BIGSOUND KICKS OFF TOMORROW - HERE’S WHAT YOU CANNOT MISS
RECENT UPDATES
Culinary crusader Nat’s What I Reckon will now be joined by special guest Briggs for his exclusive BIGSOUND cooking show.
The multiple ARIA-nominated singer-songwriter and festival director Jack River joins Johann Ponniah for a Q&A following his keynote “200 Shits Per Album”.
Support Act has added a host of new and well-known faces to BIGSOUND’s Mental Health stream in partnership with Levi’s - including Frontier Touring’s Sahara Herald, The Teskey Brothers’ Brendon Love and artist Nathan Cavaleri.
Jaguar Jonze and Ella Hooper now join previously-announced Ecca Vandal and Mo’Ju for an honest and personal roundtable discussion in “COVID F*cked My Tour Lyf”.
Green Music Australia will teach you how to make your career footprint more green, and Bolster will present quickfire looks at trends and new tech that will affect how we make, market, discover and consume music in the coming years.
BIGSOUND is hosting closed door sessions this week with industry to devise a handful of key outcomes that need to be addressed by Government for our very survival and which will be discussed at a special panel “Come Together.”
Sounds Australia is partnering with us to provide a world-class activation of one-on-one meetings for The BIGSOUND50 with industry reps from across the globe.
And mark your calendars for the BIGSOUND parties and exclusive musical performances all the way from Canada, South Korea, and right here at home.
FREE registration for BIGSOUND 2020 is still open. Registration, more information, and the full program schedule is available now at www.bigsound.org.au
L-R: Jack River, Nathan Cavaleri, Ella Hooper, Brendan Love
Moving to 100% virtual and 100% free this year, BIGSOUND 2020 gets ready to go live in your living rooms, laptop screens, and office spaces from tomorrow on Wednesday October 21st and Thursday 22nd, bringing together a stacked conference program of keynote presentations, panels, workshops, performances and parties covering a wide range of topics and discussions aiming to re-future a challenged industry with positivity, connection and reality.
“BIGSOUND 2020 will entertain and inform, but at its core, it is a platform for us to connect and share an experience that we have grown to mark our years by,” said BIGSOUND conference programmer Tom Larkin.“High level insights from international speakers such as Tim Urban, a programming stream dedicated entirely to mental health skills, through to the comic relief of Nat’s What I Reckon dragging his mate Briggs along a high-risk adventure of BBQ calorie acrobatics, defines the scope of what BIGSOUND has to offer.“This year we hope to provide an opportunity to explore not only the many challenges we have have faced as an industry together but also what is on the horizon, how we could make the best of that knowledge, and a chance to reflect with those who have defined our business to this point and how we might reshape it for the better,” said Mr Larkin.
Some not-to-be-missed highlights include a keynote from Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine, Audioslave, Prophets Of Rage, the Nightwatchman) with a presentation exploring his life as a musician and activist. BIGSOUND will also host a line up of special in-conversation sessions with the legendary Kev Carmody, ARIA-award winner Amy Shark, as well as a keynote presentation from global superstar Tones And I.
Artificial intelligence and creativity thought leader Tim Urban will delve into our creative consciousness with ‘The Wizards Hat - Our Brain's Magical Future’, Rhoda Roberts and Ziggy Ramo will discuss the Indigenous future of the music industry, while American Grammy-nominee Maimouna Youssef aka Mumu Fresh will discuss career, community and survival in 2020.
BIGSOUND will also see Australia’s hero of COVID, culinary crusader Nat’s What I Reckon and special guest Briggs present an exclusive BIGSOUND cooking show, and legendary production manager and founder of CrewCare Australia Howard Freeman (Big Day Out, INXS, AC/DC, Eminem, Neil Young, Prince, Rolling Stones) will host a poignant session exploring the hard realities of life on the road, the impacts it has on mental and physical health and creating a culture of help-seeking.
“Thank you to my QMusic team for pulling BIGSOUND together this year and a special thanks to the programmers, Creative Director Janne Scott, Conference Programmer Tom Larkin, First Nations Producer Alethea Beetson and Festival Programmers Ruby Jean-McCabe and Dom Miller,” said BIGSOUND Executive Producer Angela Samut and QMusic CEO. “There has never been a question of whether we should cancel BIGSOUND against the backdrop of COVID-19 but rather how can we best connect our industry that has been knocked to its knees but that stands united to recover and rebound with a stronger voice.”
