Liverpool is a great city and I’ve really enjoyed my first time at the event so far. I must admit, with it being my first music conference, I was a little nervous about how it would go but the conference has a nice, relaxed atmosphere making it less intimidating. For example, the Roundtable Sessions held throughout the conferences give you an opportunity to rotate round tables discussing various areas of the industry and was a great way to meet people and network in an informal setting rather than trying to force conversation randomly.

My highlight from yesterday was probably the Women in the Music Industry event in association with The Women’s Organisation. In such a male dominated industry it’s sometimes easy to get disheartened when trying to succeed but attending a panel made up of women who have been successful in music PR, management and events was rather inspiring.

I also took part in my first panel yesterday:

The panel was about social media and how best to use it. I mainly talked about our involvement with Nathan’s social media and trying to increase fan engagement using platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. The main points that came across in the session were:

• Don’t post too much about yourself or your band
• Have a personality online
• Engage fans as much as possible
• Have good content, mainly access to your music and don’t make us “like” you before we can listen to it
• Use clever hashtags

With regards to the music side of things, unfortunately I didn’t see as many bands as I’d wanted to last night but am hoping to catch a few more over the next couple of nights. I was a little disappointed as I missed one of my favourite local bands The 1930s due to a scheduling error, I think a lot of people had this problem of set times differing to what was printed in the guide. Missing The 1930s meant I caught the band following them, Wet Mouth a vibrant energetic young band who could be seen as being rather reminiscent of Sonic Youth.  I also caught a nice little set from indie rock band By The Sea. My night was rounded off with the much hyped Django Django, a band who I have heard so much about over the past few months and had not actually took the time to listen to. I must say after last nights performance I can see why they’re causing such a stir, a band worth seeing live.

Lots of great stuff happening today, with a great deal of interest this morning at Digital Derry‘s Start Up panel. Also really nice to catch up with the lovely Keith Harris who attended our UnConvention event back in November last year.

The panel I most enjoyed today has been the Music Discovery one, I found it very interesting that the most popular way of finding new music is via radio, with the likes of Facebook coming much lower down the list – (this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have a good online presence!). However, it would seem the best way of getting yourself or your band discovered is by word of mouth so play loads of shows and have people talking about you creating a buzz.

More updates to follow in the next few days. Don’t forget to check out Hubb.it for a more detailed review/critique and what to expect from the festival on Monday. You can also check my tweets @EmJLyttle.

You’ll be able to catch me at the Social Media Surgery Panel tomorrow at 5 where you can come along and ask questions and get advice about how to make a social media campaign work best for you. As it’s my first time at the festival I’m really keen to connect with lots of different people across the industry, so come and say hello!

I’m hoping to write little posts up here pretty regularly about highlights both across the conference and music festival, but with such a packed schedule for the event and so much I want to attend I can’t promise how regular they will be! You can keep an eye on my twitter though if your interested in little updates on what’s happening here: @EmJLyttle. I will also be doing a guest blog on Hubb.it which will be able to read for a more detailed overall review of the festival from Monday 21 May.

You can get a full run down of all events on the Liverpool Sound City website.

This album is very special to Nathan, not only because it is very personal to him but because the fans made it happen! Therefore, the only way to celebrate 3D’s release is to go and meet the StarboyFam in person at album signings across the UK this week. Check the dates below to see if Nathan will be coming to a town near you:

• Monday 14th May at 5pm – HMV Belfast Donegall Arcade, Belfast, Northern Ireland, BT1 1PT
• Tuesday 15th May at 5pm – HMV Newcastle, Northumberland Street, Newcastle, NE1 7AE
• Wednesday 16th May at 5pm – HMV Birmingham, The Fort Shopping Park, 20 Fort Parkway, Birmingham, B24 9FP
• Thursday 17th May at 5pm – HMV Cardiff, Queen St, Cardiff, South Glamorgan, CF10 2AS
• Friday 18th May at 5pm – HMV Milton Keynes, 78 Midsummer Arcade, MK9 3BB

You can also download your copy of the album now by clicking on the picture below:

]]> http://www.bruisedfruitpromotions.com/?feed=rss2&p=186 0 http://www.bruisedfruitpromotions.com/?p=181 http://www.bruisedfruitpromotions.com/?p=181#comments Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:46:41 +0000 admin http://www.bruisedfruitpromotions.com/?p=181 PRS for Music and Bruised Fruit, supported by the North Coast Music Collective, present Spotlight On North Coast on Thursday 19th April, a night showcasing the best new acts in the music industry. Taking place in Portrush’s Playhouse, entry is free and based on a first come first served basis, but you must be on the guest list to attend the gig.

Join the guest list

Stuart Flemming from the PRS For Music will be hosting a workshop on ‘Getting the most out of PRS for Music Membership’ between 6-8pm. This workshop is free to attend for anyone interested in learning more about PRS for Music.

Masterclass: 6pm
First act on: 8pm

Acts performing on the night are Sorcha & Hannah, Red Velventines, Little Big Box and DJ Danny Droppit

Register for your guestlist place here

Direct to Fan allows artists to customise their retail model directly to their own fans, meaning the experience is better suited to them and hopefully leads to a more profitable relationship between the two.  However, it is more than just another source of revenue for musicians.  It both engages and develops the fan base at the same time, so you can get products to people who actually want to buy them and therefore creating a far greater, longer lasting connection.

