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ACM’s DigiFest 2021
ACM is proud to announce the second addition of ‘Digifest’, an online showcase of work that highlights the many talents across the ACM student body and celebrates all of their outstanding work.
There are various virtual tents and stages for students to interact with and showcase their work.
The event hosts a wide range of inspiring performances, industry panels and other fantastic content! We will also be awarding some exciting prizes to the best submissions of each stage.
Head over to the Industry Link Stage to check out the Masterclass & Panel schedule for the week.
Here is where we will be broadcasting the live streams directly from our campuses. Be sure to check in from 10:30AM on Tuesday the 17th for the Guildford and London artists and then again on the Thursday the 19th for the Birmingham acts. We’ll be livestreaming some of ACM’s finest acts throughout the day and the videos will then be made available to watch back, in case you can’t make it!
We’ve also included some submissions students pre-recorded at home to give you a little taster of what’s to come!
ACM enjoys a unique partnership with Europe’s largest independent recording facility, Metropolis Studios.
Celebrating 25 years as the powerhouse of the music industry, the legendary Metropolis Studios, situated in Chiswick, London, offers exclusive student access to its iconic facilities to ACM students.
Metropolis services, on average, 50% of the UK Top 40 Chart material. Its prestigious client list includes Royal Blood, Clean Bandit, Lorde, Lana Del Rey, Elton John, Ed Sheeran, Madonna, Kylie, Amy Winehouse, The Rolling Stones, Usher, Adele, Led Zeppelin, Beyonce, The Clash, Jimmy Page, Rihanna, Queen and Michael Jackson.
From student labels through to exclusive masterclasses and access to top tier facilities, check out the playlist below to find out what opportunities come out of this special relationship we have with Metropolis.
Gaming students have come together to create a unique gaming experience for everyone who attends the festival. They have created a series of different games for you to enjoy and you can play these games by heading over to https://itch.io/jam/acm-game-jam-2021/entries.
We’ve included a playlist of videos below that introduce you to the world of Games at ACM.
The Industry Link department is dedicated to supporting the professional development of students, helping them take their first steps into the music industry as it exists connecting students with the music industry jobs of today.
The department connects students to a network of top-tier industry partners in the music and wider creative industries and also offers regular tutorial and masterclass opportunities with visiting guests. Check out our playlist below to see some of the events we’ve hosted and been a part of in the past.
Also, be sure to check out the below masterclass and panel schedule for this week.
During the week of DigiFest we’ll be hosting a range of free panels and masterclasses that you can attend and the schedule is as follows;
Monday 16th August
10:00AM – ACM’s Room 2 Dream & Word Warriors Showcase
Room2Dream is a poetry, music, dance and film project that connects young people in UK secondary schools, hospital schools and bereavement groups with their peers in other parts of the world who are facing loss as a result of conflict, displacement, war, death or illness. Room2Dream asks the question: ‘Has there ever been a more important time for the voices of young people, especially those who are most affected by life threatening situations, to be heard?’
ACM Students have been working with members of spoken word poetry group “Word Warriors” in Nepal, creating songs inspired by the theme of “Home”. This live zoom event will showcase the final works from these incredibly talented collaborators.
13:00PM – Getting Your Release Radio Ready w/ Rachel Hiscock
Ever wondered what it takes to get your track ready for radio? Join us for this masterclass where Rachel Hiscock goes through everything you need from perfecting the mix for radio through to pitching it to the right people. With a career that spans over 25 years in Music PR and Marketing within the Music Industry she has specialised in Radio plugging and promotion for UK Drum & Bass and Hip Hop labels and artists including, Roni Size, Andy C, Hospital Records, General Levy and many more.
Her career continued at BBC Radio where she worked across Radio 1FM as a radio Producer on UK Garage Dreem Teem Breakfast show and ‘One In The Jungle’, before moving on as part of the Production team that set up BBC Radio 1Xtra. She has also produced the Radio 4 programme In Touch.
Submit your tracks to be played live during the session and receive feedback from everyone present on the session as well as your hosts, ACM Tutors, Leddra and Michelle. This is your opportunity to receive constructive feedback on any songs or demos you may have out or be working on.
There will also be the option for you to book into 1-2-1 sessions with Leddra and Michelle throughout the week to find out how you can bring that feedback to fruition.
