The Summit brings industry together to talk about creativity in the regions, strengthening touring networks, and amplifying the voices of artists and music workers who do not live in capital cities. It is one of the few national gatherings where regional and remote issues are the main agenda rather than a side session.

The first speaker announcement includes Emily Tulloch from the Australian Music Industry Network, Dr Christen Cornell from Creative Australia, Millie Millgate from Music Australia, Ros Abercrombie from Regional Arts Australia, Jeremy Conlon and Mark Smith from MusicNT, Maddy Smith from UNIFIED, Alex Pinte from Wildlive, Daan Steffens from Gutwrench Records, Gareth Lewis from General Admission Entertainment, Dr Ben Green from RMIT University, and musicians Rob Edwards and Sophie Edwards.

ALMBC Executive General Manager Ant McKenna is also among the first speakers confirmed, and we will have more to say about our program involvement closer to the event.

For live music businesses outside the capitals, the practical value sits in the touring network conversations. Regional routing, freight, accommodation, insurance and staffing all behave differently once you are a few hours from a major airport, and those costs rarely show up properly in national policy work. Getting operators, promoters, funders and researchers in the same room for three days is how that detail usually gets captured.

Additional speakers and the full program will be announced in the coming weeks. Members planning October travel may want to book in travel plans now.