LIMF – PMG

PMG ENCOURAGES FEMALES TO DJ

Alongside Brighter Sounds, Both Sides Now and LIMF, The Playmaker Group recently held ‘In Our Lane’, an event to encourage more females to take up the art of DJ’ing and how the business side of it all works.

Hosted by DJ Melody Kane, the event which was held in Liverpool showcased how fellow female DJ’s got into the art of DJ’ing and there career so far. Sitting on the panel was Breakwave (Meine Nacht), Nina Franklin (Melodic Distraction) and Sarah Giggle (Unity FM) who are all making waves right now in the North West.

The panel discussed how being a female has affected there journey so far and any other struggles they’ve had to overcome. Dave McTague (Mellowtone) also sat on the panel to give guidance as an event booker on his experience with booking female DJ’s, how they can push for more gigs and the gender imbalance in events.

An In-conversation was next up between Melody Kane and BBC Radio 1‘s Tiffany Calver, one of the leaders right now in the female DJ world. Tiffany spoke on her early days of DJ’ing and how she ended up on the biggest radio station in the UK. She also spoke on how females are being represented, how things can be changed for the better and how she ended up working with Drake.

The night was ended off with a demonstration by Melody Kane to budding DJ’s in attendance on the basics of DJ’ing and how to mix properly.

The Playmaker Group will continue to encourage more females to get involved with DJ’ing and hope to do similar events across the UK in the near future.

LIMF ACADEMY ANNOUNCES CLASS OF 19/20

With the Liverpool International Music Festival just days away, exciting news was announced as LIMF Academy announced their class of 2019/2020.

Now in it’s 7th year, LIMF Academy announced Tee, Lydiah and Podge as there top 3 most ready artists, with SSJ, Nora and Michael Aldag completing the class.

The 6 artists where hand picked from 100’s of applicants from Merseyside and will now be mentored by industry professionals over the next year, as well as being handed some excellent opportunities which include showcases in London, playing at LIMF and much much more. With past artists such as XamVolo, Luna, Jalen N’gonda and Eleanor Nelly all graduating from the Academy, the new artists are in great hands.

LIMF Academy is headed by The Playmaker Group’s Yaw Owusu who also curates the festival and he spoke to The Guide Liverpool to find out more about this years artists…

NILE RODGERS TO HEADLINE LIVERPOOL INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL

Today Liverpool International Music Festival (LIMF) announced the addition of another MASSIVE headliner to the already stacked 2019 lineup – Nile Rodgers & Chic!

The Disco superstar will headline the Saturday of their weekend’s festivities with Disco Classical with special guests Sister Sledge ft Kathy Sledge headlining the Sunday.

Nile Rodgers is responsible for some of the biggest hits in music; having worked with the likes of David Bowie, Madonna, Daft Punk, Sister Sledge and much much more over the past 40 years. Now the disco legend will bring the party to Sefton Park on the 20th July.

Nile Rodgers & Chic join a brilliant line-up of more than 60 acts across four different stages at LIMF 2019 – including SIGMA, De La Soul, Ella Eyre, Nao, Yxng Bane, Maverick Sabre, Norman Jay, Kenny Dope & many more.

Get ready for the biggest party in Liverpool this summer!

Tickets are on sale now for just £11 which you can buy here

LIMF ACADEMY APPLICATIONS OPEN…

The applications are now open for the 2019/2020 LIMF Academy! Aimed at artists, producer-artists and bands between the ages 16-25 from across Merseyside, LIMF Academy gives you exclusive access to activities and insider know-how from the music industry.

Artists such as XamVolo, Jalen N’Gonda and Pizzagirl have all previously been apart of the elite talent development program and went on to exciting things.

For those selected, the Academy offers:

Performance opportunities at Liverpool International Music Festival and other regular showcases
Access to exclusive monthly masterclass sessions with industry experts
Financial investment in your career (3 individuals will each receive an award of £600 and 3 individuals will each receive an award of £2,500)
Paid membership of PRS For Music
50 hours rehearsal time with Pirate Studios

On top of this, for the three most exceptional artists, producer-artists and/or bands the Academy will also provide:

Creation of professional press assets – photographs, EPK and biog
Year round mentoring
Exclusive bi-monthly skills sessions
Showcase opportunities to key press and industry in both Liverpool and London
Paid membership for one year to the Musicians’ Union

The award winning initiative was conceptualised by THE PLAYMAKER GROUP’s Yaw Owusu, who continues to drive it to this day. This years call out video below was also created by ourselves.

BBC 6 MUSIC FESTIVAL SHOWCASES LIMF ACADEMY EVENT

You may know BBC 6 Music Festival are taking over Liverpool at the end of the month with a host of seminars,, Q&A’s, events, performances and much much more. The likes of John Grant, Hot Chip, Jungle, The Good, The Bad & The Queen, Little Sims will all perform as well as a range of locals artists.

