From October 14 to 17, the journey continues in Sofia for the So Alive Music Conference (SAMC) — one of the dynamic professional gatherings for the music industry in the Balkans.

The conference brings together artists, managers, promoters, and entrepreneurs from across the Balkans and beyond, following the same regional approach as Mastering the Music Business (MMB) in Bucharest. Both events strengthen the links between Southeast and Central European markets, supporting the exchange of experience, mobility, and professional cooperation.

Following the Athens Music Week 2025 initiative and MESO’s recent participation in Mastering the Music Business, this step continues the effort to build stronger ties between Greece, Romania, and Bulgaria — two countries that have just entered the Schengen zone, opening new opportunities for touring and creative mobility in the region.

This year, a Greek and Cypriot delegation will join SAMC, participating in discussions, showcases, and networking sessions designed to connect creativity and entrepreneurship.
The delegation includes professionals Andreas Trachonitis, Georges Perot, Lia Mansola, and Lefteris Moumtzis, together with artists Labaf, Elena Leoni, and Alexa Michael.

We will take part in panels, B2B sessions, and the CEE Mixer (October 15 | 14:00 | Kino Kabana), a regional networking format designed to foster direct collaboration between professionals from Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe.

To facilitate participation and strengthen regional exchange, Greek professionals are offered a 50% discount on SAMC passes. This initiative aims to encourage more artists and entrepreneurs from Greece and Cyprus to join the conversation and expand their networks.

We look forward to developing stronger bridges between the Bulgarian and Greek music ecosystems, continuing the dialogue started through Athens Music Week, Mastering the Music Business, and our shared commitment to regional cooperation and creative innovation.

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After the project’s official launch in Groningen, the discussion now continues in Athens, where the SONIC initiative brings together local stakeholders and cultural partners to explore new pathways for music policy and innovation.
SONIC – Strategic Opportunities for New Innovative Changes in Music Policies is a European initiative on cultural policy and music innovation, co-funded by the INTERREG EUROPE programme.

The meeting will take place on Tuesday, October 7, at Innovathens / Technopolis City of Athens, bringing together key public and private stakeholders shaping Greece’s music and creative ecosystem, including representatives from the Ministry of Culture, Technopolis City of Athens, ACE-IN (Athens University of Economics & Business), EDEM Rights, Orfium, Action Esti, Crates, Fuzz Productions, The Factory Music Group, TMR Entertainment, and MESO Events.

Throughout the session, participants will discuss the challenges and opportunities facing Athens music ecosystem, identify strategic pathways for collaboration, and outline first steps toward the creation of a Music Policy Cluster based approach in Athens.

This informal cluster will serve as a long-term framework, linking research, policy, and entrepreneurship, while connecting local actors to European networks supporting innovation and SME competitiveness in the music sector.

The SONIC Kick-Off follows the recent Music Tech Europe Athens Meet-Up, where MESO and partners — Orfium, Panathēnea, and Technopolis City of Athens — brought together startups, artists, and entrepreneurs to explore bottom-up opportunities for creative and technological innovation.

With SONIC, this momentum now expands from community to policy, laying the groundwork for sustained cooperation between institutions, academia, and creative professionals.

Over the coming months, the project will foster preliminary dialogues among Greek stakeholders, mapping strengths, needs, and synergies to develop a shared vision for the future of the music industry.

As these efforts evolve, SONIC will help shape a coordinated approach that combines bottom-up energy with top-down policy development, ensuring that Greece – and Athens in particular – becomes a reference point for music innovation, education, and cultural entrepreneurship in Europe.

Follow this link for more information about SONIC (Interreg Europe): https://www.interregeurope.eu/sonic

Stay connected — more news and opportunities will follow soon.

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European music-tech entrepreneurs face unique challenges: diverse markets, limited access to specialised expertise, difficulty to connect with partners and investors who really understand the intersection of music and technology.

Music Tech Europe Academy is a pan-European accelerator designed for innovators, startups, entrepreneurs, and SMEs in music-tech or interested in expanding into this sector. We build bridges between visionary ideas and market success through expert guidance and networking.

