Nettwerk Music’s Terry McBride leads BIGSOUND 2019 international lineup

Terry McBride from Canada’s Nettwerk Music topped BIGSOUND 2019’s first announcement of international buyers and speakers.

Nettwerk Music already has 17 Australian and New Zealand acts on its roster, which lead McBride to quip this morning, “Everybody thinks Nettwerk is an Australian label!”

He added, “The fact is we are lovers of good music and data.

“When you combine those two things together then you understand the power of music and its ability to create a community that goes beyond physical borders.

“Australia is a big part of that global community and BIGSOUND is where the world goes to discover Australian music.”

He made it clear he is scouting for more unsigned Aussie acts for his roster when in Brisbane.

McBride’s keynote speech is also expected to provide a blueprint of the modern day ambitions and growth strategies of an independent label.

With three others, he set up Nettwerk in his Vancouver apartment in 1984.

It launched the careers of global names as Sarah McLachlan, Skinny Puppy, Barenaked Ladies and Avril Lavigne, and introduced Coldplay to North America.

BIGSOUND’s first announcement also included top international brands which will open the doors for local artists and their business associates.

They included Sub Pop, Captured Tracks, Mom + Pop Records, Live Nation UK, Green Man Festival, Paradigm Agency, Primary Talent International, The Feldman Agency and Ground Control Touring.

There are also five South American buyers from Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Colombia, representing major events and agencies.

South America is a growing market for Australian music business, with Sounds Australia leading trade missions there in the last two years.

The full announcement from this morning was:

Keynote: Terry McBride – Nettwerk (Can)

Abbie McCarthy – Radio 1 & BBC Music Introducing (UK)

Adam Kreeft – The Feldman Agency (USA)

Anamaria Diaz – Páramo (COL)

Andy Snape – Raw Power Management (USA)

Bekah Zietz Flynn – Sub Pop Records (USA)

Ben Coleman – Green Man Festival (UK)

Ben Morris – Domino Creative Sync (USA)

Brid Walpole – Pitch Perfect PR (USA)

Brendan Moylan – ECO (MEX)

Casey O’Shaughnessy – Select Music (AUS)

Ellie Jones – Stay Loose PR (UK)

Fabrício Nobre – A Construtora Música e Cultura (BRA)

Jamila Lyndon – Paradigm Agency (USA)

Jon Halperin – The Glass House (USA)

Kamran Haq – Live Nation UK / Download Festival (UK)

Kim Frankiewicz – Concord Music (UK)

Kiran Patel – A&G Sync (UK)

Kristin Genovese – Third Side Music (USA)

Matt Brinkworth – Omnian Music Group (USA)

Michael Nieves – Sugaroo (USA)

Mike Ajayi – AMF Records / Virgin EMI (UK)

Mike Sniper – Captured Tracks (USA)

Nando Machado – ForMusic (BRA)

Natasha Parish – Ground Control Touring (USA)

Nick Holroyd – Primary Talent International (UK)

Owen Mallon – Paradigm Agency (USA)

Paul Brindley – Music Ally (UK)

Shannon Kurlander – Terrorbird Media (USA)

Suzanna Slavin – Mom + Pop Music (USA)

“Australia has a global reputation for being at the forefront of new music in the southern hemisphere and BIGSOUND is where the music community comes for connection,” said the event’s programmer Tom Larkin.

“With this announcement we’re really pleased to help facilitate major opportunities for attending artists and their teams.