Adding to the already stacked program, Support Act will host a series of 7x “On My Mind” workshops which will see a wide range of representatives discuss common mental health struggles we face as an industry. Teskey Brothers’ Brendon Love, author and broadcaster Jane Gazzo, Nat’s What I Reckon, triple j’s Max Quinn, Frontier Touring’s Sahara Herald, artist Nathan Cavaleri, psychologists Ash King, Emse Holmes, and more will provide honest insights and realistic pathways for how to cope with the many diverse stressors of the industry.
“Support Act is totally pumped to be part of this year’s BIGSOUND, and we are excited to present these seven workshops on Wednesday and Thursday. We have put together an outstanding program of speakers who will provide invaluable insights and advice for achieving and maintaining good mental health, which as we all know is critical to maximising success in the music industry,” said Support Act CEO, Clive Miller.
Delegates can also join a whole range of vital and informative workshops on Spotify streaming, change management, and financial crisis management for practical advice and strategies needed by a community ready to face 2021. Bolster will be presenting a quick fire look at trends and new tech that will affect how we make, market, discover and consume music in the coming years with “A-Z Of Future Music Marketing”, as well as dissecting the fundamentals of social media and digital marketing for music, and how to gain the confidence to take control of your digital destiny with “Digital Music Marketing Foundations”, and BIGSOUND also welcomes speed date workshops from Green Music Australia with a very limited opportunity to book a one-on-one workshop with Berish Bilander and Emma Bosworth from Green Music Australia to discuss how to make your music practice more green and reduce waste.
It’s not BIGSOUND without a party! BIGSOUND is pleased to announce the official 2020 virtual parties, an online space aimed at providing some post-conference entertainment for BIGSOUND delegates to kick back and enjoy performances and showcases from a range of artists and performers from around the world.
Dancing their way to Australian palms, fingertips and screens of all sizes, South Korea’s sweethearts of electro art-pop, Wedance bring their unprecedented energy and charisma to our virtual shores for a special ‘Dancing On The Farm’ performance spectacular and Q&A (presented by Highjinkx).
Having previously performed at BIGSOUND 2018, plus multiple Festival appearances throughout Asia and the world (including Fuji Rock, Primavera Sound and more) Wedance have built a cult following with their powerfully positive and dynamic live performances.
Indigenous North will also offer electrifying performances and interviews for an intimate picture of outstanding artists from Treaty 1 Territory (Winnipeg) and the traditional and unceded territory of the Kanien'keh:ka of Kahnawà:ke (Montréal), and JMC Academy will also be showcasing their best up and coming students for their Emerging Artist Showcase.
And you can catch even more music over at First Nations House, a unique partnership with Spotify as part of their ongoing commitment to promote and increase the representation of First Nations artists from around the globe, on and off their platform.“We applaud BIGSOUND for its major focus this year on First Nations music, and congratulate the organisers for their ingenuity and flexibility in moving to a free, online event,” said Australia Council CEO Adrian Collette, “We are confident this year’s edition of BIGSOUND will continue to enable important industry connections as well as the sharing of ideas and of course, great music.”
Eight selected artists from The BIGSOUND50 will perform as part of the Dreaming Loud showcase performance nightly on Wednesday 21st and Thursday 22nd October, including: Aodhan, Birdz, CLOE TERARE, Kee'ahn, Matalja, Oetha, Southeast Desert Metal and The Yorke Band. Following the final showcase, the entertainment will continue with a Dreaming Loud DJ set featuring special guest Dameeeela.
Catch all this and more, as FREE registration for BIGSOUND 2020 is still open. Registration, more information, and the full program schedule is available now at www.bigsound.org.au.
As a gift from BIGSOUND and presenting partner Apple Music, register now to receive 4x months free Apple Music exclusive to BIGSOUND delegates. This offer is available in the delegate portal.
Click here to listen to The BIGSOUND50 official Apple Music playlist.
BIGSOUND is working towards the online virtual event being as accessible as possible for all delegates, with all Watch On Demand videos to feature Closed Captions to be made available for delegates to turn on if required.
