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Iceland Airwaves Conference

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Where?

Downtown Reykjavík

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When?

November 7-8 2024

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What time?

During work hours

Iceland Airwaves is a globally recognised brand with an outstanding reputation for shining light on new music talent.

This year’s conference welcomes music industry delegates and press from all over the world with great speakers and opportunities for networking.

The conference is held in collaboration with Iceland Music, Reykjavík Music City and Business Iceland.

Registration is open.

The Bundle

Festival, Conference, Plus upgrade

Conference pass

Conference only

Day pass

Conference Day pass Thursday or Friday

Press and photographers should visit the press page here.

Please note, we reserve the right to make changes in rates and schedule. The industry pass does not guarantee access to potential invite only events, other limited-capacity workshops and networking events or concerts after the capacity is filled. Some of the networking sessions may require enrollment.

CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

Thursday November 7

Network Breakfast provided by Wise Music

Management: Do you build a team to break through or do you break through to get a team?

Paul Stokes

Moderator
Writer/Broadcaster

James Sandom

Panelist
Red Light Management

Ruth Barlow

Panelist
Beggars Group

Steinunn Camilla

Panelist
Iceland Sync Creative

Will Larnach-Jones

Panelist
London Records

Shut up and play: Artistic integrity and commercialism

Anna Hildur

Moderator
Bifröst University

Ai Jing

Panelist
Haze Sounds

Ariane Mohr

Panelist
Reeperbahn Festival

Diana Burkot

Panelist
Pussy Riot/Artist

Ragnar Kjartansson

Panelist
Artist

Network lunch (optional) presented by Icelandair

Iceland Music: A cultural exploration

Sophie Leigh Walker

Moderator
Line of Best Fit/Toast Press

Augustin Eude

Panelist
One Little Independent

Colm O'Herlihy

Panelist
INNI

Kevin Cole

Panelist
KEXP

María Rut

Panelist
Iceland Music

From broad strokes to the pinpoint focus: Redefining Music Marketing in the stan era

Peter McGraughrin

Moderator
Red Light Management/Chess Club Records

Brian Lowit

Panelist
Dischord

Hildur Maral

Panelist
OPIA Community

Junia Jonsdottir

Panelist
Creative Director

Natasha Cutts

Panelist
Hoof Mgmt

Tim's Listening Party x Of Monsters and Men

Tim Burgess

The Charlatans

Nanna

Of Monsters and Men

Brynjar Leifsson

Of Monsters and Men

Friday November 8

Network Breakfast provided by Wise Music

All Aboard! Music festivals and community integration

Lena Ingwerson

Moderator
Music Cities Network

Ása Dýradóttir

Panelist
Reykjavík Music City

Bjarni Daníel

Panelist
Póst-Dreifing/RÚV

Lauren Down

Panelist
End of the Road Festival

Pan Thorarensen

Panelist
Extreme Chill Festival

Future of Curation: How Music is Curated, Discovered, and Critiqued in an Evolving Digital Landscape

Josie Anne Gaitens

Panelist
Journalist

David Fricke

Panelist
MOJO/SiriusXM Radio

James Foley

Panelist
Spotify

Rebecca Mason

Panelist
Inside Out

 

Rory Connolly

Panelist
BBC

Network lunch (optional) presented by Icelandair

Lifelong Learning: Can Music Education Help Shape an Industry Worth Working In?

Emilien Moyon

Panelist
Berklee Valencia

Sadie Bryant

Panelist
Spotify

State of Live: Is the Global Live Industry Prepare to Survive, Thrive, or Die?

Caitlin Ballard

Panelist
ATC Live

Elliot Lefko

Panelist
AEG/Goldenvoice

Pascal van de Velde

Panelist
Greenhouse Talent

Tamsin Embleton

Panelist
Music Industry Therapist Collective

25 Years of Iceland Airwaves and Bringing Icelandic Music to the World

Andy Duggan

Panelist
WME

Anna Rut

Panelist
Iceland Music

Nick Knowles

Panelist
AEG/Goldenvoice

Happy Hour Presented by Veeps & Plus awards (TBA)

Thursday

Networking Breakfast

Kick off the conference with breakfast, coffee and networking.

The Outsiders: Attracting global audiences to the edge of the earth

Iceland placed itself on the world map due to its creative output, with music in a star role. Built on the legacy of our music giants, new artists benefit from being able to stand on their shoulders. Can other places learn anything from the Iceland way?

