The second edition of BEYOND THE MUSIC, Manchester’s global, changemaking music industry conference and new music showcase came to a close this weekend following 3 vital days and nights of pivotal industry conversation and genre spanning, new artist discovery across Aviva Studios and the Northern Quarter.
In an official statement, Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said: “Beyond the Music, yet again delivered an outstanding conference and festival bringing together industry, politicians and audience to affect change and face the challenges that lie ahead of us on a global scale.
This industry is at the heart of our cultural heritage, but also our future. We need to do all we can do to support the next generation of talent and create more opportunities for young people, and I will be backing Beyond the Music in that cause.”
Appearing at Beyond The Music on Thursday 10th October, Burnham was one of several voices at Beyond The Music 2024 asserting the importance of our music industry and the vital steps our new Government must take to solve the major issues threatening its entire ecosystem.
On Friday 12th October, Lisa Nandy MP, Secretary of State for Media, Culture and Sport met face to face with key industry stakeholders at Beyond The Music, and voiced ‘The Tony Wilson Keynote’, addressing the music industry with passion and conviction, Nandy spoke of her Government’s new working member groups and planned consultations tackling issues surrounding AI copyright, the unprecedented rate of grassroots venues being forced to close, and gig-goers being taken advantage of in a world of dynamic pricing.
During a Q&A with Beyond The Music conference goers, The Secretary described the treatment of arts, music and drama, and the way it has been taken away from our children and young people as “an act of cultural vandalism”, one that the new Government are “determined to set right.”
Elsewhere across the conference programme, Misogyny in Music: The Truth addressed the worrying lack of seriousness, understanding and responsibility toward the safety and protection of Women in our industry. Jen Smith, Interim CEO of CIISA was joined by Zelda Parkins, Ni Maxine, Frances Barber Shilito and Dr Diljeet Bhachu to discuss the simple actions we can all initiate to educate and raise awareness of women’s safety in the industry.
“People assume that rapists and abusers walk around as a rapist or an abuser, but they’re usually people you know - usually the nicest person in the room,” told Zelda Parkins. “For me, it starts with educating people that they can be your best friend, they can be somebody’s husband or brother. It doesn’t matter how nice they are, it’s about educating on who these people really are.”
Reflecting upon 2024’s conversations and the vital action points they have defined, Sarah Pearson, co-founder of Beyond The Music said:
“Art is a human right. Over four days in the heart of Manchester we have witnessed hundreds of people come together to fight for that right. Don’t take music for granted. Support local, to grow global. Become a member of BTM alongside the inspiring existing members who made all of this possible, you are the change and we can’t wait to see you next year for more.”
In addition to solving industry wide issues, Beyond The Music strives to showcase the immense talent of the North West region on a global scale. This year, the festival’s night time programme hosted over 200 brand new artists curated by some of the global and local music industry’s most respected names, including SXSW, MTV, Clash, South Asian Music Network, BBC Introducing, Classical Unlocked and Manchester Pride.
Across 13 of the Northern Quarter’s most beloved and respected independent venues, including Night & Day Cafe, Band On The Wall, The Peer Hat, The Castle Hotel and Soup, said stages offered new music discovery for fans of every genre – with a monumental 25% of the lineup dedicated solely to North West based artists.
Speaking about what it means to platform such a broad range of talent, co-founder of Beyond The Music, Oli Wilson said:
“This year we had over 3,000 artists apply to play the festival, and over 30 record labels, independent festivals, promoters and music organisations hosting stages. The talent was across the board genre wise and we're really proud to platform such a diverse range of music.
It's clear from the amount of applications to play and organisations curating stages that the platform is very much needed. My personal highlights included the rap Cyphers by Raise The Bar MCR, new metal band Divinitas, Manchester's Heavy Salad and a secret headline set by Cooper T as part of the BBC Introducing Stage.
Special mention goes to the Northern Quarter itself, one of the most vibrant and historic districts of Manchester, which was a perfect home for the festival with 13 venues across less than half a square mile which made it very easy to get around and take it all in.”
Beyond The Music also hosted a number of outdoor stages across Manchester City Centre, in partnership with City Co. Platforming the city’s emerging DJs and artists to new audiences within the city, the outdoor stages also saw Zion Marley jump on stage for an impromptu performance with up and coming electronic producer, DJ and promoter DJ MYDIR ahead of his performance at Co-Op Live that evening.
