Off The Record Conference

7 Venues. 30 artists. 50 Panelists. Music conference by day, Live music by night.

Studying Music Industries at Birmingham's School of Media is pretty cool, especially when you get to be a delegate at conferences and have the opportunity to visit other cities. This time, team BCU were off to Manchester for the first Off The Record conference and multi-venue music event. Based in the Northern Quarter, there was even the chance to get lost, I mean pay a visit, to Afflecks Palace. The ultimate 'indie' paradise described perfectly by a fellow student as 'a somewhat creepy, but cool, fun house'.

Kicking off the journey at a tender time of 5:45am, we had touchdown at the Methodist Central Hall at 9am with plenty of time to grab ourselves a Tim Peaks coffee (would rate a strong 10/10). The first conference 'How to get heard over the noize!' began at 10am and as expected, John Robb (Louder Than War) lead the first panel of the day. Joined by Sean McGinty (BBC Introducing), Simon Zaccagni (Silent Radio) and Elena Jimenez (Popped Music) there were influencers from radio, print and online platforms offering their insight. Focusing on the best, most tactical and innovative ways to get your music heard, the panel offered the tricks of the trade. As I'm currently studying Music Industry Innovation, ideas for new SMEs to get independent music heard amongst competitors were whizzing through my head. Watch this space, I may just be the next music industries entrepreneur of the century...

After watching 'If you're gonna do it, do it right' which focused on making gigs into events and how to engage with new audiences, I began to think about how the live music industry is changing. With my dissertation exploring the closure of grassroot music venues, the panel made recommendations for how to keep the live music industry fresh.

Followed by a cuppa Yorkshire tea from Tim Peaks (sorry PG Tips, I betrayed you), it was then time to attend 'Summer of Love - How to get on the festival circuit' before Dave Haslam's talk with the main man Tim himself. Tim Burgess was joined by Camille Bennett from Tear and the pair discussed the importance of independent labels. With Tim Burgess owning O Genesis, his own record label with Tear on his roster, and being the lead singer of alternative rock band, The Charlatans, hearing his opinions was a definite highlight of the day.

As all the panels lasted for 25 minutes, there was plenty to attend and lots to learn. With being in third year, it was great to be able to engage and understand everything the industry professionals were discussing and be able to apply it to my own experiences. 'A match made in heaven - exploring the manager/musician relationship' related to my work in previous modules and 'It's more fun to compute' allowed me to reflect on my online presence. When considering this, Bryan Jonson (Spotify) and Matt Rennie (The Box) explained how to utilise social media and the tools of the trade, something extremely important to remember as an integrated communicator.

Jennifer Otter Bickerdike lead the discussion and I found her completely engaging, especially as she later fangirl'd over Brian Cannon's photography skills. As a female, music academic, specialising in fandom and popular culture, she has been a key scholar throughout my time at BCU. Attending these conferences allow the chance to put faces to names whilst also building a platform for later research. After the Sound City+ conference in summer, I then went on to interview Alcopop! Records founder Jack Clothier for an assignment after making a connection in person. This is the same for Jennifer and an extremely rare opportunity to have, one which I'm grateful for.

Throughout all the talks, the panellists forever discuss how important communication and networking is to stay afloat in the music industries. Like mentioned, my dissertation is focused around the closure of music venues and the affect on regional music economies. Dave Haslam, a key author for my research, was at the conference and ran a Q&A with Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram. They discussed the issues surrounding music, arts and culture; whether we can really protect music venues from closing down. This provided key ideas for my dissertation, especially around policy and laws. I believe research like this, is far more beneficial then taking quotes from a book. Asking questions and witnessing a discussion delivers much more substance than being in front of a laptop on Google scholar. It's worth attending a conference for an entire day for even just one key point or quote.

After 11 panels, a notebook full of research and a novelty cup, it was time to hit Wetherspoons for a Fish Friday and then tackle the train journey home...