SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA [ VIRTUAL ]
11-12 November 2020

After the first-ever Asian edition of Music Cities Convention was held in Chengdu, China in April 2019 and welcomed 450+ delegates, the event virtually travelled back to Asia in November 2020 for its 9th global edition!
Seoul, the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea, boasts a thriving music scene and has set ambitious goals to establish its position as a global music city.
From the record-breaking phenomenon of K-Pop to international music festivals, from renowned music institutes to a rich live music offer, we learned all about Seoul’s plans and strategies as well as other global initiatives and case studies.
35+
Speakers
2x
Live Music Showcases
2x
Conference days
15+
Presentations &
Panel Discussions
Hosted Virtually
400+ Global
Delegates
Who attended?
City leaders, musicians, festival/event directors, real estate professionals, economic development professionals, academics, music industry professionals, night-time economy managers, culture officers, non-profit leaders, for-profit executives, tourism directors and anyone else with an interest or focus on how music is instrumental in creating vibrant and sustainable cities.
Topics covered
Global music city policies, music & economic development, music & health, music city and technology, music & education, role of music in future cities, night time economy, supporting musicians, city & place branding, music & peace, music tourism, music & real estate, music & community building and more.
SESSION 2 - THE NEW MUSIC CITIES: BEST PRACTICES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Session Moderator: Lee Jong-Im, Professor of Graduate School of Journalism & Communications, Kyunghee University (South Korea)
There’s no better way to start building your music city than by finding out what other places have been doing. Travelling around the world, we'll be discovering some of the best uses of music in cities.
[ DAY 1 ] 11 November 2020
SESSION 1 - WELCOME TO SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA
Session Moderator: Shain Shapiro, Founder & Group CEO, Sound Diplomacy (UK)
We’ll start the 9th edition of Music Cities Convention by bringing the cities of London (home to Music Cities Events & Sound Diplomacy) and Seoul (the host city) together for an official welcome, before we learn all about Seoul’s plans to become a global music city and the country’s greatest music export: K-Pop.
[ DAY 2 ] 12 November 2020
SESSION 3 - MUSIC CITIES AND THE NEW ENTERTAINMENT
Session Moderator: Jeon Gyu-Chan, Professor, School of Film, TV & Multimedia at Korea National University of Arts (South Korea)
What will music cities look like in 10, 20 or 30 years time? How will streaming, globalisation and new media affect our cities, and how can places exploit this untapped potential? The following panel and presentations will be exploring these future scenarios.
SESSION 4 - WHEN MUSIC MEETS...
Session Moderator: Shin HyunJoon, Music Critic (South Korea)
Music is not an island. It is a planet in a very complex galaxy made of different industries and stakeholders. As such, music is intertwined with all aspects of society and should be approached from all angles. Let’s see what happens when music meets this session’s key themes of sustainability, urban regeneration and peace
SESSION 5 - COVID-19: THE RESPONSE OF THE GLOBAL MUSIC CITY
Session Moderator: You Sa-won, Representative Director, K’arts Creative (South Korea)
Our last session will explore and shape the future of the music city in response to Covid-19. We’ll look at how Covid-19 has changed the music industry, as well our music ecosystems, and how we can use this as an opportunity to create better music cities.
This will be followed by a celebration of solidarity including declarations of intent to better collaborate from numerous global music cities. We’ll then announce our 2021 Music Cities Convention host city, before we bring the 2020 edition to an end and start another amazing showcase of Korean musicians, performing live in Seoul.
Speakers
Host City Organisation
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Tickets
Get access to all panels and presentations from the event.
$30 USD - Full Two-Day Conference
$20 USD - One Day Access