Agenda

The music industry is on the precipice of change. The future music industry does not look like the traditional one due to the convergence of music consumption and creation. Creative behaviour will define the next generation of fandom as new platforms arise that enable and incentivize this dynamic. More creators inherently make the industry more competitive, and in MIDiA ‘s keynote, we will explore how artists can break through the noise and connect with fans on a deeper level through identity, community and context.

Context of the event:
The first workshop in the series “Which Way to a Sustainable Music Industry in Poland?” was held during the 2022 Other Sounds Festival, with the participation of an international community of musicians, journalists, activists involved in activities supporting Inclusivity in the music industry. It was conducted based on the Design Thinking methodology, thanks to which the Participants developed ideas and concepts together, addressing the main question of the meeting. It was followed up by a foresight workshop with the same title, conducted during the #Cultureonlive conference in September 2022. It was a structured process aimed at analyzing the Polish music industry’s biggest challenges in the areas of gender equality and equal gender representation. Since these two events, the need to implement measures that will support inclusivity in the Polish music industry has become a topic that has been increasingly and more widely discussed in the community.

Discussion context:
Despite a greater awareness of how to build balance in the Polish music industry, available data shows that, compared to European countries, we still have a lot of work to do on balance issues. A gender-balanced music industry means equal access to resources – festival line-ups, opportunities for advancement within the structures of institutions and companies, or salaries based on competence, not gender. Do we really function in such a musical environment?

The course of the expert discussion
What is the idea of Inclusivity in the exclusive music industry? How is it manifested? In what areas does the music industry in Poland need more inclusivity and equal gender representation? What impact do equality issues have on careers in the music industry? What kind of qualitative change will be made possible by the Inclusivity of the music industry? The expert discussion will be organized based on the methodology of conducting meetings in focused discussion groups (so-called focus groups) and will take place during the #cultureonlive 2023 conference. It will last three hours. A group of experts will be invited to talk about Inclusivity in an exclusive music environment, with guests from Poland and abroad. The expert discussion, designed by the Artist in Bloom studio, will be a continuation of the Design Thinking process implemented at the East of Culture – Other Sounds Festival, and the foresight workshop held during the 2022 #cultureonlive conference. It will be a research meeting. Our goal is to try to create a unified conceptual apparatus that will contribute to better defining the needs of the Polish music industry in the area of Inclusivity.

The workshop will present and explain the following issues related to working with a digital distributor:

– Choosing a distributor – what to look for,
– Working as a solo artist vs. a record label,
– How to prepare songs for distribution,
– The modern publishing plan and its importance,
– The role of data analysis in release planning,
– Traditional marketing, organic marketing, digital marketing,
– Promotion of releases in cooperation with editors of streaming services.

The conversation around generative AI has been evolving rapidly in 2023, with deepfake tracks arousing the wrath of the music industry. Yet AI is not one technology with a single application: it’s a group of them with varied uses.

Some are undoubtedly worrying for artists, managers and rightsholders, but others are exciting and have lots of potential for the music business: management; frontline and catalogue marketing; publishing; sync and more. Music Ally has been covering this area since 2014 when one of the first AI-music startups, Jukedeck, emerged from stealth mode.

In this session we will give an overview of the key companies and tools in this space, and how you can start working with them. We will also discuss the threats and controversies around AI technologies to help you make sense of the noise, and understand how to protect your artists and their work. From content creation, marketing attribution and automated ads to licensed voice clones, metadata creation and campaign updates, the space for useful AI tools is flourishing. We’ll help you and your teams harness their potential to grow your business.

Held in Groningen (NL) since 1986, Eurosonic Noorderslag is one of the most recognizable events for the European music industry. More than 40,000 people visit the festival every year, and 350 emerging artists play a concert in front of an international audience. For many bands, performing at ESNS has proven to be the ticket to an international career. Managers, bookers and other music industry professionals, in turn, value it for the opportunity to make new business contacts. Next year’s edition will certainly be very special for the Polish music scene. You will be able to find out about what opportunities there are to participate in the event, how to prepare for it and why it is especially worth attending next year, during consultations that will be given by:

Robert Meijerink – head of program and booker of ESNS -Eurosonic Noorderslag,

Tamara Kaminska – board member of Music Export Poland,

Marek Hojda – member of the Management Board of Music Export Poland.

Artists who have already sent their applications to ESNS and professionals interested in participating in the networking mission that will take place during the festival on January 17-20, 2024 in Groningen, the Netherlands, are invited to consult.