Michelle Ulor
(Mich-elle Oo-lo)
Having spent eight years in academia working in the world of Music Psychology focusing on music and mental health, Michelle decided to explore what research in industry settings might look like.
Interestingly, Michelle found herself in the venture capital space.
Michele started off as a Research & Development Fellow at Zinc, a mission-based VC, providing research support for entrepreneurs on a mental health venture builder programme. She was also the deputy lead of Zinc’s Catalyst programme - a partnership between Zinc and UKRI that funds entrepreneurial academics who want to translate their research into impactful and scalable products.
Now Michelle is the Program Manager at Newton Venture Program, a joint venture between LocalGlobe VC and London Business School, with founding partner Silicon Valley Bank. She facilitates the delivery of programs for individuals either looking to break into VC or already working in this field and wanting to progress further. The primary focus is to ensure the next generation of investors is a true representation of our world.
Prior to navigating the VC world, Michelle completed a PhD in Music Psychology at the University of Leeds, where She developed a novel musical imagery intervention for anxiety. Following this, She held a year-long Postdoctoral Fellow position at the Leeds Arts and Humanities Research Institute.
Alongside these roles, Michelle has been a DJ for 10 years and recently held a 5-year monthly residency on NTS Radio. She has played several shows across the UK and internationally in places such as Bali and Paris, worked with brands like Adidas, Lee Jeans and Mary Katrantzou, and shared lineups with a range of artists including Giggs, Neneh Cherry, Siobhan Bell, Auntie Flo and Anz.
Michelle is also a freelance music journalist, having written for Resident Advisor, Crack Magazine, Electronic Beats, Truants and Insert. She likes to use my academic expertise in music interventions and mental health to advise wellbeing start-ups and host public engagement sessions, including virtual and in-person music listening sessions, music and mood conference workshops and more.
Michelle’s interests relate to academia, music & health and VC.