AFEM

We're excited to announce the MUSIC x AFEM Academy: Strategic Community Building, a cohort-based learning experience for community builders across the music ecosystem. Community strategy is now a core capability for labels, managers, promoters, platforms and artist teams. Together with MUSIC x, we've designed a 3-week interactive course to help you build a clear, actionable strategy for your community. Six live sessions across three weeks in May, featuring experienced practitioners from across the industry. $500 USD — AFEM members receive 40% off, reducing the total to $300 USD. More info and sign up via the link in bio.

Amid fresh allegations shaking the hard techno scene, AFEM is restating our position: sexual harassment has no place in electronic music. Read our statement and review the resources available to the dance music community: confidential victim support helpline, the AFEM Code of Conduct, and CIISA’s independent mediation services. The responsibility is on all of us, especially those in power, to drive accountability and redesign for safety. Share these resources and stand for safer spaces. Let’s build the industry our values deserve.

AFEM’s Meet The Experts returns to Brighton Music Conference, bringing ten industry leaders to Lazy Fin for an afternoon of one-to-one sessions across rights, sync, marketing, label management, AI and finance. The format is built for music industry newcomers and established professionals alike, whether you’re there to discuss projects, get career advice, or simply connect. Each expert holds four 15-minute slots, so pick the most relevant to your work and book early. Places are limited. Friday 22 May, 2 to 3pm at Lazy Fin, Brighton. _ Trina Smith - @sourcerycollective _ Inés Martinez Llinas - @fourvenues _ Vicky Taylor - @truelove.music _ Ashley Howard - @prsformusic _ Rhys Baker - @tru_thoughts _ Bobby Lambkin-Williams _ Sean Keenan - @soundboardmusicconsulting _ Richard Morris - syncvaultcreators _ Silvia Montello - @silvias.voicebox _ Ralf Kollmann - @mobileerecords Open to all BMC attendees. RSVP via the link in bio to hold your slot.

AFEM is back at @brightonmusicconference , 20 to 23 May. Four panels, the welcome mixer, members dinner, and Meet the Experts. ⠀ _ Welcome Party Networking Mixer | Wed 20 May, 19:00 - 01:00, Tempest. Free entry, complimentary drink on arrival. DJ sets from Banxi, Chad Jackson, Janika Tenn, Pete Bones and Ralf Kollmann (@mobileerecords ). ⠀ _ AFEM's Guide to Publishing Deals for Artists and Managers | Thu 21 May, 10:00 - 11:00, Quarters. With Mandy Salem-Aubry (@msamusicservices , Moderator), Charlotte De Vega (@material_music ), Shamus Damani (@defectedrecords ), Vicky Taylor (@truelove.music ). ⠀ _ AFEM Presents: Imposter Syndrome in the Music Industry | Thu 21 May, 13:00 - 14:00, Tempest. With Emma Cordell (@downtownholdco ), Ines Martinez (@fourvenues ), Lewis Sinclair (@cygnus_music_ ), moderated by Finlay Johnson (@afemorg ). ⠀ _ AFEM Presents: Immersive Audio with Dolby and Mobilee (Workshop) | Thu 21 May, 14:00 - 15:00, Players. With Andrea Borgato (@dolby ), Myles Clarke (@dolby ), Ralf Kollmann (@mobileerecords ), moderated by Finlay Johnson (@afemorg ). ⠀ _ AFEM Members Dinner | Thu 21 May, evening. Members only, RSVP via your AFEM member communications. ⠀ _ Supercharging Electronic Scenes: Supporting Growing Regions Across the UK | Fri 22 May, 10:00 - 11:00, Carousels. With Duncan King (@skiddle , Moderator), Ben Price (@prsformusic ), Finlay Johnson (@afemorg ), Laurie Oliva (@helpmusicians ), Hannah Deeble (Arts Council). ⠀ _ AFEM x BMC: Meet the Experts | Fri 22 May, 14:00 - 15:00, Lazy Fin, Brighton. Ten experts, forty 15-minute one-to-one sessions, booked in advance using our LINK IN BIO. ⠀ AFEM members get a discounted BMC pass. Check your AFEM member communications for details.

Two weeks on from @internationalmusicsummit Ibiza 2026. Our programme covered rights, AI ethics, equity, dancefloor royalties, and the wellbeing of the people doing the work. Tagging member partners and panel co-hosts below. ⠀ _ Equity in Action at The Brave Space presented by HE.SHE.THEY., with @shesaid.so , @notbadforagirluk and @unitedtalent . _ Drop the Beat, Own Your Rights at the Pete Tong DJ Academy, with @gocliporg , @musicrightsawareness and @belectronicmusic . _ AI: Inside the Moral Revolution, with @sacem and Hoare Associates. _ AFEM x AIxchange, introducing @allrights.aixchange with @paradiseworldwide__ . _ Get Played, Get Paid: Ibiza Club Focus Revisited, with @bmatmusic and @djmonitor_ . _ Beatport Future Vision with @beatport . _ Mindful Connections, the AFEM Health Group meetup co-led by Leda Curti (@purplespillofficial ) and @izzynaud.wellbeing . _ AFEM Paella Mixer, powered by @truelove.music and @groover.en . ⠀ Every panel ran with a wider line-up than we could fit here. Thanks to every speaker who joined us on stage and to every partner who built the week with us. ⠀ Photo credit @hattiephotography , @leafhopperproject and @juansabatinophoto .

