Beggars-founder and Recording Industry Pioneer Martin Mills to Join Music & Media Finland as a Guest

Martin Mills, one of the most profound figures of today’s independent recording business joins Music & Media Finland as one of the conference’s speaker highlights. A special guest interview with Martin Mills honours his astounding career as a visionary forerunner and recording industry executive.

Since founding Beggars Banquet in 1974, initially as record shops, Martin Mills has helped forge the modern music business by constantly driving the development and introducing a substantial number of subsequently successful artists to the world. Beggars Group, one of the biggest independent music groups in the UK and the largest group of owner-run labels in the alternative sphere worldwide, now looks after a respected family of labels such as XL Recordings, 4AD, Rough Trade and Matador. In 2010, Beggars Group was featured in the top forty of Britain’s private companies with the fastest-growing international sales. This year Mills has witnessed the phenomenal success of XL artist Adele, whose current album ‘21’ has broken sales records all over the world, achieving a 9-times Platinum status in the UK and a Double Platinum in the US, shipping millions of copies worldwide.

Martin Mills has always been actively involved in promoting the interests of the independent sector, and was instrumental in setting up the Independent Music Companies Association IMPALA in 2000, and more recently the Worldwide Independent Network WIN.Among many of his industry activities, Mills has been the Vice Chairman of AIM and Chairman of IMPALA as well as a board member of WIN and A2IM in the USA, while also participating in the British government’s Music Industry Forum.

Having worked with numerous world class artists including Radiohead, The White Stripes, Pixies, Interpol, Cat Power, Basement Jaxx, The Prodigy, Vampire Weekend, TV on the Radio and Adele, Martin Mills is truly one of the most fascinating characters in today’s recording business.

Sign up by June 30 for an exclusive international delegates' early bird deal.

Music & Media Finland conference line-up is shaping up fast, so stay tuned for more speaker announcements!

Music & Media Finland, Tampere, October 20-23, 2011
www.musiikkimedia.fi

Lost in Music Festival, October 19-22, 2011
www.lostinmusic.fi

Further information
Music Export Finland
Mr. Tuomo Tähtinen, Project Manager
Email: tuomo@musex.fi
Tel. +358 44 0698 000

Music & Media Finland
Ms. Anu Aittoniemi, Managing Director
Email: anu.aittoniemi@musiikkimedia.fi
Tel. +358 50 529 0308

Music & Media Finland is organised by Suomen Musiikki & Media-Tapahtumat S.M.M. Oy.

The most important Finnish event for the music and related industries is organised in co-operation with Lost in Music Ltd and Music Export Finland. The international program is funded by the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, the Ministry of Education and Culture, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Creative Tampere, ESEK and LUSES.

Designated sessions in the international program are a part of the Finnish Music Express project, which is coordinated by the Sibelius Academy and Music Export Finland in co-operation with the Finnish Music Information Centre Fimic. The Project is funded by the European Social Fund, Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment Häme and the City of Helsinki.