You’ll get access to:

📌Flexible and Hybrid Mentorship: reach experts across music, technology, finance, and entrepreneurship
🔗Strategic Connections: meet leaders and peers at key European music-tech events
🔊Pitch Sessions: present your product to investors who specialise in our sector
🌐13-Country Network: join Europe’s most vibrant community of music-tech professionals

Applications are now open.
Deadline: October 12 at 23:59 CEST.

Don’t let your next chance to grow pass you by.

Apply now at https://lnkd.in/db9Ysnr
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MTE Academy is co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union and is coordinated by Music Innovation Hub (Italy) in partnership with Media Deals (Germany), Technoport SA (Luxembourg), MESO Events (Greece), and Music Tech Hub (MTH) (Spain).

Greek Networking Partners: OrfiumPanathēneaTechnopolis City Of Athens

The post Ready to Grow? Apply to Music Tech Europe Academy appeared first on Athens Music Week.

The journey starts in Groningen with the launch of SONIC, an Interreg initiative on Strategic Opportunities for New Innovation in Cultural Policy in which Technopolis City of Athens is also a partner. Here, cultural operators and policy experts come together to explore how regional music ecosystems can be better supported through forward-looking public policies, cross-border collaboration, and cultural innovation. This conversation is vital for ensuring that local voices and communities have a place in the wider European debate.

A few days later in Berlin, Music Frontiers will bring together visionaries working at the intersection of music, technology, and creativity. Pantelis Vikatos from Orfium and Chris Hocking will join this new initiative organised by MusicTech Germany, one of our Music Tech Europe partners. The discussions will focus on how music and technology are reshaping value chains, creating new opportunities for entrepreneurs, and linking innovation with long-term sustainability. For us, this is also a chance to share perspectives from Greece and the wider region with the European music-tech community.

The month continues in Bucharest, where Athens Music Week deepens its collaboration with Mastering the Music Business and So Alive Music Conference. This partnership, initiated earlier this year in Athens, strengthens ties between the three capitals of Athens, Bucharest, and Sofia. Georges Perot and Chris Bekiris (aka Bhukhurah) will represent Greece in the panel “The New Schengen Route: Opening Doors for Business in the Balkans,” examining how the expansion of Schengen will transform artist mobility, touring, and festival cooperation. Bhukhurah will also perform in the official showcase, bringing the creativity and diversity of the Greek scene to an international stage. As part of this collaboration, Greek professionals attending MMB will benefit from a reduced participation fee, a practical step to encourage exchange and professional networking across borders.

Looking ahead, this momentum extends to the Music Tech Europe Academy, which opens its new call for applications on September 8. The programme offers deep sector expertise, a vibrant European community of innovators, and opportunities for entrepreneurs to present their work in pitch sessions that can lead to new collaborations and deals. It is an important pathway for music-tech projects and professionals ready to grow internationally.

Together, these activities are not isolated moments but connected steps in a broader effort to create a stronger, more resilient, and more connected music ecosystem in Europe. They illustrate how local initiatives can scale through regional partnerships, how creative entrepreneurs can access international networks, and how cultural cooperation can inspire sustainable change.

We warmly thank our partners who make this collective work possible.

For anyone interested in supporting local and regional talent, investing in cultural innovation, or collaborating on future European projects, now is the right moment to join forces.

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The Open Call conducted by the Music Tech Europe Academy was successfully completed with the jury deciding on the 10 start-ups with the best chances of development, capable of shaping the future of the music and technology ecosystem. The following start-ups will have the opportunity to participate in a 7-month acceleration program developed in 2021 as part of Music Moves Europe

* Afroplug
* Arenametrix
* Audacia Innovations
* Drumap
* FEST
* IZI
* Meloom
* Mood
* Oratrex
* Your Music Marketing

Athens Music Week actively supports the acceleration program and will host the closing event of the Music Tech Europe Academy in its next edition, inviting the 10 start-ups to Athens. In addition to this experience within the program, the selected start-ups will have the opportunity to participate in festival events with networking capabilities, as well as to take part in panels, workshops and exhibitions focused on the music and music-technology industries. This amazing experience will allow them to get in touch with international industry professionals, gain valuable knowledge and present their own innovative ideas to key people in the field.