Welcoming guest practitioner Austin Gregg (@that_onecanadian ) to Session 5 of the MUSIC x AFEM Academy. Austin has helped run and moderate multiple artist communities across Discord and WhatsApp. He’ll bring a real, on-the-ground perspective on what works (and what breaks) when communities move from “small and meaningful” to “big and noisy.” In Session 5 we’ll get practical about platform choices, culture, moderation, and how to choose where to invest your energy. Use our link in bio for sign up and more information.

Beatport Connect lands in New York on Friday 12 June at Refuge, Brooklyn. A full day bringing artists, record labels and music industry professionals together for panels, workshops and a networking mixer. ⠀ AFEM presents the day’s panel on the full lifecycle of a release. A&R, label marketing and DSP voices walk through what actually happens once a track is signed: release planning, marketing campaigns, promotion, and how playlisting decisions get made on the platforms. ⠀ _ Journey of a Release: From Getting Signed to Playlisting. Presented by AFEM ⠀ Other sessions across the day cover the evolution of queer club culture in New York, artist health in the always-on era, and how DJs build gigs as their careers grow. ⠀ Speakers announced include Baauer, Patrick Topping, Juan Maclean, Sim0ne, Oscar Nn, Bianca (Femme House), Ronny Ho (Spotify), Mona Dehgan (Mute), Bina Fronda (Ultra), Erez Davids (Raw Cuts), Alyssa Byrne (@tunecore ) and AFEM’s @liss_face , with more to be announced. ⠀ AFEM members get a discount on badges through the member portal. ⠀ Tickets and full programme at the link in bio. Hosted by @beatport .

Feedback is @musictechnologyuk 's recurring pitch competition where music tech founders go head-to-head in front of a panel of senior industry decision-makers. AFEM is teaming up with MTUK on this one to put the tech needs of electronic music labels and publishers at the centre of the room. ⠀ Four founders pitch live to a panel of label and publishing executives, each holding £100,000 of virtual investment to allocate. No money changes hands. The vote of confidence is the prize. ⠀ _ Feedback: The Music Tech Pitch Competition, Electronic Labels & Publishers | Tuesday 19 May, 18:00 to 22:00 BST | H.O.M.E (House of Music and Entertainment), London ⠀ Judging panel: @sheknowsall (@believemusicpublishinguk ), keirtyrer_ktee (@shogun_audio ), @hirokibeck (@fabric_records ), @nicolahedden (@peermusicnr ). Hosted by @gazalpha . ⠀ Pitching: @fadytarekselim (@newnorm_tech ), Richard Hinkley (Repped Music), Ed Jenkins (@askmymanagement ), Dmitrii Garin (Hyperboloid Music). ⠀ RSVP via the link in our bio.

Guest practitioner announcement: @gabrielagironas joins Session 4 of the MUSIC x AFEM Academy. Gabriela is a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree and a leading voice in creator strategy, culture-driven marketing, and advocacy. Their experience spans brands like Taco Bell, Samsung, and Google Play, plus roles across YouTube, Reddit, Fender, and more. In Session 4 we’ll go deep on what changes as communities scale and how to protect culture, connection, and care as growth accelerates. Use our link in bio for sign up and more information.

New episode of the AFEM Industry Insider podcast out now. From DJ Set to Live Show: Building a Scalable Live Performance. Developing a live electronic music show is one of the most complex steps an artist can take. This episode looks at what it actually involves: how artists evolve their performance identity, what it takes to design and scale a live rig, and the pitfalls that catch teams out along the way. Drawing on perspectives across musical direction, management, promotion and production. Featuring: _ @tomcanetomcane - Musical Director, @aworkinprogress.uk _ @kellyjmoney - Manager, @littleempiremusic _ Pete Jordan - Promoter, @l_w_e _ Moderated by @finnnlay - @afemorg Listen now via the link in bio.

Two new organisations join the AFEM community this month. Both put live events and network programming at the centre of their work - a reminder that much of the industry's most useful infrastructure sits outside the usual label-and-platform conversation. ⠀ _ @_littlepinkbook_ , a global women-in-music platform combining online programming with live events in London, Dubai and Egypt. Recent work includes serving as AlphaTheta's Start From Scratch launch partner for the MENA region. ⠀ _ Elevatio Tech & Culture (@elena_varocb ), a Spain-based initiative connecting electronic music collectives, independent venues and partners across the country. Its flagship platform Equinoccio Sound is a collaborative festival in Madrid that brings different DJ collectives together to share opportunities across the local scene, with expansion underway to new cities and international partners. ⠀ A proper welcome to our newest #AFEMcommunity members.

How much of the long-term cost of working in dangerously loud environments is actually being discussed in electronic music? On Tuesday 5 May, AFEM Health is opening that conversation in public. ⠀ _ AFEM Health Roundtable: Tinnitus and Hearing Health | Tuesday 5 May, 17:00 GMT ⠀ Jono Heale (@fallenmonk67 ) of @acscustom is a hearing-protection specialist for musicians, with extensive experience advising across the live and club sectors. ⠀ Konstantin "Nivek" (@woshinivek ) has worked as a DJ for over two decades and has been living with tinnitus for over fifteen years. ⠀ Moderated by our Health Co-Chair, Izzy Naud (@izzynaud.wellbeing ). Free and open to all. Register via the link in bio.