| Continuing to innovate, grow and provide the perfect platform for the best in essential new music, Sound City is set to celebrate its 15th Anniversary in emphatic fashion – with first details of its not-to-be-missed Sound City+ Conference, its Apply To Play Programme and a huge raft of names confirmed today that ensure Liverpool City Centre is the first place to kickstart the festival season to come! Emerging across the streets of Liverpool back in 2008 as a heralded celebration of new and exciting music, Sound City has become an essential date in the diary for music fans far and wide to come together and discover the sounds of the future. Nestled in a European capital of music culture, its storied alumni who have made those first steps at Sound City reads as a who’s who of the biggest and brightest names in modern music (from the likes of Ed Sheeran, Stormzy, The xx, Alt-J and Courtney Barnett to The Wombats, Royal Blood, Catfish & The Bottlemen and many more). Joining an incredible range of names already announced for 2022 – including headliners The Lathums and Self Esteem alongside recent chart-smashers Yard Act, Alfie Templeman, The Reytons and more – Sound City continues to show its sterling reputation as the home of new music discovery. Becoming a go-to voice across radio and the new pop landscape, Mae Muller will be a name on everyone’s lips by the time Sound City comes around, guaranteed to put on a show not to be missed. Likewise, one of the most celebrated new voices in modern pop Baby Queen returns to Sound City after a festival-stealing performance in 2021 that was the talk of the festival. Recently announced as a part of the BBC’s Sound Of 2022 longlist, announced to support Olivia Rodrigo on her UK/European Tour and with more boundary-breaking pop ready to land in the world – Baby Queen will be expanding her kingdom come Sound City this Spring. Speaking about playing Sound City 2022, Mae Muller said: “So excited to be performing at Sound City!! It’s been way too long since I performed in Liverpool, and to be supporting the queen herself – Self Esteem! I can’t wait ” The swooning tales of Matt Maltese touch down at Sound City for a spellbinding performance following the release of latest album ‘Good Morning It’s Now Tomorrow’. Feverish indie newcomers Kawala will be turning Sound City into a joyous disco ball of energy come April with Brooke Combe continuing her word of mouth rise with a special appearance at Sound City that’ll have fans struck in awe for a future indie sensation. Another favourite who were the talk of Sound City 2021, Crawlers take the next step as they return in 2022 following rave reviews and acclaim from one of the most exciting new bands in the country, with TV Priest and Grandma’s House firing on all cylinders across the city as they kick-start their summer with a bang. Speaking about playing Sound City 2022, Crawlers said: “Made up to be a part of the 15 year anniversary of Sound City this year! Liverpool is our home terf and to be playing a festival full of such great names and the next wave of biggest artists we are grateful, definitely one of our favourite performances of last year and can’t wait to do it again!” |
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| Photo Credit: Ewan Ogden |
| Celebrating a true visionary in modern British music, Tim Burgess heads to Sound City 2022 – offering a glimpse of his extraordinary career in music that doesn’t wait for anyone, whilst Chilli Jesson makes a welcome return to Sound City, with a scorching new solo direction that already is showcasing some of the best sounds in his phenomenal career. Somebody’s Child heads to Sound City with soaring cinematic indie sounds galore, alongside jaw-dropping new favourites such as Abby Roberts, April, CASINO and Rose Gray. With Tamzene, The Deep Blue, Speedboat, Tom A Smith, Azure Ryder and more also announced today as a part of nearly 50 names joining the lineup, it cements Sound City as a must for all looking to find their next favourite artist across incredibly intimate stages and the capital city of trailblazing music culture. On his return to Liverpool, Tim Burgess said: “It’s brilliant that festivals are happening again. A great chance for us to not only play, but to watch some brilliant new artists too. And to be heading to Liverpool makes it even better. See you there la” One not to be missed at Sound City 2022, Abby Roberts said: “So excited to play at Sound City! Can’t wait to finally be on stage performing with so many great acts, it’s gonna be fun! See you there…” Speaking about Sound City 2022 and the new names announced today, Managing Director Becky Ayres said: “We’re incredibly excited to reveal even more unmissable names joining us across Liverpool City Centre this year to celebrate the 15th Anniversary of Sound City. What Sound City does best is showcase the best in new music across a wide array of genres, and to be able to bring some of the most essential new voices in pop, indie, rock, soul and much more to the festival this year is something we take huge pride in. Complete with the return of the Sound City+ Conference, which welcomes the wider music industry to Liverpool each year, it’s clear that Sound City 2022 is going to be a special one with the eyes of the music world firmly on our city once again!”. |
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| Sound City+ Conference Returns! Kickstarting the Sound City weekend on Friday 29th April is the return of the influential Sound City+ Conference, taking place this year across multiple iconic Liverpool venues. The Sound City+ Conference is set to see 100s of industry professionals from around the world head to Liverpool to help set the course of the music industry for the year to come. Giving back and inspiring a new generation, the future of music once again thrives through the streets of Liverpool. In 2022 the Conference once again is co-curated with the team at AIM (Association Of Independent Music), examining the music industry after a transformative 12 months. New for 2022 is the Sound City+ Experts Sessions in partnership with AWAL Academy, a brand new series co-curated with AWAL, the artist services company, in which industry experts share their inside knowledge and advice to help artists develop their careers and navigate the challenges of the music industry. It further ties into Sound City’s year-round commitment to supporting and developing the future of the music industry, offering pathways and opportunities – with new Lead Creative Education Partner the SAE Institute Liverpool creatively working with Sound City on placements throughout the year and at the festival itself for a new generation to make their first steps into the music industry. For more information on Sound City+, including full announced panels and speakers so far, head to: https://plus.soundcity.uk.com Speaking about the Sound City+ Conference 2022, Jude McArdle, Membership Manager at the Association of Independent Music (AIM) said: “AIM is thrilled to be a key part of Sound City’s 15th anniversary. Sound City is THE place to access the knowledge, people and platforms that artists and those working with them need to navigate the ever-changing music industry. It’s a lot of fun too.” |
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| TuneCore Apply To Play With these incredible names announced today, Sound City is continuing to champion and bring together the biggest and the best in thrilling new music – something that extends to their Apply To Play Platform, open to prospective bands and artists to win the opportunity to play at Sound City 2022. Not only curating a phenomenal bill but reaching out to grassroots bands and artists to take that step into playing at the leading festival for new music discovery, it once again connects artists to the best new opportunities possible. Sponsored by the passionate team at TuneCore, the Apply To Play Platform is open this Friday (February 4th). Speaking about the Apply To Play Programme, Sarah Wilson, Head Of UK at TuneCore said: “Tunecore are proud to be partnering with Sound City’s Apply to Play platform; it represents the perfect meeting of minds in terms of empowering new artists and performers to take those steps in the industry and find the outlets to start, or further, their musical careers. Through our work as the leading independent digital music distribution platform that sends music to over 150 worldwide digital music stores and streaming services, and give creators access to income immediately – We’re excited to see who comes forward for Apply to Play, what their future holds and how we can be a part of it all!” |
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| Photo Credit: Sam McMahon |
| Continuing their long-standing relationship, Sound City is once again the UK’s lead festival partner for Keychange, a global movement focused on the restructuring of the music industry to achieve gender equality. Sound City are committed to championing gender equality across all of their global musical projects from Sound City Korea, Ipswich and their pioneering streaming platform Guesthouse. Leading a vast array of festivals and events across the UK and beyond, the focus remains on achieving a gender balance across all Sound City events and initiatives. Sound City is the UK’s lead festival for Keychange, a global movement to ensure that women and diverse genders are represented in music. |
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| Photo Credit: Sam McMahon |