Clarkson on the Voice S21.
NOT SO FUN FACT
Many tracks are an expression of grief & heartache — from growing up with a mother who battled schizophrenia to losing both parents & first son to full-term stillbirth.
Bio
Michael Venia is a multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter & producer with 100% ownership of both masters & publishing. Picked up guitar in Saudi Arabia, graduated from Recording Arts Canada, & now lives & performs on the Central Coast of California.
Tracks range from moody, dreamy indie alt-rock vibes stemming from grief & trauma to heartfelt chill folk love tunes.
Venia's journey started with an accordion in Saudi Arabia & morphed into playing other instruments & recording on a 4-track mixer. His alt-rock childhood band performed locally, catching attention of CNN correspondent, Christiane Amanpour, who featured a piece on western music in the Middle East.
In his journey, he is no stranger to love & loss. He lost both his parents & tragically lost his son through stillbirth. He finds music & performance to be a powerful force for coping & healing.
Carbon City Lights is an award-winning band whose track Sky Blue was named Best Alt-Rock Song in SLO County in 2024, along with winning Best Live Performance that year. They’ve performed alongside nationally recognized artists like Brett Dennen & Birdtalker.
Press
Award-winning alternative rock act Carbon City Lights plays Rod & Hammer Rock on April 12
“Some of Venia's youthful Middle Eastern experiences are pretty wild.“
— New Times SLO (April 10, 2025)
Carbon City Lights' new album Flame in the Winter drops Nov. 14
“It's a really moving, beautiful sounding album.“
— New Times SLO (Nov 5, 2020)
Live music is back
“The band's newest album, Flame in the Winter, is an emotive juggernaut, and their music is soulful and potent.“
— New Times SLO (May 13, 2021)
Music in the middle east
CNN correspondent Christiane Amanpour interviewed Venia’s band at his childhood home in Saudi Arabia & filmed a live performance during the visit.