Undoubtedly, the music industry has had to make big changes to its model in order to address the shift in consumption patterns of music lovers.  In a digital age where free music is so readily available online, it is more important than ever before to engage with fans and let them get closer to the artist.  Facebook, Twitter, Soundcloud and Bandcamp, amongst others, are effective in giving bands and artists an opportunity to communicate directly to a ready-made, eager audience.  It is a tool particularly useful for independent and more experimental artists who don’t have labels or mass media support.  By using the expression of art to build the fan base and engaging with them to make it stronger and more supportive they have a greater chance of achieving the success they deserve.

With the direct to fan model being shown to be of great value to musicians today, we are now seeing the emergence of more artists turning to crowd funding for record releases through sites like Pledge Music, Fund It and Sponsume.

Former Bruised Fruit clients, Gabby Young and Other Animals, are proof that fan funding really does work.  Back in 2009 they launched their Become an Animal campaign via their website, a three tiered subscription scheme giving fans the choice of paying £12.50, £25 or £65 in order to gain various levels of access to material, merchandise and time with the band.  Gabby explains the thought process behind the Become an Animal idea:

“we were invited to go to South by South West which was such an amazing opportunity, but we had to turn it down because we didn’t have the money. It really made me think, this makes no sense; we have to find a way to build funds somehow – we are lucky to have a very loyal, very generous fan base, so we decided to get them involved officially – that way we get some income and a database which helps us to get to know the fans, so if we end up playing a gig in Liverpool for example, we can say, you’re a bear, you’re from Liverpool come to this gig for free!”

Basically, it allows the fans to feel more involved both with the band and the creative process whilst allowing the band to make a living from music.  The subscriptions completely funded the bands debut album, the aptly titled We’re All in This Together.  The band have also just successfully reached their pledge target to fund for their new album The Band Called Out For More, offering fans the chance to appear in one of their music videos amongst many other rewards.

Similar campaigns are also going on much closer to home.  Last November, Farriers completed a very successful campaign with Sponsume raising funds to complete the recording of their debut album.  Those who donated were able to receive various rewards from posters, t-shirts, original song sheets, getting the album before its official release date and your name printed on the thank you notes, right the way up to having a personal song written for you or a private gig from the band in your own home.  The funding scheme, rather impressively, raised almost £4,500 for the band, which they are incredibly grateful for: “We can’t believe the support we got, very overwhelming and lovely. We’re very much looking forward to getting the album done and to start distributing the rewards. Sponsume… made our project a lot more fun and creative.”

Firm Northern Irish favourites Master and Dog (formerly John Shelley and the Creatures) are in the middle of a campaign with Fund It to try and make their second album into a reality. You can find out more about the project and how to get involved here: http://www.fundit.ie/project/master-and-dogs-sophomore-album

These projects highlight the importance of band to fan relationships in the current climate and seem to illustrate that embracing the direct to fan platform is the way to go.  In the future the chain from artist to fan could be shortened through technology, possibly removing the need for labels, distributors and retailers.  Thus, there could be an opportunity to level the playing field between majors and independents and across genres, allowing all artists to gain some amount of success on their own terms.  The direct to fan model is a very interesting and exciting concept, as potentially it could make a big change to the dynamics of the music industry as we know it.

Emma Lyttle
emma@bruisedfruitpromotions.com

Check out their podcast on iTunes here. And if you wanna be a part of the electronic revolution email davidbrowne86@me.com to find out more.

The Culture Tech Fund will provide up to £5000 (each) grant funding for innovative new projects which combine cultural and artistic output with digital technology. The fund is open to any organisation or freelance professional based in Derry (county or city) or working with a Derry-based partner and is an ideal opportunity for collaborations between digital media companies and local arts and cultural organisations.  For more information check out the Digital Derry website.

The Creative Industries Innovation Fund, run by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, with funding from DCAL and supported by Northern Ireland Screen and Digital Circle, provides assistance to companies-including craft, design, software developers, publishing, film, and music organisations- at critical times in their business and product development.

A new round of funding will give priority to companies committed to developing export focused activity, cross-sector collaboration and businesses which can harness the innovative and entrepreneurial potential of the region’s cultural and arts sectors. Digital content projects from all sections of the creative industries are also encouraged.

The Creative Industries Innovation Fund is providing seed funding to plug skills gaps and encourage growth within this important sector.  Through the programme, local creative enterprises are also offered the opportunity to be partnered, by the Institute of Directors, for business mentoring support. To apply online click on the Arts Council website.

Tara McEvoy is an up and coming music journalist who is offering to lend her ears to demos, EPs, albums, singles and live performances.  Reviews can be found on her website http://thisistaramcevoy.tumblr.com/ (look for the tag #bruisedfruit)

If you’d like to get in touch with Tara and send her some music, drop her a line on tara@bruisedfruitpromotions.com

The MAC seeks volunteers to join our MACtivist team

It’s all going on at the MAC. Talks, tours and activities around the clock.

We’re after some enthusiastic volunteers – people of all ages to help us showcase all the MAC has to offer and deliver a first-rate visitor experience.

We’re on the look out for MAC Navigators, Gallery Navigators, Workshop Support and Front of House volunteers… Intrigued?

For full details on our volunteer programme and a volunteer application form visit www.buildingthemac.com or contact Samantha Porciello, Learning and Participation Officer on 028 9023 5053

Deadline for applications

12 noon, Wednesday 1^st February 2012

Applications should be made to Samantha Porciello, Learning and Participation Officer.

Email samantha@buildingthemac.com or post to Samantha Porciello, the MAC, Hurst House, 15-19 Corporation Square, Belfast, BT1 3AJ.

Of course it’s not just music projects we’ve worked on this year, we have to give a shoutout to two of NI’s top technology start-ups, Planzai and AirPOS, who have both enjoyed massive success this year attracting investment from overseas.

We wish all our clients and friends a very Merry Christmas and we look forward to seeing you all again in the new year.