Sound Advice: Making It, Your Way (Newcastle)

Success has no handbook or timeline. Everyone’s definition of success is different, and so is each person’s journey. Keen to find out what success looks like for you and your music career?

Join us for a panel discussion hosted by Matt Field to hear from real-life, music success stories Daniel Radburn (Rad Music), Adam Ridgway, (dust), Ange Burke (Goon Gremlins), artist Annie Hamilton and Joab Eastley (RAAVE TAPES) as they dive into their own ideas of success and how they’ve been able to set goals in the music industry. Together, they will evaluate different ideas of success, creating a sustainable career in the industry and the impact that success has on artists, their team and their community.

A series of four workshops helmed by members of the panel will follow the discussion, where you can expect to learn about:

• Self-preservation, creative fulfillment and how to ensure your art maintains authenticity

• Building up and investing in your community and finding opportunities best suited to your values

• The role of an artist and artist manager, how to make this collaboration work successfully and how to start your own music business

• The tools necessary to finding your artist identity, and how to share it through different lanes of storytelling

What to expect:

• 9am - 9:30am: Arrival + Tibetan dumplings

• 9:30 - 10:30am: What is Your Key to Success? Panel with Daniel Radburn (Rad Music), Adam Ridgway, (dust), Ange Burke (Goon Gremlins), artist Annie Hamilton and Joab Eastley (RAAVE TAPES), hosted by Matt Field

• 10:30 - 10:45: Q&A

• 11:00am - 12:30pm: Workshop Sessions Part One /

  Success Is: Centring Community with Ange Burke

  OR

  Success Is: Protecting & Enjoying Yourself with Joab Eastley

• 12:30pm - 1:00pm: Lunch + Tibetan dumplings

• 1:00pm - 2:30pm: Workshop Sessions Part Two /

  Success Is: Establishing Your Business with Adam Ridgway & Daniel Radburn

  OR

  Success Is: Telling Your Story with Annie Hamilton

• 2:30pm - 3:30pm: Networking session with drinks around a fire

Registrants are instructed to choose one workshop per Morning and Afternoon session when making their booking. Spots are limited!

What is Your Key to Success?
In-conversation panel / 9:30 am - 10:30 am

Join these contemporary Australian musicians and industry pros as they take you through the candid losses and grand triumphs that they encountered on their path to success, emphasising that success is not linear, nor does it come with a manual. Hosted by Matt Field, hear Daniel Radburn (Rad Music), Adam Ridgway, (dust), Ange Burke (Goon Gremlins), artist Annie Hamilton and Joab Eastley (RAAVE TAPES) walk you through the importance of looking after yourself, setting goals, investing realistically into your career, building a strong community and making art for art’s sake.

WORKSHOP SESSIONS PART ONE:
Success Is: Centring Community
Workshop / 11 am - 12:30 pm

Ange Burke of Newcastle indie rock faves Goon Gremlins will kick off the first morning workshop, covering everything from community building, to establishing a safe space and aligning your work with your values. In this workshop, Burke will speak on how to engage with your community in order to uplift others, create change, and nurture and strengthen grassroots, underground scenes. It can be difficult to confidently express concern or turn down opportunities in the early stages of your career if they don’t align with you. As such Burke will also speak on the power of saying ‘no’ and finding the right opportunities best suited to your values.

Success Is: Protecting & Enjoying Yourself
Workshop / 11 am - 12:30 pm

The second workshop of the day will dial in on the importance of remaining authentic in your art and creating for personal fulfillment. RAAVE TAPES frontman Joab Eastley will talk through the significance of self-preservation as an artist, and how to ensure the purpose of your creation is fueled solely by your own happiness and satisfaction. He’ll offer tips and tricks on how to separate work and play, switching off, and how to stop burnout and income stresses from dimming your light,

WORKSHOP SESSIONS PART TWO:
Success Is: Establishing Your Business
Workshop / 1 pm - 2:30 pm

Hear from Australian music success stories Adam Ridgway of local post-punk outfit dust and founder of Wollongong’s Rad Music, Daniel Radburn, as they tell their stories and share how they reached a point of success in the music industry. Ridgway will speak on the journey of dust, from their humble beginnings as prominent Newcastle music mainstays to opening for the likes of Bloc Party and playing abroad. He’ll discuss the strategies and mechanisms utilised to build the band up, and the critical decisions they made in order to be where they are today. Radburn will offer insights into what it means to be an artist manager, and how to build a sustainable career as an artist manager in the Australian music industry.

Success Is: Telling Your Story
Workshop / 1 pm - 2:30 pm

The final workshop will be helmed by Sydney-based singer-songwriter, visual artist and designer Annie Hamilton, who will plunge into the importance of meaning and how to unlock who you are as an artist through storytelling. In this workshop, you will learn the essence of storytelling, and how to translate your story in a meaningful way. From finding your own story and brand, to telling your story through PR and promotion, Hamilton will express the details of her own journey to show you the ropes on how to market yourself in an honest and creative way.

About the speakers:

Daniel Radburn (Rad Music)
Daniel Radburn is an artist manager and founder of Wollongong-based, independent Australian artist management and event company Rad Music. Prior to artist management, Radburn was a touring musician in his 20s, which led him to opening up Rad Bar — a creative safe space and music venue in Wollongong that became a cornerstone for the local music community. He first began managing the now renowned band Hockey Dad in 2013.

Adam Ridgway (dust)
Adam Ridgway is a musician, band manager, creative organiser and the founding member of the band, dust, based in Newcastle, NSW. He has toured nationally and internationally with dust, earning a reputation for high-energy live shows and genre-defying sound. He also runs Silver Surfer Management, a boutique artist services company dedicated to supporting emerging musicians through touring, promotion, and long-term career development.

Annie Hamilton
Annie Hamilton is a Sydney/Eora-based multi-disciplinary artist and designer, who's sound explores a unique fusion of indie-rock and alt-pop. Alongside her own musical and fashion projects, Annie performs in Jack River and freelances as an illustrator, graphic and fashion designer across various creative projects.

Ange Burke (Goon Gremlins)
Ange Burke is a musician living and creating on Awabakal Country. With a background in advocacy and a passion for building community, she has been fortunate enough to be involved in projects Goon Gremlins and Noise Cave Collective. It’s always been a priority to utilise her platform not only to connect through music, but intention too.

Joab Eastley (RAAVE TAPES)

Joab has been performing across the country relentlessly over the last 10 years, fronting dance-rock act RAAVE TAPES, playing shows with the likes of The Presets and Northeast Party House and festivals such as Laneway Festival, BIGSOUND, SXSW and more. He is also one of the driving forces behind Newcastle/Muloobinba’s No-Fi Collective, who put on hometown shows and boutique mini-festivals focusing on pairing local talent with touring artists.

Matt Field (Host)
Matt Field is a venue manager, broadcaster and event producer, and above all else, is a champion of live music. Recently, he created 2 purpose-built live music rooms in Newcastle to showcase and promote local artistry, while lobbying local and state governments for legislative change to support the industry. In 2024, Matt launched Live With The Pines Micro-Music Festival which received a parliamentary recognition in Hansard for services to the industry.

For access enquiries, you can contact Maeve Grant at maeve@musicnsw.com.

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MusicNSW is supported by Create NSW and APRA AMCOS.

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