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Stephen Budd

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Stephen Budd
Born
Hampton Court, England
NationalityBritish
OccupationMusic industry executive

Stephen Budd is a British music industry executive based in London. He is a director of artist and producer management company Stephen Budd Music Ltd, the Africa Express project, and a co-founder of the NH7 Weekender festivals in India. In 2017 he completed his 3-year term as co-chairman of the MMF (Music Managers Forum).[1][2] He is a co-executive producer of Amnesty International and Sofar Sounds' ‘Give A Home’ global concert series.[3][4] His management roster includes the artists Dry The River and Nubiyan Twist,[5] along with the record producers Rob Ellis, Tore Johansson, Valgeir Sigurdsson, Nick Zinner, Mike Hedges, and Arthur Verocai.[6]

Artist and producer management

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He was asked to manage record producer Tony Visconti and Visconti's Good Earth Studios[7] in London's Soho, leading to the founding of Stephen Budd Management in 1985. He went on to manage bands Heaven 17[8] and Gang of Four[9] as well as British pop/folk singer-songwriter Tanita Tikaram[10] and The Magic Numbers.[11] He was a director of Stephen Budd Management until it was absorbed by the MAMA Group and subsequently HMV.[12]

He is a founder and board member of the MMF (Music Managers Forum) trade association[13] and was the creator of its producer managers group.[14] He was the organization's co-chairman from 2013 to 2017.[2]

Live music

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In 2004 he created the Passport: Back To The Bars[15] charity concert project to raise money for Warchild and Shelter. The project has featured Amy Winehouse, The Cure, Duran Duran, Coldplay, Florence and the Machine, and other artists performing in small venues.[16][17] The 2015 edition raised over £500,000 for Warchild[18][19] and won the 'Best Use Of Events' awards at the National Fundraising Awards.[20]

In 2006 the Africa Express project was formed with musician Damon Albarn, journalist Ian Birrell, and others.[21] The project aims to bring African music into the mainstream through musical collaborations with Western artists.[22] Artists who have featured in Africa Express to date include; Paul McCartney, Amadou & Mariam, Baba Maal, Franz Ferdinand, and The Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Africa Express was part of the London 2012 festival, a part of the Cultural Olympiad.[23][24][25] In 2014, a CD Africa Express Presents Maison de Jeunes was released on Transgressive Records featuring musical collaborations recorded in Mali by Albarn, Brian Eno, Ghostpoet, Django Django and others.[26] In 2014 Budd was executive producer for 'Africa Express Presents Terry Riley's In C at the Tate Modern' which resulted in an interactive film and concert album.[27][28][29] In 2019, Budd and his Africa Express colleagues had 80 musicians from around the world performing in a circus tent erected in Albarn's native area of East London, Leytonstone.[30][31]

Other activities branching outside the UK include Budd joining the British Prime Minister David Cameron's 2010 trade mission to India[32] where he co-founded the NH7 Weekender Festival which has featured artists including Mark Ronson, Flying Lotus, The Wailers, AR Rahman, and Megadeth.[33][34]. He joined the advisory board of Palestine Music Expo (PMX) in 2016,[35] helping to create a three-day live music showcase in Ramallah aiming to highlight the local music scene.[36] Budd has chaired Eurovision Song Contest selection panels for Georgia[37] and Azerbaijan.[38] In 2017 he became the co-executive producer of Amnesty International and Sofar Sounds' ‘Give A Home’ global concert series that took place in 60 countries in support of Amnesty International's ‘I Welcome’ refugees program. The series featured over 1000 artists performing shows in peoples' houses and included performances from Ed Sheeran, Emeli Sandé, Moby, The National, and Hot Chip.[39][40]

Budd is a co-founder of OneFest which, since its inception in 2011,[41] has featured artists including Albarn, Laura Marling, and Damien Rice,[42] and gone on to win 'Best Independent Festival’ at the 2017 AIM Awards[43] for a four-day event at London's Roundhouse in collaboration with musician Frank Turner.[44][45]

In late 2017 Budd, along with Martin Elbourne, helped establish the DMZ Peace Train Music Festival in South Korea, and joined its board.[46][47][48][49][50] The not-for-profit festival is run in collaboration with the mayor of Seoul.[51] The two day featured a conference in Seoul followed by a train taking artists and attendees to the demilitarized zone for live performances at the border with North Korea.[52] Headliners announced for the second edition of the festival in 2019 were John Cale, Korean-Chinese rockstar Cui Jian, and the Korean couple Chung Tae-chun and Park Eun-ok.[53]

In 2021 and 2022 Budd resurrected the Passport Back To The Bars project in a new incarnation as the Passport Back To Our Roots concert series in support of small venues threatened with closure as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.[54] The series of shows in small venues by the likes of Pet Shop Boys, Elbow, Metronomy, Everything Everything, Passenger, Ash, Public Service Broadcasting and others raised over £140,000 for the Music Venue Trust's #SaveOurVenues campaign.[55][56][57]

