News Release

3rd March 2015

UK Music launches academic partnership

UK Music has joined with UK-wide academic institutions to launch MAP, a music academic partnership in Whitehall.

MAP is a ground-breaking collaboration between a select group of educational institutions and the membership of UK Music. Its focus is on preparing individuals who want to build careers out of their passion for music.

In the drive for economic growth, Government asked British industry to design and develop its own growth-focused skills programmes. Closer collaboration with academic institutions is considered key. UK Music answered first by launching the CBI-backed Skills Academy in 2013 and now this unique Music Academic Partnership (MAP).

To mark the launch of this pioneering network, MAP can announce:

1. A partnership with BBC Introducing, where students take on a “real” assignment, working with the BBC to film and record a broadcast-quality package of the local artists whose work has been selected to feature on the BBC Introducing slots.

2. A music tech competition with world renowned venue KOKO, where a MAP student will be awarded up to £20,000 to develop a music and technology business idea with access to further investment to help launch it .

3. A bid for an ambitious research project in collaboration with Coventry University, "Taking the Long View." This project proposes a longitudinal study of a large cohort of young people aged 12 to 22 who have a passion and talent for music and would follow them over the next decade, documenting their journey through their formative years and into their working lives.

Ground-breaking collaborative research, enviable workplace experiences for students, high-level exchanges between tutors and industry leaders – these are just some of the outcomes delivered through the Music Academic Partnership.

Jo Dipple, CEO of UK Music said, “The music industry and the skills needed today are far more technical than they were ten years ago. Entry level opportunities are limited, the vast number of businesses are SMEs and the market is fierce. MAP is designed to maximise the employability of the students enrolled in those institutions.

MAP aims to future-proof the music industry by ensuring new entrants have the right mix of experience and skills most needed. Partnerships and collaboration, like those with the BBC and with KOKO are just some of the benefits that institutions and students will enjoy, as well as engagement with policy makers, UK Music members, and the wider industry.

This is a very exciting partnership and initiative for UK Music.”

Culture Secretary, Sajid Javid said: "2015 is a hugely exciting time for British music. Last year saw British artists dominate the international album charts and one in every eight albums sold now worldwide is by a UK artist.

Partnerships like this fantastic initiative are vital in inspiring musicians and future industry executives. It will help equip them with the skills and knowledge they’ll need to succeed in today's highly competitive global music industry.

British music has an incredibly proud history and the Music Academic Partnership is a great step towards ensuring its continued long-term growth."

Olly Bengough, Owner of KOKO said; “I’m always looking at great businesses within music and technology. The chances are an idea that could innovate and game change the digital landscape is going to come from the next generation of bright young tech entrepreneurs, which is why KOKO has collaborated with UK Music and MAP to launch the KOKO MAP Tech Prize.

I’m very excited to announce this competition, and can’t wait to see what talent we discover.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

UK Music is the umbrella organisation which represents the collective interests of the UK’s commercial music industry - from artists, musicians, songwriters and composers, to record labels, music managers, music publishers, studio producers and music licensing organisations.

The members of UK Music are: AIM, BASCA, BPI, FAC, MMF, MPA, MPG, MU, PPL and PRS for Music.

Founding MAP institutions:

1. Academy of Contemporary Music (ACM)2. BIMM3. The BRIT School4. Bucks New University5. Coventry University6. Henley Business School7. Leeds Beckett University 8. Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts (LIPA)9. University of Hertfordshire10. Westminster University

Benefits of MAP to academic institutions and students:

• Help educational institutions attract the brightest and best UK and international students, by demonstrating their close ties with the music industry

• Help ensure graduates are more employable in the music industry by offering them opportunities to participate in the industry ‘in action’

• Provide a platform for world-class collaborative research projects to address pertinent industry issues

• Provide a network to share ideas and communicate at a national and international policy level

• Help young people wishing to pursue a career in the music industry decide which courses and institution best suits their needs

• Reap the wider benefits of a long-term partnership between the music industry and educational institutions

For more information contact:

Dorothy Levine - Director of Public Relations

UK Music 4th Floor49 WhitehallLondon SW1A 2BX

T: 0203 713 8444

M: 07834335525E: dorothy.levine@ukmusic.org

Or visit: www.ukmusic.org