Matt Hannar has worked at some of the best talent agencies in the world, ATC Live and Paradigm (F.K.A Coda) before deciding to open his own agency, Runway Artists. Matt will speak a little about his journey so far and go through some tips and tricks for finding a booking agent.
15:00PM – Artist Development 1-2-1s
These must be booked in via the Listening Form and I will be in touch to provide them a fresh link to their room.
Following on from Leddra & Michelle’s Listening Party, students who have requested a 1-2-1 will be able to gain valuable insight and feedback into taking their next steps within the music industry from where they currently are. This could be anything from demo feedback all the way through to putting a release plan together.
The Music Managers’ Forum represents over 500 UK based artist managers with a developing US network of 2700. They exist to support managers throughout the development of their careers.
In this session, they will be joined by two guests from their roster and discuss the various aspects of Artist Management, from becoming a manager to finding a manager and what role they play in defining an Artist’s career.
15:00PM – Artist Development 1-2-1s
These must be booked in via the Listening Form and I will be in touch to provide them a fresh link to their room.
Following on from Leddra & Michelle’s Listening Party, students who have requested a 1-2-1 will be able to gain valuable insight and feedback into taking their next steps within the music industry from where they currently are. This could be anything from demo feedback all the way through to putting a release plan together.
As the audience for podcasts continues to grow, there has never been a better time to start a podcast for your business, brand, or personal hobby. Podcasts are a great way to build a genuine connection with your audience.
Instead of the fractured connection you make through social media, podcasts allow you to engage your audience with unique long-form content. Podcasts are more convenient than blog posts; people can listen to podcasts while driving, working out, or just doing chores around the house.
With a career spanning over 25 years within the music industry, Rachel Hiscock has worked at BBC Radio working across Radio 1FM as a radio Producer on the UK Garage Dreem Teem Breakfast show and ‘One In The Jungle’, before moving on as part of the Production team that set up BBC Radio 1Xtra. She has also produced the Radio 4 programme In Touch, making her the perfect candidate to talk about everything you need to know on starting your own podcast.
14:15PM – Entrepreneurship Talk & Workshop w/ Paolo Camaddo
An entrepreneurship workshop aimed at students who are interested in running their own project. This session will be a collaborative conversation with members of projects Paolo has set up and run in the past, the session was created in order to help participants refine their ideas and hopefully start an entrepreneurship project of their own!
It is also aimed at artists who are interested to go down the “Independent” route and open up the possibilities of collaboration with other artists.
15:00PM – Artist Development 1-2-1s
These must be booked in via the Listening Form and I will be in touch to provide them a fresh link to their room.
Following on from Leddra & Michelle’s Listening Party, students who have requested a 1-2-1 will be able to gain valuable insight and feedback into taking their next steps within the music industry from where they currently are. This could be anything from demo feedback all the way through to putting a release plan together.
17:00PM – Network’n’Chill – Current & Prospective Student Networking Event
Network n’ Chill is an online networking event set up for the purpose of meeting new people and forging new connections.
You will be placed within in a different breakout room every 5 to 10 minutes in pairs or in groups of 3. The goal will be to exchange contacts and build relationships that will lead to a fruitful collaboration and more!
Friday 20th August
13:00PM – Getting Paid For Your Plays w/ PRS & PPL
A joint panel between Royalty Collection Societies, PRS and PPL, this session aims to cover everything about copyright, royalties and collecting societies. If you are a songwriter, composer, music publisher, performer or rightsholder, it’s vital you understand the basics of collecting societies so you can ensure you are being paid for the use of your music.
Our Technical Services students are those hoping to build a career as a live events promoter, stage manager, sound/light technician or a general roadie in music, theatre or wider entertainment sectors, the Technical Services study route provides students with the practical skills and theoretical knowledge required to kickstart their journies.
They’ll be on-hand running our livestreams and other elements of this year’s DigiFest but some have also decided to submit some of the work they’ve done at ACM throughout this year.
We’ve curated a playlist including original, student-made tracks, remixes and collaborations to create the sound of this year’s DigiFest.
Theres two playlists to check out, one Dance playlist for the more electronic tracks as well as an artist playlist for the instrument-based, singer songwriter tracks.
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