Gearing up to blow out 21 candles on its birthday cake, BIGSOUND, the southern hemisphere’s biggest celebration of new music, is returning to take over Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley from 6 – 9 September. The huge milestone is being celebrated with new additions to the festival and conference program and we’re thrilled to share some of the exciting details today.
BIGSOUND
Tuesday 6 – Friday 9 September 2022
Fortitude Valley
Brisbane, QLD
Finally back to an in-person event, the first since 2019, BIGSOUND is now more important than ever. As the live music and events industry realises the current landscape, it’s time to reconnect with each other to navigate the post-pandemic future through live music, idea sharing, change- making conversations and the electric energy that BIGSOUND provides.
QMusic CEO Kris Stewart says, “This year sees the return of our first live conference and festival since 2019. We’re feeling from the industry far and wide that they’re itching to be back in rooms together and we couldn’t be more excited to get artists back on stages and industry back in their live element.”
Over the years, BIGSOUND has given some of the biggest names in Australian music their start, including A.B. Original, Ball Park Music, Courtney Barnett, DMA’s, Flume, Gang of Youths, The Jungle Giants, Miiesha, RÜFÜS DU SOL, Sampa the Great, Tkay Maidza, Tash Sultana, Thelma Plum, Vera Blue, Violent Soho, Ziggy Ramo and many more. And with that in mind, we’re pleased to announce that artist applications for BIGSOUND 2022 are now open.
BIGSOUND has always been a place of discovery for the music industry and music fans alike. This year will be no different, with the domestic and international industry there to discover and sign artists, form partnerships, catch up and celebrate the reopening and re-emergence of our music scene.
WHAT’S NEW IN 2022?
This September will see the addition of a new arm of the BIGSOUND family in the form of BIGSOUND Country. Australia has been identified as the world’s fastest-growing country music market, however the conference and development side here at home still has plenty of room for expansion. Introducing BIGSOUND Country, which will fill this gap by creating artist and industry development opportunities whilst further growing the profile of Australian country music both here and overseas.
Developed in partnership with industry bodies including APRA AMCOS and The Country Music Association of Australia (CMAA), and supported by the Brisbane Economic Development Agency, BIGSOUND Country will be threaded throughout this year’s event, and will include a party, showcases, dedicated panels and a special show featuring some of Australia’s finest country music artists.
BIGSOUND 2022 is looking for Australia and New Zealand’s finest country music artists, in particular those who may have felt in the past BIGSOUND wasn’t for them.
Kris Stewart said, “Our feedback in the past has been that a large proportion of country music artists and industry haven’t felt that BIGSOUND serviced them. We want to change that. We want artists from every spectrum of country music; pop, alt-country, bluegrass, First Nations country artists. Everybody!”