LIMF ACADEMY

SUB BLUE RELEASES NEW SONG

The PMG’s SUB BLUE is about to unleash a lot of new music to close out 2020. First up is ‘On Your Level’, which was produced by U.S producers AV and Analog In The Digital aka Matthew Genovese.

SUB BLUE is an Alt-R&B/Pop artist based in Merseyside. Sub Blue’s releases have resonated with many and secured credible media and influencer support from titles as diverse as Complex, Earmilk and The Line of Best Fit; radio support from BBC 1Xtra (playlist), Rinse FM and 6 Music; as well as individual support from Target, MistaJam and Ace, amongst others. Quickly he amassed over half a million streams and appeared on playlists including Spotify’s New Music Friday, Chilled Pop Hits and Spotify & Chill, as well as Apple Music’s Pop Releases and Tidal Rising.

UNESCO Music Collaboration

In 2019, two Unesco Music Cities – Liverpool and Hannover – decided to link up some of their most promising emerging artists for a music collaboration.

Put together by The Playmaker Group’s Yaw Owusu, the artists were LUCA and Tori Cross representing Liverpool as part of the LIMF Academy and Kreutzberg and Lu representing Hannover. LUCA and Tori travelled to Hannover to met and work with Lu and Kreutzberg in May – they later travelled to Liverpool to complete their work and rehearse for a set at Liverpool International Music Festival (LIMF) 2019. Not only did this project lead to a performance at LIMF 2019, but it also resulted in the release of an EP, entitled the Love Language EP, which is on all streaming sites now. Listen here

The short doc is about the collaboration, filmed by The Playmaker Group as well as Nicki Dyer and Rebecca Oliver.

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…

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.

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