This year’s Radio Academy Festival will take place on Wednesday 17th September at the Royal College of Physicians in Regent’s Park, London.
With the theme World of Sound, the Festival will highlight global stars, pioneering technology and immersive sonic experiences.
Delegates will explore the opportunities and challenges of the evolving audio industry, with sessions designed to provide practical insights into creativity, innovation and future growth.
The Festival will be hosted by a line-up of presenters including BBC Radio 1’s Jack Saunders, Hits Radio’s Stephanie Hirst, Absolute Radio’s Dan Noble, Magic Radio’s Neev Spencer, and Lady Unchained from the Prison Radio Association.
Across the day, the event will focus on topics including podcast visualisation, human and algorithmic music curation, sustainable revenues for content creators, and staying relevant in an era of artificial intelligence.
There will also be sessions dedicated to the future role of audio creatives in a world where automation and robotics are rapidly changing the media landscape.
Highlights include exclusive insights from expert speakers:
- Podcaster and documentary-maker Louis Theroux with CEO of the Prison Radio Association Phil Maguire OBE
- Radio presenter Christian O’Connell on leaving success in the UK to triumph in Australia with a unique national show on ARN’s GOLD Network
- June Sarpong OBE on activist Una Marson, the first black woman at the BBC
- Psychologist Dr Sian Williams and neuroscientist Professor Catherine Loveday from BBC Radio 3 Unwind on the positive impact of music on our minds
- Dan McQuillin from Broadcast Bionics on retuning radio for the AI era
- Sea Salt and Mango founder Tony Philips with audio artist and poet Axel Kacoutié on why black voices matter
- BBC News Global Director Jonathan Munro on the enduring significance of the BBC World Service
- Laura Fisher from MIDiA Research on lessons for streamers from music radio
- Podcaster and Founder/CEO of Workathon Julia Hobsbawm OBE on building your career network in the shifting world of work
- Podcast Discovery’s Josh Divney with seven ideas to steal from podcasts around the world
- International broadcasting consultant Valerie Geller with time-tested techniques on creating compelling audio
- BBC News’ Analysis Editor Ros Atkins with City St George’s University of London Podcaster in Residence Keyari Page, Stripped Media’s Kobi Omenaka, Paul Fernley from Audio Always, and Patreon’s Emi Geddes
- Reggae Artist and BBC Radio Cymru, Wales and 1Xtra presenter Aleighcia Scott, broadcaster, DJ, music producer and founder of audio agency This is Distorted Andi Durrant and BBC Radio Wales presenter Molly Palmer on the art of human music curation in the age of algorithms.
Celebrating excellence, the festival will also feature award-winning contributors:
- Scout Tzofiya Boltonon poetry, psychosis and presenting on National Prison Radio in conversation with broadcaster, actor and writer Mim Shaikh
- BBC producer and presenter Monica Whitlock and editor Penny Murphy tell Sangita Myska about how they protectedthe identity of a young woman in Taliban controlled Afghanistan
- Alan Hall and Eleanor McDowall from Falling Tree Productions on the imaginative possibilities of radio and the craft of the much-loved Short Cuts
- Sam Jackson, Controller of BBC Radio 3 and the BBC Proms, on being UK Radio Station of the Year and his plans to keep on growing
- Comedian and broadcaster Jon Holmes tells Magic Radio’s Tom Price about BBC Radio 4’s The Skewer and coming home to Dead Ringers
- BBC Radio Merseyside’s Kevin Duala, producer Jess Robbins and executive editor Ben Anderson on transforming the Breakfast Show and getting a Gold ARIA for News and Current Affairs reporting
- Pulama Kaufman and Paul Fernley from Audio Always who turned a story from the other side of the world in a language they didn’t speak into a game-changing podcast
- Times Radio’s Hugo Rifkind with podcasting powerhouse Goalhanger on being UK Audio Brand of the year and building a portfolio of chart-topping content
- talkSPORT on their Judges’ award and what makes their shows so distinctive and impressive
- Greatest Hits Radio’s Andy Ashton with testaments to the impact of his leadership from a range of broadcasting stars.
New stages, sessions and experiences include:
- Cutting-edge acoustic art in the Dolby Library featuring a world exclusive preview of immersive climate change soundscape Sonic Sunset, Wisebuddah’s Psychology of Sonic Branding and an introduction to Dolby Atmos
- How Eurovision, now approaching its 70th anniversary, continues to stay relevant at a time of constant change throughout the music industry
- The enduring power of radio drama as the world’s longest-running soap opera, the BBC’s The Archers, prepares to celebrate 75 years on air
- Individual 1:1 delegate conversations with top industry leaders from Acast, Audible, Audio Always, Audioboom, Bauer, Bengo Media, BBC, Blanchard House, Loftus Media, Overcoat Media, Platform Media/Listen, Podimo, Reduced Listening, RNIB, Spotify, The Observer, Times Radio, Unedited, We Are Grape and Whistledown.
Plus the Festival will honour the memory of those lost from the world of audio, announce the new Fellows of the Radio Academy, share perspectives from broadcasters and business leaders around the world on the future of the industry, and culminate in an after-party, courtesy of PPL and PRS For Music.
Visit The Radio Academy’s website and social channels for more details.
This story first appeared on radiotoday.co.uk