Regaining Control: A Sustainable Future for Independent Artists and Labels (EN)

How do we take the power back?
This panel explores some of the most pressing challenges in today‘s cultural industries. It aims to identify those responsible for current systemic failings and examine how the independent music scene can better harness its potential to question dominant norms and hierarchies, instigate real change from within, and shape its own sustainable industry.

Christof Ellinghaus, founder and director of the acclaimed City Slang Records (home to artists such as Noga Erez, Boy Harsher, Lambchop, Los Bitchos, and Caribou) and co-founder of the digital distribution company Zebralution, brings decades of experience. He knows how it was, how it is now, and, crucially, how it could be.

Sadie Thompson, from the London-based music marketing consultancy Motive Unknown, has worked with artists and labels of all sizes. She knows the challenges of marketing music in an oversaturated, tech-driven landscape – and has learned to navigate them successfully.

As a musician, industry practitioner, and educator, moderator Andy Zammit wants to find out how we can transform these urgent questions into inspiring strategies for a more empowered future.