Music industry conference MU:CON to return to Seoul on Sept. 24

Korea's largest annual music industry get-together MU:CON is set to kick off on Sept. 24 with teams of 53 artists slated to perform during the four-day event, along with expert lectures and business meetings for local creators.

Poster of MU:CON [KOREA CREATIVE CONTENT AGENCY]

Korea's largest annual music industry get-together MU:CON is set to kick off on Sept. 24 with teams of 53 artists slated to perform during the four-day event, along with expert lectures and business meetings for local creators.

MU:CON is an annual pop music festival hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Creative Content Agency (Kocca) aimed at expanding business opportunities for local musicians and entertainment professionals while serving as a networking platform for the music industry.

The festival's open lectures and workshops will take place from Sept. 24 to 26 at the Grand Hyatt Seoul hotel in central Seoul, and global music showcases will take place on Sept. 26 and 27 at three different venues in the Hongdae neighborhood — Shinhan pLay Square Live Hall, Musinsa Garage and Hongdae cafe.

A total of 53 teams, including three overseas acts and 11 winners from Kocca’s artist promotion project “MUSE ON,” will take part.

Guest performers include singers Nell, BewhY and Kino from Pentagon on the first day and girl group tripleS, Peppertones and Eve on the second day. International artists — Taiwanese girl group Genblue, Thai singer Ally and Thai band Rocketman — will also perform.

The showcases can be reserved for free in advance through Interpark Ticket, with walk-in reservations available if seats remain. They will also be streamed live on the YouTube channel KOCCAMUSIC.

This year’s open lectures and workshops will take place with a focus on sharing the trends and insights of global music and the entertainment industry.

The first day’s open session will cover “Creating Performance Opportunities Using Content,” while the second day will address “Creating New Revenue Streams Using IP.” Workshops will delve into the details of these topics.

Speakers include Helena Kosinski, vice president of global at Luminate; Ryan Farley, managing director and head of A&R at Cooking Vinyl Publishing, who has collaborated with K-pop artists such as TXT, NCT Dream and Enhypen; Lee June-hyung, involved in A&R for Fifty Fifty’s "Cupid" (2023) ; and Oh Ju-hwan, vocalist of the band Adoy.

This year’s MU:CON also features the 2024 MWM Conference hosted by the Korea Music Content Association (KMCA), where experts from various fields including the music industry and government will discuss the future role of the music industry.

The MWM conference will be held on Sept. 26 at Grand Hyatt Seoul in central Seoul, and reservations can be made through MWM’s official website.

“MU:CON has supported the business of various musicians, music and entertainment companies for the past 13 years and has grown as a global business venue beyond Asia,” said Yoo Hyun-seok, the acting chairman of Kocca. ”We will continue to support in various ways to ensure that the IP of outstanding domestic music content can be enjoyed and expanded on global stages.”

BY WOO JI-WON [woo.jiwon@joongang.co.kr]