As BIGSOUND heads into its 25th year, the Australian music industry’s biggest annual meeting point is taking shape as one of its most ambitious editions yet.
From 1–4 September, Fortitude Valley will become a collision point for artists, labels, promoters, managers, publishers, journalists, educators, technology companies and international music executives, with the full professional development and hubs program now confirmed. More than 100 additional industry guests have joined the 2026 lineup, adding another layer to a week built around discovery, conversation and the business of music.
At the centre of the latest announcement is Paul Kelly, who will appear in conversation with ABC journalist Sarah Kanowski in a special session examining songwriting and its place in Australian culture.
Presented in conjunction with APRA AMCOS as part of its 100-year celebration of Australian songwriting, the conversation gives BIGSOUND delegates the chance to hear directly from one of the country’s most enduring songwriters about the craft behind the songs and the role music can play in shaping a national identity.
“As APRA celebrates 100 years of supporting Australian songwriters, composers and music publishers, and BIGSOUND clocks up 25 years of showcasing the best of our music industry, it seemed only fitting that we bring out one of Australia’s most beloved songwriters, Paul Kelly,” said Karen Don, Head of Membership at APRA AMCOS.
Kelly is joined by a substantial cross-section of the music business, including Annabelle Herd, CEO of ARIA; Hans Schafer, SVP Global Touring at Live Nation; artist Pete Murray; Kimberley Galceran, Music Director of Dark Mofo; and Van Picken, Global Head of Music Strategy at TEG.
The lineup stretches well beyond the traditional record-company conference. Representatives from touring, festivals, venues, publishing, sync, education, technology, media and artist management are all represented, making BIGSOUND 2026 as much about understanding where the industry is going as it is about celebrating where it has been.
‘Building Like Bad Bunny’ will examine the Puerto Rican superstar’s extraordinary rise and what Australian artists and music companies can learn from the way culture, language and identity can become powerful drivers of international growth.
The session brings together Australian and international perspectives on the expanding relationship between Australia and Latin America, with Hans Schafer offering insight from the global touring side of the business.
For an industry increasingly looking beyond traditional Western markets, it is a timely conversation about how artists can build international audiences without stripping away the cultural identity that makes them distinctive in the first place.
That idea of artists building their own infrastructure also runs through another session featuring Carla Fowler, founder of Create Mate, and Will Cuming of UNIFIED Music Group.
Hosted by Meg Williams, the discussion looks at the growing musician-entrepreneur pipeline and how people working inside music are identifying problems, creating their own solutions and building businesses around the gaps they find.
It is a useful snapshot of where the modern music industry is heading: artists are no longer simply navigating an existing system. Increasingly, they’re building parts of the system themselves.
BIGSOUND will also look backwards, with a celebration of 50 years of Central Station Records
The label has been an important part of Australian electronic and dance music history, and BIGSOUND’s anniversary session brings together founder Jo Palumbo, Managing Director Jamie Raeburn, COO Matt Nugent and former A&R executive Ashley Gay, now Managing Director of Xelon Digital.
Hosted by Jennifer Sullivan, CMO of KiTbetter, the conversation will trace Central Station Records’ history while looking at what its story can tell us about the future of the Australian music business.
The anniversary will continue at Content House with a birthday party mixer presented by KiTbetter.
But perhaps the most interesting part of BIGSOUND’s expanded program is what happens away from the main conference stages.
The festival’s dedicated hubs return in 2026, creating spaces where artists and delegates can step away from the constant movement of showcases and meetings and actually spend time talking, learning and making connections.
The BIGSOUND Ideas & Innovation Hub, presented through streams from Amplify Music Education and the Centre for Arts, Sport and Technology, will explore the increasingly blurred relationship between music, education and technology.
Among the guests are Powderfinger and The Church’s Ian Haug, Professor Glenn Savage of the University of Melbourne, Dr James Humberstone of the Sydney Conservatorium, Ball Park Music’s Sam Cromack, SYCCO’s Sasha McLeod, Pete Murray and British India’s Matt O’Gorman.
