Un-Convention

31/03/2022

SHOWCASING OPPORTUNITY - LAST FEW DAYS TO APPLY
Applications close at 5pm on Sunday 3rd April.

We're looking for artists from all genres to play at this year's Un-Convention Manchester.

Un-Convention brings together hundreds of music professionals from across the UK and Europe to discuss the future of independent music and we are taking the opportunity to showcase a host of brilliant artists at the event with a view to helping them develop their careers.

This year's Un-Convention Manchester takes place on the 7th and 8th July at Band on the Wall - all showcasing artists receive a fee for performing.

The application window closes on the 3rd April 2022.
To find out more about the criteria, and how to apply then please visit https://www.unconventionhub.org/applytoplay

25/03/2022

SHOWCASING OPPORTUNITY - Applications close at 5pm on Sunday 3rd April.

There's just over a week left to apply to play at this year's Un-Convention Manchester.

Un-Convention brings together hundreds of music professionals from across the UK and Europe to discuss the future of independent music and we are taking the opportunity to showcase a host of brilliant artists at the event with a view to helping them develop their careers.

This year's Un-Convention Manchester takes place on the 7th and 8th July at Band on the Wall - all showcasing artists receive a fee for performing.
The application window closes on the 3rd April 2022.

To find out more about the criteria, and how to apply then please visit https://www.unconventionhub.org/applytoplay

11/03/2022

The brilliant Thirty Pound Gentleman have an initiative to support Black developing music professionals (aged 18 - 30). The session is aimed at artists and managers and takes place online at 11am on Wednesday 16th March.

Contact details for taking part can be found on the event flyer.

04/03/2022

SHOWCASING OPPORTUNITY

We are delighted to once again be inviting artists of all genres to apply to play at Un-Convention Manchester.

Un-Convention brings together hundreds of music professionals from across the UK and Europe to discuss the future of independent music and we are taking the opportunity to showcase a host of brilliant artists at the event with a view to helping them develop their careers.

This year's Un-Convention Manchester takes place on the 7th and 8th July at Band on the Wall - all showcasing artists receive a fee for performing.

The application window closes on the 3rd April 2022.

To find out more about the criteria, and how to apply then please visit https://www.unconventionhub.org/applytoplay

03/03/2022

Opportunities - Jazz North

The fantastic Jazz North have announced their Northern Line initiative to support northern based artists performing in jazz or jazz-related genres. A great opportunity to gain industry insights and showcasing opportunities.

Details can be found at: https://www.jazznorth.org/opportunities/

Northern Line supports artists across the north of England to deliver high quality live shows on profile-raising stages.

28/02/2022

Thank you to everyone who made it to the 107th Un-Convention on Friday, a truly inspirational day all made possible by the incredible team at Hastings Fat Tuesday. Some great insights from a host of managers, labels, publishers, promoters, and artists exploring the modern industry, as well as issues around well-being, sustaining careers and developing scenes.

After a difficult couple of years, it’s also fantastic to see the festival once again bringing together the local community - a timely reminder of the value of music and the role it plays in galvanising and improving our society. We look forward to returning next year.

17/02/2022

We are delighted to announce that this year’s Un-Convention Manchester will take place on the 7th and 8th July at Band on the Wall.

Our 108th music conference and showcase event will once again bring together hundreds of pioneering artists, managers, venues, labels, and promoters, alongside a host of key industry champions from across the UK and Europe to develop new ideas and opportunities for the independent sector.

Over two days and nights, we will explore ideas for building sustainable careers in music, effective release and live strategies, the challenges for artists and organisations in the modern era, developing regional scenes, music as a tool for social change, and a host of other key issues in the current industry.

The event will also showcase some of the finest new music from across the country.

For the last fourteen years Un-Convention has been providing a platform for the makers and champions of independent music to build networks, share ideas, and develop new ways of working. If you're involved in the sector, then we do hope you can join us in Manchester this summer.

Please be aware that Un-Convention Manchester ordinarily sells out in advance, so we do recommend securing tickets as soon as possible. A limited number of discounted early bird tickets are currently available at: https://www.skiddle.com/e/36016099

Un-Convention Manchester 2022 is supported by PRS Foundation’s Open Fund for Organisations.

08/02/2022

We are absolutely delighted to announce that we have been awarded funding from the PRS Foundation's Open Fund for Organisations for our work this year.

We've had fantastic support from the Foundation over the years, helping us to bring together thousands of artists and industry professionals to share ideas and discover new music, and we very look forward to announcing our plans for this year soon.

#FundedbyPRSF #TheOpenFund

03/02/2022

We're delighted to announce that we are returning to Hastings for the first Un-Convention of 2022. The conference will be taking place on Friday 25th of February as part of the incredible Hastings Fat Tuesday festival.

