The future of radio among the topics to be discussed at The Great Escape convention this year

The future of new music radio will be one of the topics considered during The Great Escape convention this year, it has been confirmed, with a number of radio-focused sessions set to take place in May.

Leading the proceedings will be an exciting In Conversation event featuring Xfm DJ John Kennedy, who has been championing new talent on the radio for over two decades, for the last thirteen years via ‘Xposure’, the longest running show on Xfm. ‘New Noise’ host and regular 6music DJ Jon Hillcock, who started his own radio career as an intern on ‘Xposure’, will be doing the interviewing. We’ll find out about John’s career to date and how he goes about discovering new bands, and discuss his long association with Xfm, which marks 20 years of broadcasting in London this Spring.

Jon Hillcock will also lead a Great Escape panel debate on the growth of podcasting and online radio programmes, looking at the role such services play in promoting new artists. He will bring his own experience as host of the acclaimed ‘New Noise’ podcast to the proceedings, and will be joined by, amongst other people, digital marketing expert and co-host of the ‘Mr Trick & Wrongtom’ podcast Darren Hemmings, and Daniel Nathan, Chairman of Brighton radio station Juice 107.2.

Meanwhile, another radio-focused panel will invite music business people to imagine what they would do if put in charge of Radio 1. It’s very easy to knock the BBC’s flagship pop station, but what would you do differently if faced with the challenge of both championing new talent and entertaining the nation’s young music fans?

Commenting on the radio-focused panels that will appear as part of this year’s Great Escape, CMU Business Editor and TGE Convention Programmer Chris Cooke has these words to say: “Whereas the music business seems to nearing the end of its ten year’s of flux, I believe the radio industry is about to enter its big decade of change, as the internet reaches the kitchen and the car dashboard, and online radio finally comes of age. What will this mean for radio shows that champion new music?”

He continues: “There’s huge potential for new programmes, and new platforms, and I look forward to discussing the future of new music radio with leading players in both broadcasting and music this May. That we’ll also get to learn from John, one of the best new music radio DJs in British broadcasting, just makes the whole thing even more exciting!”

The Great Escape takes place from 10-12 May in Brighton. Full delegate passes are currently available at the early bird rate of £120 by CLICKING HERE. This includes access to all convention events, plus priority access to the core festival venues, subject to capacity.

Posted 24.01.12