The idea is less about predicting exactly what the future of music will look like and more about bringing together the people already building it.
The BIGSOUND Artist Hub, presented by Spotify, returns for a second year with a more practical focus
Alongside the daily Turn It Up Aus breakfast, artists can access sessions including a Spotify for Artists Masterclass, a US Visa Workshop and an opportunity to meet Live Nation’s Next On booking team.
APRA100 Trivia with Not on Your Rider also returns, while Marshall will host a Thursday afternoon Happy Hour.
Spotify’s Artist and Label Partnerships Lead Leah Harris says the company is returning to support artists and the infrastructure surrounding them.
The Delegate Hub, presented by Oztix, takes a different approach, concentrating on the business of making connections.
The space will host Connect With BIGSOUND networking sessions presented by Luma and QSIC, bringing together delegates with international buyers, media and brands. Roundtables return with Xelon Digital, while an encore mixer following the BIGSOUND Decides debate will bring together figures including Annabelle Herd, Jamison Kehl, Jaddan Comerford, Viv Mellish and artist Harper Kodicek.
And then there’s Content House. Now in its second year, the space is designed specifically around the increasingly important relationship between music, media, content and audience development.
Across Tuesday to Thursday, Content House will host panels, workshops, broadcasts, mixers and live sessions examining everything from artist identity and visual culture to social media and release strategy.
GYRO.Group takes over Wednesday with programming across its brands, including a morning reset from Soothe Sounds, a release-strategy workshop from G.Y.R.O., The New Music Playbook from GROUP SPEED and an Independent Labels Happy Hour presented by DistroDirect and AIR.
Thursday continues with sessions including Artist & The Art of Being Chronically Online, featuring Poppy Reid and Birdland, and Image & Identity: Your Vision Is Your Value, featuring Creative Director and Artist Manager Summer King.
Content House will also host the Life Without Andy x American Apparel Portrait Studio, with selected BIGSOUND 100 artists appearing across the channels in the festival’s new 2026 merchandise.
The live side of BIGSOUND remains, of course, the other half of the equation.
Across three nights, the BIGSOUND 100 will perform throughout Fortitude Valley, continuing the festival’s long-running role as a launchpad for artists who may be unfamiliar today but impossible to ignore tomorrow. BIGSOUND’s conference program describes the 2026 edition as operating under the theme Creativity in Conversation, with the event once again combining industry discussions and networking with live performances across the city’s venues.
The official Oztix party returns, while Live Nation’s Ones To Watch discovery series is also back, with its lineup still being kept under wraps.
That combination is ultimately what has kept BIGSOUND relevant for a quarter of a century.
The event has helped introduce artists including Flume, Tash Sultana, Tones And I and Courtney Barnett to wider audiences, while creating a meeting point between Australian artists and the international industry capable of helping take their careers further.
And that remains the appeal.
BIGSOUND isn’t simply a conference about the music industry. For four days, it turns Fortitude Valley into the music industry’s temporary headquarters — somewhere artists can meet the people behind the business, executives can discover what’s coming next, and ideas that might otherwise remain conversations can turn into careers, tours, partnerships and records.
With Paul Kelly reflecting on a century of Australian songwriting, Central Station Records looking back across five decades, and a new generation of artists and industry figures trying to work out what comes next, BIGSOUND’s 25th anniversary arrives with a suitably broad question at its centre:
BIGSOUND 2026
1–4 September 2026
Fortitude Valley, Brisbane
Delegate Pass: $899
QMusic Subscriber & Reciprocal Members: $849
Student and concession pricing available.
Festival Pass:
3-Night Festival — $100 Early Bird / $119 Full Price
1-Night Festival — $69
Youth (25 and under) & Concession — $30
Prices exclude platform fees. Terms and conditions apply. Afterpay is available.
BIGSOUND 2026 — Full Program & Tickets
*BIGSOUND 2026 runs from 1–4 September in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane. The conference schedule and Paul Kelly session are currently listed on the official BIGSOUND program. *
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