Accra to host third IMPACT Music Conference

Under the theme Women Allowed? the annual event will focus on the place of women in the African music industry.

"The aim of the conference is to develop a space to discuss, act, share, learn and understand that space called the music industry, and how to create equal opportunities for women in this sector,” a statement by the conference reads.

Key questions the event intends to answer include: Is there a gender problem in the music industry? How can it be solved? How can we attract more women to the music industry?

“The hope is that the conference will provide a collaborative and proactive approach to discuss the biggest emerging markets in music and the role women should play in the music business,” it said.

Discussions at the two-day conference will cover several topics sauch as the creation of content online, digital art and distribution, new revenue models in music, the current and future state of the music industry and the role women will play in shaping the aforementioned.

The event will be attended by Music In Africa director Eddie Hatitye, Claude Grunitzky of TrueAfrica and Trace TV, Nomndeni Mdakhi of Edits Talks, Kenya’s Jepchumba from African Digital Art, and Ivory Coast’s Paola Audrey of Fashizblack.

Ghanaian artists Okyeame Kwame and Wiyaala will also take part in discussions. Wiyaala’s involvement in the conference comes months after her commentary on the lack of women in Ghana's music industry. “I have met honourable men and I love them, but overall the industry is run by men, for men,” she said in an interview published last year.

The IMPACT music conference is targeted at labels, collaborators, music inventors, music supporters, entrepreneurs, influencers, music executives, songwriters, producers, bloggers, brands, marketing executives, publicists, artists and promoters. It is organised by the International Music Council (IMC) with the support of UNESCO's Participation Programme.

Since 2014, the IMC has been leading a multi-partner cooperation project, the African Music Development Programme, aiming at increasing the employability of young and emerging music professionals in the African music sector by offering training and internship opportunities.

Entry to the conference is free. For additional information click here.