Public appearances

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Budd has presented educational programs for The British Council in Nigeria, India, China and Uganda,[58][59] and has given speeches at music conferences and events around the world including MIDEM (France), The Great Escape (UK),[60] WOMEX,[61] A Greener Festival (UK),[62] In The City (UK),[63] FUSE Festival (Australia),[64] M for Montreal (Canada),[65] Tallinn Music Week (Estonia), Mastering the Music Business (Romania),[66] Medimex (Italy),[67] Soundports (Turkey),[68] Whats Next In Music (Lithuania),[69] Pin Music Conference (N.Macedonia),[70] and Oslo World Music Festival (Norway),[71] where he gave a talk at the Nobel Peace Center on music and politics.[72] Budd has been a speaker at the Berklee College of Music and at the London School of Economics.[73]

Interviews with Budd appear in various music documentaries including The Africa Express,[74] and Walking In The Opposite Direction (about the artist Adrian Borland and The Sound),[75] and books such as Martin Roach's Take That – Now and Then biography,[76] and Jonathan Maitland's How to Have a No.1 Hit Single.[77]

References

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  1. ^ "MMF chairs Diane Wagg and Stephen Budd on the evolving role of the manager". Music Week. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
  2. ^ a b Hanley, James. "Six Questions With... Stephen Budd of Stephen Budd Management". Music Week. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  3. ^ Bradbury, Sarah. "Hot Chip is playing at my house: the secret living room gigs showing solidarity with refugees". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2022-05-25. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  4. ^ Vinti, Mike. "300 gigs, one day: Amnesty International is enlisting your favourite musicians to stop the refugee crisis". Notion Magazine.
  5. ^ "Artist Management". Stephen Budd Music. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
  6. ^ "Producers/Songwriters - Our Clients". Stephen Budd Music. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  7. ^ Visconti, Tony (2007). The Autobiography. London: Harper Collins. p. 355. ISBN 978-0007229444.
  8. ^ "Bigger than America". Retrieved 2 October 2012.
  9. ^ "Gang of Four: Profile". Archived from the original on 25 June 2018. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  10. ^ "Tanita Takaram". Archived from the original on 27 February 2009. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  11. ^ "The Magic Numbers". BBC. Retrieved 17 March 2014.
  12. ^ "HMV to buy MAMA". Daily Mirror. 24 December 2009. Retrieved 23 October 2012.
  13. ^ "MMF: About Us". Retrieved 3 December 2017.
  14. ^ "Producers Push Self Preservation". Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  15. ^ "Artists endorse Passport charity project". Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  16. ^ "Pub Rock!". NME. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  17. ^ "David Gray / Passport Back to the Bars". Archived from the original on 17 June 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  18. ^ "War Child's Passport Back To The Bars gig lottery now open". Retrieved 11 June 2015.
  19. ^ "Brits 2015 activity raised £500k for War Child". Retrieved 21 December 2015.
  20. ^ "National Fundraising Awards 2015 Winners". Archived from the original on 23 July 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
  21. ^ Toledo, Manuel (9 September 2012). "Africa Express rolls into London". BBC News. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  22. ^ Zayed, Amy. "Musikkollektiv Africa Express Organisiertes Chaos als Rezept". Deutschlandfunk. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  23. ^ "London 2012 Festival heads into its final week". Archived from the original on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 23 October 2012.
  24. ^ "All aboard the Africa Express". BBC News. 3 September 2012. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
  25. ^ "Africa Express : Rolling Coverage". The Guardian. London. 2 September 2012. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
  26. ^ "Africa Express: Maison des Jeunes". digimusic. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
  27. ^ "Tate Modern, Africa Express and Space present Terry Riley's 'In C'". Tate.org. Retrieved 3 Jan 2015.
  28. ^ "Africa Express - Terry Riley's 'Mali In C' album reviews". Archived from the original on 21 July 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
  29. ^ "Songlines Awards 2016 Winners". Songlines. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  30. ^ Mccormick, Neil (6 April 2019). "Africa Express: how Damon Albarn brought the world to his home town". The Telegraph. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
  31. ^ McCormick, Neil (6 April 2019). "Africa Express: how Damon Albarn brought the world to his home town". The Telegraph. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  32. ^ "David Cameron's visit to India: full list of delegates from Britain". The Guardian. London. 28 July 2010. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  33. ^ Muldoon, Mark (23 November 2011). "India goes indie at the NH7 Weekender". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 November 2011.
  34. ^ "British Council / NH7 Weekender". Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  35. ^ Horan, Tom (11 April 2017). "'I'm the only trip-hop artist in Palestine!': the musicians shaking up the occupied territories". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
