#HowWeListen Live: In Conversation Podcast

From Discovery To Stage: Programming Tomorrow’s Artists with Adam Ryan

Episode Summary

The Great Escape is Europe’s largest festival and conference dedicated to the discovery of new music. How does an artist get in to showcase? That festival's Head of Music, Adam Ryan, has a few tips on how to best to prepare for your big break.

Episode Notes

Our next guest is Head of Music for The Great Escape Festival, Adam Ryan.

What goes into curating, booking and presenting Europe’s largest festival and conference dedicated to the discovery of new music? Marc’s guest, Adam Ryan, has spent the better part of his adult life tirelessly discovering, promoting and presenting new music locally, nationally and internationally. He is now the Head of Music at The Great Escape Festival, taking place annually in Brighton, UK. How different is it curating a renowned three-day festival versus booking a venue? What can today’s artists learn about building strong live promoter relationships? Can artists book themselves onto festivals before having a team? How important is it to “be nice” to your promoter and your sound person? COVID decimated the live music community around the globe. Has any good come from an entire industry needing to pivot and re-evaluate what it means to present live music? What does the future hold for the industry? Marc asks all of these questions, whilst finding out how we all bounce back (if we have not already).

"I always say, to be export ready, you need to have the start of a team, it could be a manager, it could be your mum! It could be anybody, just somebody who comes with you, so when you’re performing, you only have to focus on that, and somebody else is doing your networking."

#HowWeListen Live: In Conversation

1:00 - The Great Escape

1:49 - Farringdon

4:19 - Radio One

4:29 - The Great Escape Conference

5:34 - Towcester (pronounced toaster)

5:40 - Fred Perry

5:45 - Barfly

9:03 - Creation

9:34 - KOKO

10:47 - Mama and Comp., Jon Mack, Reading & Leeds, Martin Elbourne, Glastonbury,

13:21 - Independent Promoters