The MTE Academy is co-funded by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union and coordinated by the Music Innovation Hub (Italy), in collaboration with Media Deals (Germany), Technoport (Luxembourg), Meso Events (Greece) and Barcelona Music Tech Hub (Spain).

The post Music Tech Europe Academy has announced the 10 selected start-ups selected by the Open Call appeared first on Athens Music Week.

The 30 beneficiaries of HEMI Incubator were officially announced during Tallinn Music Week, at the meet & greet event, where participants, mentors and HEMI partners came together for the first time in a hybrid event.

The 20 acceleratees and the 10 incubatees will have access to one-on-one mentoring and coaching sessions from top European music industry professionals, as well as online and offline workshops to deepen their knowledge and develop further their entrepreneurial skills. Moreover, participants will have access to networking events and pitching sessions starting from Athens Music Week as well as the opportunity to get in contact with numerous networks, music conferences and showcase festivals of the HEMI network.

The 18 HEMI Incubator experts and mentors will accompany the 30 selected beneficiaries in the development of their innovative ideas, services and products. A network of vetted music professionals who have experienced the ups and downs of working in one of the most competitive industries, and are willing to share their experience! They will pin-point strengths and weaknesses, give feedback, suggest directions and introduce them to relevant key industry players to develop synergies.

At the end of the programme, 3 innovative ideas with the highest potential of development and 3 projects/companies with the greatest potential to impact the future of the music industry will gain a support grant to help them develop their projects and widen their networks.

The 30 selected ideas and projects of HEMI Incubator cover a great variety of topics faced within the music sector, providing innovative solutions to foster social change, diversity, sustainability and creativity in an evolving industry where art, science, and business converge.

Meet our 20 acceleratees and 10 incubatees and find out more about their groundbreaking projects and ideas!

The post HEMI Incubator 2022 beneficiaries revealed! appeared first on Athens Music Week.

Live Music Sessions

Sunday, May 23 | 19.00 (CET)

Live streaming: HEMI Facebook & youtube channel

The HMAs (HEMI MUSIC AWARDS) are wrapping the second phase of the competition with “live” performances by the 9 finalists, at the HMA Live Sessions, on Sunday, May 23, which will determine the 3 winners!

During this online TV show, the contestants will be presenting a song of their choice, as well as answering questions allowing the judges and the audience to get to know them live!

For the past two months, the 9 finalists –Thom Artway (CZ), I Wear* Experiment (EE), Deaf Radio (GR), Woodstock Barbie (HU), Funk Shui (MK), Dogs in Kavala (RS), Izzy and the Black Trees (PL), Lucia (RO), Koala Voice! (SI) had access to workshops and mentoring sessions from 11 music industry experts, who have worked with companies and festivals such as Spotify, Songtrust, Google, !Κ7, Sziget, MENT Ljubljana, A38, Ship, Sony/ATV, etc.

The mentors imparted their valuable know-how and experiences through a total of 50 personalized sessions in topics such as publishing, content monetization, Merchandising, booking, PR & touring, as well as sync, and playlist issues. Meet all the mentors by clicking here

Now, it’s time to see the 9 finalists “live” on stage!

Don’t miss the HMA Live Sessions on Sunday, May 23 at 19:00 (CET) streaming live viaHEMI’s Facebook page and youtube channel! Get the chance to watch artists from the Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, and Slovenia.

The 9 ΗΜΑ finalists were selected among the 27 participants of the first phase of the talent program by an international Jury of 27 members, all distinguished professionals of the music sector, including festival organizers, promoters, export-office managers, venue managers, and music journalists.

Meet them all here!

HEMI Music Awards (HMA) is a talent program for artists who want their sound to reach new audiences and markets, and feel ready to build an international career. HMA is organized by HEMI (Hub for the Exchange of Music Innovation), a European initiative co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union, aiming to offer support to artists and music industry professionals from the 9 participating countries: the Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, and Slovenia.

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