Un-Convention 2021 | Day 2

The 106th Un-Convention is taking place in person at the 02 Ritz in Manchester, UK today and is simultaneously live-streamed for free on Facebook, Youtube, Twitter and Streamgm.co.uk.

Find out more about the event and tomorrow's line up here: https://www.unconventionhub.org/

This is what’s on today (all times are GMT):

10.10 - INTRODUCTION & PERFORMANCE from Kapil Seshasayee

10.15 - STREAM IF YOU WANT TO GO FASTER

Connecting with audiences online is nothing new for the music industry, but in the last year the restrictions on live events have meant many artists and organisations have had to develop new strategies to engage with fanbases. Equally with audiences themselves confined to their homes, the need to deliver exciting and meaningful experiences through laptop and phone screens became both a challenge and a priority for many. In this session we talk to artists and organisations that have been able to adapt to the situation, and who have been able to build communities, and create memorable musical moments in the most difficult of circumstances. We also consider what the legacy of this new way of reaching audiences could be.

with

David Agnew (English Folk Expo) – Moderator

Kapil Seshasayee (Artist)

Marie-Claire Daly (StreamGM)

Pauline Macocco (Driift)

Thom Rylance (The Lottery Winners)

11.20 - BUILDING A BETTER MUSIC INDUSTRY

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has been overwhelming for many parts of the independent music sector. Inevitably much time and energy has been spent navigating this crisis, however, as we start to think beyond the current situation it is vital that we do not lose sight of the other issues threatening the future prosperity of music makers and those that support them. A live industry already decimated by long-term closure will now face the added complications of post-Brexit touring, whilst the business models of many grassroots venues remain fragile, even as things begin to reopen. Elsewhere, inequality and lack of transparency around income streams continue to plague artists, both in the live and recorded sectors. The industry before the pandemic was far from perfect, where often the wants and needs of artists, record labels, promoters and booking agents seemed to be at odds with one another. In this session we explore what is still broken in the industry, who is responsible, and how we can work together to start to fix it.

with

Jeff Thompson - Moderator

Andy Carthy (Mr Scruff)

Bev Whitrick (Music Venue Trust)

Kelly Wood (Musicians’ Union)

David Martin (Featured Artists Coalition)

12.15 – Break

1.15 - PERFORMANCE - Cariss Auburn

1.20 - THE MUSICIANS' VIEW - presented in association with the Musicians’ Union

For this session we hear from a range of musicians about their experiences of working in music. What are the skills, traits and breaks that helped them to succeed, and what lessons have they learned that they would pass on to fellow artists? We also consider if the career prospects for musicians have changed over the years and whether the industry is becoming more or less artist friendly.

with

Steve Lawson — Moderator

Chloe Foy

Rowetta

Elisabeth Elektra

Cariss Auburn

2.30 - JUMP PRESENTATION

Un-Convention is delighted to be part of a European-wide fellowship programme, funded by Creative Europe and working alongside MaMA (France), Nouvelle Prague (Czech Republic), Linecheck (Italy), MIL (Portugal) and Athens Music Week (Greece) to support innovative music professionals. 2021 is the third year of the fellowship, which to date has worked with 45 new business ideas and projects, ranging from VR and AI tech platforms to initiatives around mental health and environmental impact. We will be making a presentation about the project, the participants, and their exciting new ideas for the music industries.

With

Jeff Thompson (Un-Convention)

2.45 - IN CONVERSATION WITH Stuart Braithwaite

Stuart is a founding member of Mogwai who have recorded ten studio albums together over the last 26 years. The band’s latest album, ‘As The Love Continues’, released in February 2021, was met with critical acclaim and reached number 1 in the UK album chart. The album was predominately written, recorded and produced in lockdown. In this session Stuart will discuss his career spanning two and half decades, and his experience of creating, promoting and releasing an album in such unusual circumstances.

with

John Robb - Moderator

Stuart Braithwaite (Mogwai)

4.00 - MODERN MUSIC MANAGEMENT

Artists’ careers are evolving in a myriad of ways in the modern music landscape, and now more than ever managers are having to navigate the complexities of developing talent, building fanbases and finding new markets in an ever-changing environment. Fans’ attention is hard fought, listening behaviour is transforming, the live sector has been in turmoil and social media seems to rewrite the rules on a regular basis. It is the artist manager who has to make sense of it all and try to keep one step ahead. In this panel we hear from a range of artist managers about their experience of supporting talent and building careers in a turbulent industry.

with

Annabella Coldrick (MMF) – Moderator

Conrad Murray (Blossoms, Cabbage, The Coral, Courteeners, Ian Brown, Inhaler, Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott and The Stone Roses)

Shikayla Nadine (Rebecca Garton / Levelle London)

Trevor Dietz (Fontaines D.C.)

Carline Trout (Everything Everything, Django Django, Nilüfer Yanya, Alfie Templeman, Jessica Winter, Ben Matravers and Jake Miller)