FastForward Conference to chart the future of the music industry

Following the success of its international events, FastForward, the future-focused music business conference, will be staging a new event in Sydney on Thursday 12th and Friday 13th April. FastForward: Sydney marks the second international expansion of the boutique music business conference series (following success in Amsterdam and London over the last two years), and the conference organiser’s first foray into the Australasian market.

FastForward: Sydney aims to be different from what organisers call the “standard music conference” in three ways.

Firstly, it is forward facing. There is no time spent yearning for years gone by, but rather FastForward gathers a dynamic group of future leaders who want to shape the future of the industry now. Secondly, it is a deliberately small event, designed for more meaningful networking & discussion, with an event capacity of 180 people - around 50 of whom will speak across the two days.

As such there are no showcases, with the focus on connecting with business and creative talent. Thirdly, the highly specialised ‘FastFifteen’ sessions allow speakers to explore complex topics, ensuring that experts can learn from their peers in a more intimate setting.

FastForward: Sydney is being supported by leading Australasian music rights management organisation APRA AMCOS, and leading digital agency Comes With Fries, joining Global Event Partners international creative agency Sherry Design, and leading global live entertainment company Live Nation Entertainment. Boutique research agency Media Insight Consulting will curate the event, in partnership with Vanessa Picken of local digital agency Comes With Fries. Leading local music business publication, The Music Network, join as exclusive media partners.

Highlights of this new Sydney event include a keynote from augmented and virtual reality pioneer David Francis (Zappar Technologies), sharing his insight on the roles that AR & VR can play in the music industry, and building interactive audiences around them; and a keynote from new Chief Executive of Live Nation Australasia, Roger Field, who will share his perspective on the future of the live music industry in Australia.

Other topics of discussion on the program include the Future of Copyright & Artist IP, Building Artist Audiences, Future of Releasing Music, Lessons from Sport, Meta-data, Transparency and Music, and Future of Search & Discovery.

Speakers confirmed to join in Sydney for the first announcement are:

• David Francis, Head of APAC, Zappar Technologies
• Roger Field, Chief Executive, Live Nation Australasia
• Chris Carey, Chief Executive, Media Insight Consulting (United Kingdom)
• Dean Ormston, Head of Member Services, APRA AMCOS
• Eddie Robb, Chief Executive, Make It Social (United Kingdom)
• Emily Scoggins, Head of Marketing, The O2 (United Kingdom)
• Emma Graham, Senior Talent Manager, Click Management
• Jake Challenor, Chief Executive, Jaden Social
• Michael Carmody, Manager, Legacy Esports
• Poppy Reid, Managing Editor, Seventh Street Media
• Takayuki Suzuki, President/EnterTech Accelerator, ParadeALL (Japan)
• Vanessa Picken, Director, Comes With Fries

FastForward is aimed at connecting the next generation of music industry leaders, to help lay the foundation for a sustainable career in the modern music industry.

While the conference has a reputation for attracting young industry attendees, the overall ambition with the events is to gather forward-thinking people of all ages.

Its annual, international conference series currently consists of a flagship event in Amsterdam (15th and 16th February 2018), the newly-announced expansion to Sydney, and the one-day satellite event in London (to be held in September 2018).

FastForward: Sydney is being held at the Aerial Function Centre at UTS. 

Click here for conference details in the Australasian Leisure Management industry calendar.

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