Ed Sheeran breaks Australasian touring record
Ed Sheeran has beaten the record for the most national stadium tours in Australia. After adding four new shows to his antipodean tour, he has beaten AC/DC’s 2010 record fourteen date tour. The quickly selling tour for next year which features three shows in Melbourne, Sydney, Auckland and Dunedin is not only a sign of growth within the live music sector but should send a message to international touring companies that the Australasian market is not to be underestimated.
Australian touring companies partner with fan to fan ticket sale platform
Handsome Touring and Frontier Tours have announced that they will engage with the UK-based peer to peer ticket resale platform, Twickets. Twickets has launched its Australian website with mixed, yet mostly positive responses from industry insiders. Many touring professionals have celebrated the arrival of a way for fans to resell their tickets, as it helps to combat unchecked ticket and exorbitant ticket scalping. This service will allow buyers who are no longer able to attend a concert to resell the ticket to another person through a regulated network, a move that brings a service in the Australian market which is prevalent in the US and UK.
ARIAs announce Music Teacher of the Year Award
In a brilliant move, the Australian Recording Industry Association has added a category to their annual awards for the Music Teacher of the Year. This idea stemmed from The Song Room, a charity whose focus is bringing music education and instruments into schools. They recognise the importance of music teachers for young people, and worked with ARIA to add the award to the ceremony. Dan Rosen, Chief Executive of ARIA justified the move by saying “for every performer who makes it to the ARIA stage, there was a teacher or mentor who played a critical role in getting them there.” This decision, heavily influenced by The Song Room begins to award and understand the various players that contribute within the music industry who are not just performers. Not only will the award winner share the stage with some of the biggest names in Australian music but the four final nominees will be partnered with one of ARIA‘s four ambassadors, including Katie Noonan and Jessica Mauboy who will return with them to their school to tell their story.
Music Victoria establishes international music development program
Music Victoria’s Music Passport is the newest addition to the state’s already formidable Music Works program. A share from a pool of $500,000 will be granted to artists and industry professionals to cover the costs of opportunities helping to establish global links and support the careers of individuals beyond the confines of the state. “As well as being a vital part of our culture, music is a big business for this state,” Creative Industries Minister Martin Foley said in a statement. “Music Passport helps build businesses, strengthen careers and creates new opportunities to take Victorian music to the world.”
New Festival to be held in Kings Cross
Keep Sydney Open, the organisation formed in 2014 to protest Mike Baird’s strict venue licensing and lockout laws, has announced that it will hold a music festival in the suburb seemingly most affected by these laws, Kings Cross. This shows a significant change for the Keep Sydney Open. Tyson Koh, a key member of the organisation, explained that “the rallies highlight the problems facing the music scene but we think that has run its course. With this event, we want to directly support the venues, the artists, the promoters and bring people back into Kings Cross.” With other small victories like the reopening of the institutional venue The Lansdowne Hotel and the slow relaxing on lockout laws on multiple venues across the city, the inaugural event entitled Meet Me In The Cross hopes to show lawmakers the economic and cultural benefits of the nightlife of Sydney.
Mushroom Music and UNIFIED Publishing renew partnership
UNIFIED and Mushroom Music have worked together since the former’s inception in 2011 to promote Australian music worldwide, having successes with highly acclaimed signings such as Vance Joy, Illy and In Hearts Wake. In a partnership that Mushroom’s Head of A&R, Linda Bosidis, describes as “a great fit” UNIFIED will continue to provide their unique A&R services, while Mushroom Music will provide a wide range of publishing services, such as synchronisation pitching/licensing, creative services, administration and collection.
