Storytelling and Spirituality in the Heart of a Young Bhutanese Singer and Songwriter
For Lungten Wangchuk, once his father taught him his first guitar chords at 7, there was no turning back. Now a well-known Bhutanese singer, songwriter, and music producer, Lungten aims to take his emotional compositions outside of the country’s borders.
Born in 1998 in the Eastern part of Bhutan, Lungten, who goes by the stage name TheLungten, was brought up in a musical environment. His mother enjoyed singing traditional Bhutanese songs, and uncharacteristically for a remote village, his father played the guitar. He became Lungten’s inspiration and first teacher.
Lungten started performing for audiences at school concerts and, in 2013, began writing his own original songs.
Although he pursued a bachelor’s degree in media, his true calling was music, and his talent did not go unnoticed. He received offers from national television and gradually performed on larger stages.
In 2017, he shared one of his compositions with Jatshen, a well-known Bhutanese musician, and asked him to compose music for his song. The song was an instant hit with 100,000 streams on SoundCloud. This was his first step in a professional career. With his first recording equipment and recording sets, he kept uploading his songs on YouTube and SoundCloud and used social media to promote them.
All the while, his parents were unconvinced about his musical career. “When I told them I wanted to be a singer, they were quite reluctant but not unsupportive.” They were concerned about sustainability and encouraged him to focus on his studies, which he did, juggling college and a part-time musical career.
British Music Quality as Inspiration
After earning his bachelor's degree in 2020, he took the civil service examination, hoping to get a job and pursue his musical career on the side. He failed the examination and launched into a freelancing career, providing music for videographers, government projects, and advocacy groups. Meanwhile, as his career started to take off, he could convince his parents of the relevance of his musical career. “It was quite difficult,” he said, smiling.
Lungten was influenced by UK musicians while growing up. “I love most of the music and bands that come from the UK, and not only in terms of art, but also in terms of technicalities.” “The UK is known for one of the best engineering and production quality, so I thought it would be the best place to go and study.
In 2022, he applied for and was awarded a scholarship to study music engineering and production at the University of South Wales in the United Kingdom.
Now funded to do what he mostly loved, and temporarily free from financial pressure, “I devoted all my attention to music.” “It all came together, and I kept on learning and improving. I am still learning,” said the young musician who went straight from university to being a full-time musician.
Bhutanese Traditional Music with a Tinge of Western Taste
The 27-year-old artist, who writes his lyrics and music and produces his songs, is also a keen storyteller. At the start of his career, he drew inspiration from his emotions. After a while, he said, “the whole dynamics changed,” going from inward to outward.
He now gets inspired by life scenes. “If I see a grandmother and her grandchild going to school, walking by, I see beauty in that, and that inspires me to write a song.” “I get particularly inspired by people who are lovely and human,” he added.
Lungten’s music blends Bhutanese traditional music, using Bhutanese tunes and instruments like the flute and the drangyen, an instrument akin to a guitar but with seven strings, with Western accents drawn from R&B or jazz.
The common thread that links all of Lungten’s songs, however, is spirituality. “I use music to enter peace in myself and hope to share that peace with other people along the way.” “It is very important culturally,” he explained, “because Bhutan is heavily influenced by tradition, culture, and spirituality through Buddhism.” “My main theme is spirituality, finding oneself, questioning our existence, our place in the universe.”
The Rise of Bhutanese Independent Singers with Streaming Platforms
In the last 10 years, the advent of the Internet and streaming platforms has transformed the Bhutanese music scene. In the 2010s, according to Lungten, artists relied on producers and studios. Many of them worked for the film industry. Some ten years on, there is a rise in Bhutanese independent artists who can produce their music, upload it to music platforms like Spotify and Apple Music, or streaming platforms, and market it on social media.
That shift and the growing government support allowed some artists to live off their music, which was never meant to become a career, he said, some 20 years ago. Music was meant as an offering to people, for ceremonial or celebration events, but was never seen as a business.
Promoting Bhutanese Songs Internationally via Digital Platforms
Lungten, fresh from a month of touring Australia in October, thoroughly enjoyed the experience but said touring countries is not enough to promote and disseminate Bhutanese culture and music. Australia has a large Bhutanese diaspora, and Lungten said that his audience was mostly Bhutanese in cities he toured.
According to Lungten, music platforms and YouTube music videos are much more efficient ways to reach an international audience. “That is where everybody is.”
Lungten currently sings only in Bhutanese but said that introducing a few lines of English into Bhutanese songs would help propagate Bhutanese music and build a bridge with English-speaking people.
Ed Sheeran introduced Bhutan to the International Music Scene
In January 2025, Ed Sheeran gave a concert at Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu, marking the opening stop of his 2025 Mathematics Tour in Asia and the Middle East. Sheeran was the first international artist to perform in Bhutan. Beyond the fact that Sheeran’s concert put Bhutan on the world music map, the international artist inspired local musicians. “He showed us what a professional musician looks like while performing on stage, what a professional studio looks like, how things are done in terms of music, performance, and production,” Lungten said.
“I feel like he opened the doors for other artists to come to Bhutan,” he said, mentioning Ryan Tedder, One Republic lead singer, hinting that he should also come to Bhutan someday on tour. “I think Ed Sheeran showed Bhutan to the whole world.”
Music Copyright Awareness Growing in Bhutan
Copyright is a relatively new concept in Bhutan, according to Lungten. Back in the days, there were only a handful of people who really cared about copyright and royalties. However, as music is becoming a career for a growing number of artists and people are earning from their music, they are increasingly focused on copyright and its value.
Lungten registered all his songs with the Bhutan copyright office and internationally through an independent Music Distribution company, TuneCore, “so my music is now copyrighted all over the world,” he said.
With the help of the IP office, Lungten now has a recording studio. He intends to help artists understand music creation, copyright, and royalties. His plan is to partner with a music distribution service so that each collaborative artist (lyricists, singers, guitarists, drummers…) enters into a contract that guarantees fair royalty distribution and copyright protection. “It is not a one-time fee. It is contract-based, and in the next five years, I want to bring this to Bhutan.”
Lungten also wants to promote Bhutanese music beyond the country’s borders and explore the kind of music that will appeal to foreigners. He intends to make music, albums, and music videos that can promote Bhutanese music to the world.
Lungten was a speaker in the 6th session of the WIPO Live Chat on 19 December 2025, in collaboration with the Bhutan Department of Media, Creative Industry & Intellectual Property (DoMCIIP) of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce & Employment, with support from the Funds-in-Trust Korea Copyright and the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism (MCST) of the Republic of Korea.
