With The Great Escape in Brighton now just ten weeks away, today the full topic outlines have been published for the three CMU+TGE Sessions that will sit at the heart of this year’s TGE Conference, plus a first batch of speakers has also been announced and the return of the Steve Strange Award confirmed.

Once again the CMU+TGE Sessions will put the spotlight on three key topics: music and education on Wednesday 10 May, music and deals on Thursday 11 May, and music and the creator economy on Friday 12 May.

The Music + Education strand will ask how the music industry can help deliver the new National Plan For Music Education in England, how online content and digital education platforms are changing how people learn, and how traditional educators can work alongside digital educators to deliver maximum value.

In addition to that, it will ask what skills are needed in the music business today, what skills will be in demand in the future, and how education and industry can ensure that young people develop the skills they need to succeed.

Check out the full schedule for Music + Education here.

The Music + Deals strand will identify and dissect the deals that best help artists achieve their objectives, consider the different options artists now have when selecting and negotiating with their business partners, and look at how the evolution of consumption is informing deals around particular rights.

It will also ask what that evolution of consumption means for the music industry’s digital deals in the future – and will investigate how samples and interpolations are delivering new licensing opportunities for songwriters and music publishers.

Check out the full schedule for Music + Deals here.

The Music + Creator Economy strand will dissect and discuss the growing number of tools, platforms and market-places being used by creators of music to write, record and iterate music, to facilitate collaborations, and to generate new income from their creative expertise.

It will also look at what being part of the creator economy can mean for musicians – as both creators and consumers. And will review the digital tools and platforms that help frontline artists – and other creators in and beyond music – to grow their fanbases and monetise the fan relationship.

Check out the full schedule for Music + Creator Economy here.

Speakers set to join the discussions in those three strands include Alex Lee Thomson, Director at Green House Group; Bridget Whyte, CEO at Music Mark; Eric Mackay, Co-Founder of imbr; Eve Horne, Founder of Peak Music; Jen Anderson, Senior Lecturer at Point Blank Music School; Jill Hollywood, MD at Echo Beach Management; Keturah Cummings, Founder of Forward Slash; Mark Terry, Head Of Europe at beatBread; Nick Eziefula, Partner at Simkins; Pamela McCormick, Founder of UD; Sophie Goossens, Partner at ReedSmith; and Vanessa Wilson, a specialist leader of music education.

They join the previously announced Yolanda Brown, Michelle Escoffery, Smade and David Marcus, who will all appear within the keynote in conversations programme that sits alongside the CMU+TGE Sessions, as well as the series of panels, workshops, parties and networking events presented by TGE’s music industry partners.

In addition to all of the information about the TGE Conference programme, details have also been announced about the return of the Steve Strange Award, which was launched at last year’s Great Escape in honour of the late booking agent and co-founder of X-Ray Touring Steve Strange.

The award celebrates music-makers that are “breaking through creative boundaries in the music industry”, with all the artists and bands playing TGE eligible and the winner selected by a vote of delegates attending the festival. The winning band receives a £5000 cash prize.

Last year’s winners were Audiobooks, who say of that win: “It was a wonderful surprise to win the Steve Strange Award last year. Appropriately for an award created in Steve Strange’s honour, we are using the funds to help elevate the production of our live shows. Touring is not always easy for independent artists so help like this goes a long way”.

This year’s Great Escape takes place from 10-13 May. To access all strands of the TGE Conference and to get priority access to the festival, you need to get yourself a delegate pass – which you can do here.

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