Manchester’s Beyond The Music conference and festival has announced the first round of speakers for its upcoming 2026 event (Oct. 7 – 9). Taking place at the MediaCity UK complex in Salford, Greater Manchester, the conference brings together an array of U.K.-based and international industry figures for panels, keynotes, workshops and more.
The first round of speakers includes executives from a variety of sectors with Stacey Tang (co-president of RCA Records U.K.) one of the leading names set to appear. Tang led the organizing committee for the 2026 BRIT Awards, and was instrumental in the decision to move the ceremony outside of London for the first time, which was held at Manchester’s Co-op Live in March.
Bev Craig, who succeeded Andy Burnham in the role of Mayor of Greater Manchester, will also appear at the event; in July, Burnham assumed the role of U.K. prime minister.
Yungblud’s longtime manager Tommas Arnby will also speak at the event, as well as Dr. Jo Twist (CEO, BPI), Tom Gray (Chair, The Ivors Academy), Dan Lambert (Manager, Kneecap), Sophie Jones (CEO, Royal Television Society) and artists Tom A Smith, The Anchoress, Nina Nesbitt and more. See the full list of speakers at the event here.
The conference will also feature an All Content AI summit convened by Burnham, who played an integral role in establishing the Beyond The Music conference while in the role of Greater Manchester’s mayor. The first seats for the summit are available to reserve here.
The festival and conference was first established in 2023 with a number of key organizations such as the BPI, Factory International, Co-op Live and Manchester City Council operating as founding members.
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