APRA AMCOS, in partnership with Create New South Wales and Arts North West, will once again bring its successful Starting Ground workshop to the region, with the two-day program taking place 1-2 August at the Youthie. Aboriginal musicians at any stage in their career looking to further develop creative and business skills are invited to attend. Sessions run 9am-5pm each day.
A dynamic mix of top artists and industry leaders will cover key areas: songwriting, music production, artist management, touring and live performance, marketing and promotion and more.
Coming to Tamworth are singer-songwriter Leah Flanagan, local blues artist and 2018 Tamworth Regional Council Volunteer of the Year Buddy Knox, hip-hop artist and record label founder Fred Leone, producer/engineer Anna Laverty, and Greg Carey of Grow Yourself Up, artist manager for The Rubens and Urthboy. APRA AMCOS Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander National Representative Michael Hutchings will facilitate the sessions.
Established in 2015 with support from the New South Wales Government, the Starting Ground project was created to help Aboriginal musicians build their skills, promote their work, develop career pathways and access mainstream music markets.
This marks the third year in a row that Starting Ground has come to Tamworth, with previous workshops also taking place in Eden, Byron Bay, Dubbo and Redfern, and artists mentored include local musician Athol Munro, Loren-Jade Ryan, Dylan Goolagong, Sean Kinchela, Tom Avery, Tamwah Williams and up-and-coming country artist Maddi Lyn.
“Starting Ground gives First Nations artists a unique opportunity to work with some of this country’s finest songwriters and music industry leaders. The intensive two-day workshop gives artists a chance to not only gain valuable professional advice and skills but also the confidence to push their music into the future,” said Michael Hutchings.
Registration via Eventbrite
Questions about participating? Please contact
Michael Hutchings, APRA AMCOS, mhutchings@apra.com.au (0447 447 646) or
Danielle Tuwai, APRA AMCOS, dtuwai@apra.com.au