Sajje Solbak (Riddu Riððu), Ruth Daniel (In Place of War), Sigtryggur Baldursson (Iceland Music), Cesar Andion (The Spanish Wave Export)

Arnar Eggerts Thorodsson (Morgunblaðið)

Where's My Money: Why invest in music?

Iceland invests heavily in the arts – in films, literature, and now increasingly music. Our question for this panel is why? Public funding in the creative sector is often met with scepticism; is it for the ‘common good’ in some way, or is this a sound investment strategy?

Maria Rut Reynisdóttir (MD for the new Iceland Music Office), Þorbjörg Daphne Hall (Musicologist), Shain Shapiro (Center for Music Ecosystems), Matt Riley (MD, AWAL)

Robert Levine (Billboard)

The Big Talk: Does the live industry need to stop blaming covid? ​

How come 2023s festival line-ups read like a 90s chart while emerging artists are cancelling tours and appearances in droves. Is this temporary post-covid setback, or is the live industry as we’ve known it breaking?

Scott Fetters (2112), Geoffrey Huntingdon-Williams (Prikið), Keith Miller (Bad Vibration Promoter), Sólveig Matthildur (Kælan Mikla), Ollie Jacob (manager Yard Act & label owner) 

Katharin Ahrend (Club Comission Berlin)

Networking Lunch

Join us for tasty treats and great chats at the networking lunch.

Iceland Music Film Phenomenon: Where you'll find our indie-darlings

The success of Icelandic indie artists in film music is leading to an emergence of a new category of rockstar: ‘the film composer’. Is this trend exclusive to Iceland or indicative of broader patterns? Is scoring a film simply a sweeter gig than touring?

Inga Magnes Weisshappel (Wise Music Iceland), Sarah McMullen (NETFLIX), Herdís Stefánsdóttir (Artist), Atli Örvarsson (INNI, Founder) 

Stephanie Rushton (Music Supervisor)

Attention Wars: Is the non-music part of music eclipsing – the music?

Artists are expected to not ‘just’ make music anymore, but create a multi-media experience presented by an enticing persona that’s always on. It would be a misunderstanding to think they do this all alone. Let’s dig into what goes into creating this cinematic universe, and meet its players.

Rakel Mjöll Leifsdóttir (Dream Wife), Viðar Logi (Creative Director), Sarina Clark (Inside Out Agency), Devon O’Connor (Lava Records) 

Rhian Emanuel (Because Music)

Networking: Happy hour 2 for 1!

Meet the delegates and speakers and enjoy a tasty beverage at the IA Center.

Iceland Airwaves Welcome Party at IA Center

The now annual tradition of welcome drinks to kick off the festival in style!

The conference hosts a dynamic array of:

Panels

Parties + Mixers

Networking

Keynotes

Who attends?

The Airwaves Conference welcomes everyone from musicians to music executives, and everything in-between.

Booking Agents, Composers, Culture Funds, DSPs, Export Bureaus, Festival Programmers, Funding Bodies, Media, Music Managers, Music Publishers, Music Supervisors, Musicians, Public Relations companies, Radio stations and programmers, Record Labels, Tour Promoters + more.

 

Previous delegates

ATC Live, ATC Management, AWAL, BBC6 Music News, Big Dipper Management, By:Larm Festival, Brooklyn Vegan, Coda Agency, Disney/Freeform, Domino Music Publishing, Eurosonic Nooderslag, Flow Festival, KEXP, Keychange/PRS, Kobalt Music, Les Inrockuptibles, MIT, Netflix, NME, Paradigm Agency, Pitch and Smith,  Reeperbahn Festival, Roskilde Festival, Sony Music, Spotify, Stereogum, The Current, The Line of Best Fit, The Orchard, United Talent Agency, Universal Music,  William Morris Endeavour + more.

Sign up for conference news

The Outsiders: Attracting global audiences to the edge of the earth

Iceland placed itself on the world map due to its creative output, with music in a star role. Built on the legacy of our music giants, new artists benefit from being able to stand on their shoulders. Can other places learn anything from the Iceland way?

Sajje Solbak (Riddu Riððu), Ruth Daniel (In Place of War), Sigtryggur Baldursson (Iceland Music), Cesar Andion (The Spanish Wave Export)

Arnar Eggerts Thorodsson (Morgunblaðið)