To coincide with this, THE PLAYMAKER GROUP have curated and stage manage The LIMF Academy Showcase which will be one of the BBC 6 Music Festival Fringe events. The lineup consist of XamVolo, Luna, New Junior and CaveParty.

The event is completely free and takes place at The Jacaranda Phase One on Friday 22nd March, come down and vibe with us!

LIMF 2019 LINEUP REVEALED

We’re proud to bring you the full lineup for this year’s Liverpool International Music Festival (LIMF).

The 2 day festival which is curated by THE PLAYMAKER GROUP’S Yaw Owusu takes place at Sefton Park in Liverpool on the 20th and 21st July.

Saturday see’s Sigma headlining the Central Stage with the likes of Ella Eyre, Yxng Bane, Maverick Sabre and Anton Powers joining in the fun. DJ’s Jazzie B, Norman Jay MBE and Kenny All Star to name a few will play on The Shubz and True School Club House stages and the Music City Stage see’s a host of local talent perform.

It’s party time on Sunday as the Disco Classical with special guest Sister Sledge headline the Central Stage! US legends De La Soul, Nao, SG Lewis and Samm Henshaw also feature with DJ’s Kenny Dope, Manny Norte and Original Dodger play across 2 stages.

This stellar lineup is a major highlight for us this year and we can’t wait for it all to go down! Tickets are as low as £6….yes £6 which you can buy here. Check the full lineup below and we’ll see you in Liverpool this Summer!

YAW OWUSU ON WHY MUSIC IS VITAL IN LIVERPOOL

THE PLAYMAKER GROUP’S own Yaw Owusu fronts the cover of February’s issue of the Business Post in Liverpool which confronts how vital the music business is to the cities creative life.

The topic has been a huge talking point in Liverpool over the years, so much so that a UNESCO role was created by the council last year to bring the music community closer which was given to Kev McManus.

Talking on the subject, Yaw Owusu says “The prospect of everyone coming together to work together for the betterment of the city as a whole is really important. We can achieve so much – and having political clout behind it is critical. A collective voice is stronger than individual voices.”

Yaw plays a critical part in the music industry and it’s future evolvement in the city and continues to push it to new lengths, part of that is curating the annual Liverpool International Music Festival (LIMF). You can pick up your copy of the Business Post in the city now or you can read it online here

Yaw Owusu talks special LIMF ACADEMY x Orchestra COLLAB

Under the consultancy of THE PLAYMAKER GROUP, the Ignition Orchestra collaborated with LIMF Academy which saw a one off performance at the prestigious Liverpool Philharmonic.

Aimed at artists, bands and producers between the ages of 16-25 from across Merseyside, the academy combined the raw talent of three of the 2018-2019 artists Luna, Kyami, Raheem Alameen and Academy alumni and PMG artist Sub Blue.

We spoke to THE PLAYMAKER GROUP’S Yaw Owusu who headed this award winning initiative to look back on the special night and what the future holds for LIMF Academy.

PMG: This is the fourth time LIMF Academy has collaborated with an Orchestra, what is it that these create something unique together?

YO: The reason why I always want to return to doing this is because I think it’s a unique experience for each side; for the young artists hearing their music re-created and performed live with classically-trained young musicians is satisfying, enlightening and often surprising. For the classically-trained musicians, they get the chance to link with the other side of the music industry – what may be classed as the Pop world – and apply their skills in that space. I think both sides get stretched and end up experiencing something new – just getting out of their boxes. I believe a great amount of mutual respect and admiration occurs during the process.

PMG: How important is it to push these young artists into a new environment and experience something like playing with a full piece orchestra?

YO: It’s critical. As part of our commitment to talent development, we must push them into new spaces to add real value to them. No one has ever said they haven’t grown musically or personally from these collaborations.

PMG: There always seems to be such a diverse group of artists who get to play with the orchestra, do you like pushing the boundaries to see how experimental things can get?

YO: Well the Academy is eclectic so this event should reflect that. I believe in meeting the talent where they are and supporting what they are doing – so if it’s a future beats producer that is selected for the collaboration – he or she will get to work with the orchestra. Then we tackle any challenges that occur.

I must admit working with Katie Chatburn – who is the composer and arranger – is wonderful as she just embraces the challenge and always knocks it out of the park.

PMG: From Cassie to Lauryn Hill, each artist covered a song from a female artist. What was the theme for this?

YO: The format for each show is 3 or 4 artists performing 3 song each. We make sure one is a cover. So each show we pick a theme. This year the theme was in line with Culture Liverpool’s focus on celebrating female achievement and icons – so we asked each artist to pick a song by a female artist that inspired them or their music. It worked well.

PMG: The performances on the night really were incredible and it did feel like a special night, can we look forward to more things from LIMF Academy throughout the year?

YO: Without a doubt. Every year we are trying to improve the quality and impact of what we do. There will be more showcases in Liverpool and also a London Showcase. I think for our company work like this is so important – as supporting, nurturing and developing talent is pretty central to what we do in every area.

For more on the Academy – LIMFestival.com