  36. ^ "Palestinian Music Expo with Cooking Vinyl announced". Billboard. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  37. ^ "Tonight: The Georgian national final - don't miss it!". Retrieved 12 October 2012.
  38. ^ "Director of British company: Participation in Eurovision is a great chance for Azerbaijan's recognition in the international arena". Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  39. ^ Lynskey, Dorian (15 September 2017). "'It was impossible to write about anything else': how musicians have – finally – tackled the refugee crisis". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  40. ^ Paine, Andre. "'It's been an extraordinary response': Stephen Budd on Amnesty and Sofar Sounds' Give A Home gigs". Music Week. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
  41. ^ Denselow, Robin (16 April 2012). "Guardian: Onefest and Damon Albarn kick off the festival season". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  42. ^ "Onefest - A Very Singular Festival". Retrieved 30 December 2014.
  43. ^ The AIM Awards 2017 [@AIMAwards] (5 September 2017). "And the winner of Best Independent Festival is... Lost Evenings aka @onefestUK! @roundhouseldn #AIMawards" (Tweet) – via Twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  44. ^ Grumble, Daniel. "Details revealed for Frank Turner's four-day Roundhouse Festival". Music Week. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  45. ^ Paine, Andre. "US ambitions for Frank Turner's Lost Evenings festival". Music Week. Retrieved 11 September 2017.
  46. ^ "DMZ Peace Train 2019". Youtube. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  47. ^ "About". DMZ Peace Train. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  48. ^ Malt, Andy. "New Festival To Launch Promoting Peace In Korea". Complete Music Update. CMU. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  49. ^ Resnikoff, Paul (3 May 2018). "Introducing the 'DMZ Peace Train Music Festival,' Happening Next Month Along Korea's Demilitarized Zone". Digital Music News. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  50. ^ Chapple, John (3 May 2018). "New Music Festival Planned For Korean DMZ". IQ. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  51. ^ Guru-Murthy, Geeta. "BBC World News Impact - DMZ Peace Train Music Festival". BBC Worldwide. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  52. ^ Masson, Gordon (2 August 2018). "2018's Hottest Boutique Music Festivals". IQ. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  53. ^ Dunbar, Jon (23 April 2019). "Legendary lineup comes together for DMZ music festival 2019". The Korea Times. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
  54. ^ "Dates Confirmed...More Coming Soon!". Passport Back To Our Roots. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  55. ^ Moore, Sam (7 September 2020). "Pet Shop Boys added to line-up of 'Passport: Back to Our Roots' intimate gig series". NME. BandLab Technologies. Retrieved 5 Aug 2022.
  56. ^ "Elbow: Night & Day Cafe Manchester". Elbow.co.uk. Polydor. 10 August 2020. Retrieved 5 Aug 2022.
  57. ^ "'Passport: Back To Our Roots' Announce Concerts By Elbow, KT Tunstall, Metronomy & Slow Readers Club". Music Venues Trust. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  58. ^ "CEN - Arts - British Council". Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  59. ^ "Can Ugandan music make it big on the world stage?". Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  60. ^ "The Great Escape 2011". Retrieved 8 October 2012.
  61. ^ "The UK Jazz Revival". WOMEX. WOMEX. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  62. ^ "GEI11 Speaker Bios". A Greener Festival. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  63. ^ Smirke, Richard. "Delegate Attendance Holds Steady at In TheCity". Archived from the original on 15 January 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
  64. ^ "Fuse Festival". Archived from the original on 29 March 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  65. ^ "M for Montreal: Music Festival". Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  66. ^ "Stephen Budd (UK)". Mastering The Music Business. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  67. ^ "Stephen Budd". Medimex. Archived from the original on 26 June 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  68. ^ "Sound Ports İstanbul 2019'un 'Yaratıcı Buluşmalar' programı 8 Kasım'da başlıyor". Yeşil Gazete. Retrieved 18 December 2019.
  69. ^ "Stephen Budd". WNIM. What's Next In Music. Retrieved 5 Aug 2022.
  70. ^ "Music Conference - Stephen Budd". Pin Conference. Retrieved 5 Aug 2022.
  71. ^ "Film & Talk: Africa Express by Stephen Budd". OSLO WORLD.
  72. ^ "Forbidden Songs". Nobel Peace Center. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  73. ^ "Stephen Budd at LSE Music Business Society Speaker Series". Evensi. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  74. ^ "IMDB Credits for Film "The Africa Express". IMDb. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  75. ^ "IMDB Credits for Film "Walking In The Opposite Direction"". Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  76. ^ Roach, Martin (2007). Take That : Now and Then. London: Harpers. p. 7. ISBN 978-0-00-723258-1.
  77. ^ Maitland, Jonathan (2002). How to Have a No.1 Hit Single. London: Simon & Schuster. p. 30. ISBN 0-7432-1988-0.
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