The annual gathering of music industry and showcasing artists, BIGSOUND has revealed the first of its 2024 speakers programme headlined by a keynote from Amy Taylor.
The frontwoman for three-time ARIA Award winners Amyl & The Sniffers, Amy has experienced the full rock & roll lifestyle; from regional town unknowns to hitting the big time nationally, touring the world, and sharing stages with the likes of Foo Fighters, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and The Smashing Pumpkins.BIGSOUND also welcomes a host of global music industry leaders including London-based creative force Elijah. Co-founder of the trailblazing record label Butterz, Elijah's roles span from creative consultant, writer, and DJ to an artist manager.
A&R extraordinaire Korda Marshall, who began his career as a coffee maker at RCA Records in the '80s, will also share his knowledge at BIGSOUND. Marshall has built a reputation for spotting talent that has seen him launch and run Infectious Records, as well as discovering Muse, Ash, Alt-J, Garbage and The Temper Trap.
"This announcement is really a calling card of what BIGSOUND represents," Conference Programmer Tom Larkin says. "The cross section of global industry that will be on ground is a testament to BIGSOUND as a vehicle for connecting artists locally and internationally, and we recognise that in 2024 the need for this is greater than ever.
"We're thrilled to go out of the gates with Amy Taylor as a keynote speaker as she will no doubt give a robust insight from many angles. Ultimately, BIGSOUND is an event where people arrive with a genuine sense of excitement at being immersed in music over three days and three nights."
A number of artist scouts-bookers will be on-ground at BIGSOUND with Adam Ryan (The Great Escape, Lovebox and Wilderness Festival), Germany's Patrick Daniel (Reeperbahn Festival, Inferno Events) and Austin's Dev Sherlock (SXSW) joined by Ben Buchanan from Creative Artists Agency (Beck, Florence and the Machine, Solange) and Roxane Dumoulin from ATC Live Agency (Aldous Harding, Japanese Breakfast).
Other highlights of the speaker programme include Elliott Lefko, Vice President of AEG/Goldenvoice Concerts that books Coachella, Naomie Abergel, who was signed to OWSLA by Skrillex and now works with Sound.xyz, Casper Mills who currently serves as a key figure at 4AD (The National and Tkay Maidza) and Bradly Palmer from A&R Relations at Concord Music Publishing in Los Angeles.
"Over the years we've become regular attendees of BIGSOUND, it's always so thrilling to come to Australia and check out potential acts to sign to our roster. We are really excited to be sending our agent Roxanne Dumoulin this year," ATC Live Managing Director Alex Bruford says.
"We have over 30 Australian acts on our roster, including Amyl and The Sniffers, Julia Jacklin and Royel Otis, and have signed acts including Girl and Girl, Cable Ties, Enola and Good Morning as a direct result of attending BIGSOUND – it has become one of our favourite international events, and is a fantastic place to see new Australian talent."
Early bird delegate passes are available.
BIGSOUND 2024 takes place in Fortitude Valley (at various venues and locations) 3-6 September.
BIGSOUND 2024 Speakers Programme
Amy Taylor - Amyl & The Sniffers (AUS)* KeynoteAdam Ryan - The Great Escape & Festival Republic (UK)
Ben Buchanan - Creative Artists Agency (CA)
Bradly Palmer - Concord Music Publishing (USA)
Casper Mills - 4AD (UK) Dev Sherlock - SXSW (USA)
Elijah - Artist, Thought Leader, DJ (UK)
Elliott Lefko - AEG & Goldenvoice (USA)
Korda Marshall - Mushroom Group (UK)
Naomie Abergel - Sound.xyz (USA)
Patrick Daniel - Reeperbahn (GER)
Roxane Dumoulin - ATC Live (FRAN)