It will bring together a host of music professionals from all levels and areas of the industry to explore the current challenges and opportunites of the sector. Speakers include Ace (Skunk Anansie), Tony Crean (The Chemical Brothers / Hot Chip), Anna Moulson (Melting Vinyl), Jonathan Tester (Bucks Music Publishing), James Endeacott (1965 Records / Rough Trade), Melita Dennet (BBC Introducing) and many more.

Full details can be found at: https://hastingsfattuesday.co.uk/whats-on/unconvention

29/11/2021

We're absolutely delighted to be working with Kendal Calling to present some of the finest new music from around the UK on the Woodlands Stage this coming July. The festival do a phenomenal job of supporting new talent and we're once again really proud to be a part of it.

The first acts for next year's festival have been announced - ticketing information can be found at: https://bit.ly/3p0dFZ

22/10/2021

This time last week it was an absolute pleasure to be in Paris at the MaMA Festival & Convention meeting up with our partners and participants on the JUMP - European Music Market Accelerator. The programme is full of incredible entrepreneurs from across Europe working on ideas to revolutionise the sector. We were event visited by the French Minister of Culture, Roselyne Bachelot.

You can find out more about the projects at: www.jumpmusic.eu

Photos: (c) Quentin Allaert

20/10/2021

A great opportunity for music creators based in Manchester via Nine Nights.

On the 29th of October, Nine Nights will take over Contact for one day of music skills sharing with key talents from Manchester providing music workshops – production and songwriting – plus a music feedback session by industry experts and networking for free.

Industry experts attending the music feedback session include Gaika, GLOR1A and Shannen SP

If you are a keen music creator, live in Manchester and are interested to develop your career to the next level please apply for this full-day workshop for music makers to meet industry professionals, gain valuable music insight and feedback and learn from cultural trailblazers.

Apply for a place at: https://www.ninenights.net/future-matter-manchester

14/10/2021

Great to be back in Paris to meet up with our partners from the JUMP - European Music Market Accelerator.

09/09/2021

Nobody Talks Anymore III - The Pentatonic

Great to see the return of Nobody Talks Anymore to Manchester this weekend. Two days of panels and talks looking at routes into the music industry and advice for artists. There's a host of great people involved so well worth checking out if you are aspiring to a career in music.

September 11, 2021 5:00 pm - September 12, 2021 11:00 pm Off The Square, Manchester The Pentatonic Presents ** Nobody Talks […]

07/09/2021

We're delighted to be working with our good friends at the Kenya Music Cooperative this week, looking at how the industry can develop as things begin to reopen.

22/07/2021

In Conversation with Stuart Braithwaite - Un-Convention Manchester 2021

Congratulations to the brilliant Mogwai for their Mercury Prize nomination. We were lucky enough to have Stuart Braithwaite join us in Manchester earlier this month to talk about the spirit of independence and of course the making of 'As the Love Continues' in the most unusual of circumstances.

IN CONVERSATION WITH STUART BRAITHWAITEStuart is a founding member of Mogwai who have recorded ten studio albums together over the last 26 years. The band’s ...

15/07/2021

Last week we opened the doors on our 106th Un-Convention, the first in-person music industry conference to take place in the UK for over 16 months.

Here's a short film about the event, with contributions from Frank Turner, Ed O'Brien (Radiohead), Stuart Braithwaite (Mogwai), Beverley Whitrick (Music Venue Trust), Kelly Wood (Musicians' Union), Greater Manchester's Mayor, (Andy Burnham and more.

If you missed the conference you can watch the panels and talks again by visiting www.unconventionhub.org

"Something like Un-Convention absolutely illustrates that music is an ecosystem, and we're so much stronger when we work together." Beverly Whitrick (Music Venue Trust)

Film by: A Film By Joel Gardner
Music by: The Lottery Winners

12/07/2021

Thank you to everyone who made it to our Un-Convention music conference in Manchester last week. If you missed it then we’ll be posting highlights on the Un-Convention page, and you can also access the full panels and performances at https://streamgm.co.uk. If you make or champion independent music, then we recommend taking a look.

This was our 15th music conference in our hometown of Manchester. Ordinarily we would welcome around 500 delegates to the event - last year music professionals attended from across 45 towns and cities in the UK, as well 17 European countries. Of course, this year was very different, and we were only able to have a very limited physical audience.

Despite this, it was still an absolute honour to have so many influential people from the sector joining us, including Frank Turner, Radiohead’s Ed O’Brien, Beverly Whitrick from the Music Venue Trust, Paul Reed from the Association of Independent Festivals. Annabella Coldrick from the Music Managers Forum and many more. Alongside the limited in-person audience we were also delighted to welcome a further 5500 online viewers, with the conference being watched across five continents, everywhere from Australia and South Africa to Germany and the United States.

It really is a huge privilege to be part of such a brilliant community of artists and music professionals and we look forward to welcoming many more of you back to Manchester next year.

09/07/2021

That's it for Un-Convention Manchester 2021. A huge thanks to the O2 Ritz and all the staff, crew, speakers, volunteers, funders and delegates that have made the last two days possible. We're so proud of everyone involved and look forward to seeing you all again soon.