Midem’s attendance this year was up by 9% compared to last year, hosting 4,800 delegates from 80 countries. But that’s still a fraction of previous peaks.
Back in 2006, Midem recorded nearly 10,000 attendees. That figure’s been plunging precipitously — until now.
The Cannes-based conference, which took place on June 5th-8th, hosted a series of new initiatives. The refreshed event included summits focusing on the live and streaming sectors, a songwriting camp and the inauguration of the Midem Hall of Fame Awards.
SB Projects found Scooter Braun was the first one to receive the honor.
All in all, a reported 4,800 showed up. Not exactly 10,000, but a sign of life nonetheless.
The conference gathered several thousand international music professionals for four days of panel discussions, networking, and various parties. Artists showcased as well, with nightly concerts dedicated to music from Taiwan, China and the African continent.
“The global music industry is currently writing one of its most exciting chapters ever, and this is reflected by the multi-generational Midem community,” said Midem director, Alexandre Deniot. “We have put artists and the creatives at the heard of the event.”
Recoveries are nice. But expansions are even better. At a June 7th press conference, Deniot announced a two-day Midem Latin American Summit to take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, November 29th-30th, 2018. The Summit paves the way for the 2019 Midem Latin American Forum in Cannes, as part of Midem’s on-going ‘High Potential Markets Programme’.
Not bad for a conference that was once written off as dead.
Midem has confirmed that next year’s conference will take place next year between June 4th-7th.
A brand-new Midem Music Awards will also be happening in 2019. The organizers claim that that the awards ceremony will be the first “truly data-driven” international music prize — a slight dig at the not-so data-driven Grammys.