Most inspirational quotes that inspire me or make me feel understood come from musicians, but from now on, they come from The Cluny’s Ross Lewis. During the Generator Live Conference he spat some incredible truths into our faces and it got him the most applause I’d heard all day. I didn’t write them all down, because I couldn’t type that fast, but if he’d write a book, I’d read it.

He wasn’t the only inspirational speaker during the Generator Live Conference, so I thought I’d share my thoughts of the day with you. I started with the panel on advancing accessibility and inclusion, led by local artist and activist Ruth Lyon. Lyon has clearly led panels before as she made sure every single panel member got a word in and was able to express their feelings regarding the issue that is the lack of inclusion for those with accessibility needs within the grassroots creative sector. Panel members Ben Price, Damian Weatherald and Dr Claire Renfrew highlighted important barriers, such as important conferences being too fast-paced and overwhelming, a lack of connection between levels within the industry, and the need for accessible venues.

Claire highlighted the importance of redefining the term musician, since that no longer just entails “being able to make music and perform”, musicians have to wear the hat of graphic designer, manager, booker, content creator, and many others, to be able to create a sustainable career within music. The weight of those roles weighs heavy on all musicians, but even more so on those with mental health issues or for example a neurodivergent disability, which is something often forgotten about.

The importance of including those struggling with neurodivergence was highlighted to me a mere few hours after I attended the panel as I had a conversation about musicians with crippling ADHD. We can’t blame them for the way they tick, and as an industry we need to do better to support them. Claire also mentioned an example of a way to make networking more accessible, by utilising mentors that can act as a link between those struggling to network and those they’d like to network with. Most important was the note to work with those that have accessibility needs, instead of against them, because in the end they are the ones that know best what it is they need.

I then headed to the neighbouring room for a talk about touring in an age of costs, cuts, and clicks, and honestly, I’ve never witnessed a more depressing talk. Instead of repeating the depressing numbers that were shared, I will share an uplifting experience I’ve had just last week; I booked a tour for a grassroots indie Americana duo that have barely played outside of their hometown and got six shows confirmed for them in a few days time. Every show will get them a fixed fee, they will stay at friends and family, and will sell their merchandise at the aforementioned shows. Another example; I booked an eight-date tour for a Dutch band who earned over £500 in income from merchandise sales. And yes, you can too. Curious how? Don’t be shy.

We could only really go up from there, so with fresh energy I sat down for Beyond Boundaries: Fuelling Cross-Media Collaboration which inspired me to think outside of the box and think of different ways to promote events and engage audiences, as well as to include influencers into PR-campaigns and offer sessions to demystify the world of PR. After that Nic Coaker led a discussion on how brands move through music cultures, which made me rethink my approach to brand collaborations. Often we wonder what a brand could do for us, how much they could pay, or how many items of clothing they could offer, however collaboration should, as with anything, be our focus. Brands don’t always know how to best collaborate or tap into their audiences, or that of an artist, and they won’t ever be able to reach the audience of you, or me, as that is uniquely ours. That is where our strength lies.

By this point, I felt as if I had absorbed all information I could, and I’d exhausted my networking capabilities, yet I found some energy to listen to Sybil, Jasmine, Charlie, Ross, and Salomeja about the future of independent venues. As mentioned at the start of this post, Ross Lewis truly took the spotlight here, highlighting the need for connection, finding common ground with those that enter independent venues, as well as pulling those that might not usually wander in, into those venues. He also highlighted that the grassroots support levy, despite the good it would do, is paid by our own money, while our government should redistribute their resources and support the grassroots creative industries. However, they’re too busy spreading hate and division to be willing to do that…

A real solution to the problems grassroots venues face wasn’t found, yet we all wholeheartedly agreed that we are not a breed (creatives that is, as a figure of speech) that gives up easily and that connection and keeping at it would be the way forward, so find your local independent venue, promoter, festival, and or artist, and stick to them like glue, and as we’ve done for decades; we’ll survive.