- TuneCore CEO, Andreea Gleeson announced as Keychange Ambassador alongside Reeperbahn Festival headliner Alice Phoebe Lou

- Believe and TuneCore sign the Keychange pledge to achieve 50% representation of women and gender minorities in their workforce

- Extensive programme of performances, resources and opportunities for women and gender minorities announced for Reeperbahn Festival, in partnership with shesaid.so

Today, Thursday 16th September, Keychange announces a huge activation supporting women and gender minorities at Reeperbahn Festival in collaboration with new US Ambassador Andreea Gleeson (CEO, TuneCore). Furthermore, in a huge commitment to positive action, TuneCore and parent company Believe, who employ more than 1270 people globally, have committed to the Keychange gender pledge. More than 500 music organisations globally have now signed the pledge.

As US Ambassador for Keychange, Gleeson will be tasked with furthering Keychange’s mission amongst the music industry in the United States, the world’s largest music market. Andreea will spearhead a new format of Keychange activations at music festivals, providing resources and opportunities for women and gender minorities everywhere. Andreea joins a network of 40+ influential Ambassadors who inform and aid the global movement. 

The ‘Gender Equality Hub’ at Reeperbahn Festival, curated by Gleeson will take place at the Hamburger Ding throughout the week and will host networking, mentoring sessions and workshops with organisations such as TikTok, Nuclear Blast, Groove Attack, Sentric Music, Songtrust, Native Instruments, Beatport, FL Studio, and Groover. 

Women and gender minority advocacy community shesaid.so will run the speed mentoring programme at the Gender Equality Hub, after huge success with the we.grow programme in 2020 and 2021. 

A drinks reception on Thursday 23rd September will give attendees the opportunity to meet some of the most important organisations and activists in the global music industry. 

See the full schedule here. 

Reeperbahn Festival this year hosts the full network meet-up of all 74 Keychange participants who are currently supported on the Creative Europe funded programme. As part of this meet-up, many Keychange participants will take part in panels and showcases at Reeperbahn Festival. Canadian rapper Kimmortal will perform on Wednesday night alongside anaiis (UK), who’s recent Colours Encore has landed with a big buzz. The Hanged Man (SE) will perform their nightmarishly beautiful pop on Thursday night, and on Friday, Canadian music manager and inclusion advocate Katrina Lopes will speak on a panel at the conference. The daytime sessions will be followed by performances from Irish indie heroes Pillow Queens (IE), championed by James Corden and recently signed to Sub Pop, and Estonian folk sensation Maarja Nuut. 

Andreea Gleeson, TuneCore CEO and Keychange Ambassador says: “Keychange’s mission aligns with TuneCore and Believe’s fierce commitment to gender parity across our artist and employee communities. While the discrepancy that exists currently in the music industry has become more recognized, the challenges and barriers facing female creators are still there and remain poorly understood and unsolved. We all need to be aware and ask ourselves what we can do to move the needle. I’m looking forward to working alongside my fellow Keychange ambassadors to break down unnecessary barriers in the industry and incite real change.”

Alexander Schulz, Reeperbahn Festival CEO & Co-Founder Keychange says: “We are looking forward to finally welcoming all these Keychange artists and innovators at the full network meeting in Hamburg at Reeperbahn Festival!” We are thrilled about the involvement of TuneCore in the framework of the Gender Equality Hub and are convinced that this is just the beginning of a valuable and wide-ranging cooperation! The partnership with TuneCore will be crucial to bring the Keychange movement to the music industry in the US.”

Keychange Ambassador Alice Phoebe Lou says: “It gives me hope that a movement like Keychange exists. In an industry that has always been dominated by men, from labels to opportunities for musicians, I'm so happy I get to be alive to witness the tides changing as we work towards a world where underrepresented genders are equally heard and celebrated. I embrace this opportunity to learn from everyone championing this important movement and to take part in creating awareness around the importance of equal opportunity.”

About Keychange

Keychange is a pioneering international initiative which transforms the future of music by encouraging festivals and music organisations to achieve at least 50% women and under-represented genders in their programming, staffing and beyond. 74 emerging artists and innovators each year from across Europe and Canada will take part in international festivals, showcase events, collaborations and a programme of creative labs. Keychange aims to accelerate change and create a better, more inclusive music industry for present and future generations.

Keychange encourages all music organisations, festivals, venues, broadcasters, agencies and beyond to take the Keychange Pledge and to work towards a representative music industry. Join the Keychange Pledge at keychange.eu.

Keychange is led by Reeperbahn Festival, PRS Foundation and Musikcentrum Öst, supported by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union, in partnership with Tallinn Music Week, Iceland Airwaves, BIME, Oslo World, Linecheck/Music Innovation Hub, Ireland Music Week, SACEM, Sound City, Way Out West, MaMA Festival, MUTEK, Breakout West and Different Sounds.

Keychange is sponsored by FACTOR, Fundación SGAE, GEMA, Gorwelion Horizons, IMRO, the Musicians’ Union, Norsk Tipping, Roskilde Festival, SOCAN Foundation, Songtrust, SoundCloud, STEF, STIM, and Talent Norge. 

Keychange Ambassadors are Shirley Manson, Imogen Heap, Tony Visconti, Alexa Feser, Dermot O’Leary, Hinds, Emily Eavis, Nadine Shah, Paulette Long OBE, Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla, iskwē, Corinne Bailey Rae, Joy Denalane, Kate Nash, Sara Potente, Ave Tölpt, planningtorock, Jess Partridge, Carla Marie Williams, Claire Edwardes, Avtomat, Karolina Czarnecka, Darcy Proper, Tones and I, Tegan and Sara, Margherita Vicario, Claudia Pereira, Brisa Fenoy, Linnea Henriksson, Mari Boine, Samsaya, AURORA, First Lady of Iceland Eliza Reid, Anna Thorvaldsdóttir, Peaches, James Foley, LYDMOR and Andreea Gleeson.

www.keychange.eu 

About Andreea Gleeson 

Andreea Gleeson is TuneCore’s Chief Executive Officer. She joined the company in 2015, as a member of the senior leadership team and has made significant contributions to the growth of TuneCore, first as Chief Marketing Officer and most recently as Chief Revenue Officer. Andreea came to TuneCore after years as an eCommerce pioneer in the retail industry, having been at the forefront of retail’s digital transformation. To the music industry, she brings a unique perspective as well as the digital and marketing expertise necessary in today’s increasingly digital landscape. Her perspective, originally as an outsider, has helped her build and innovate, unencumbered by the traditional industry norms and standards. Andreea also rose as a fierce advocate for female-identifying creators, commissioning the MIDiA Research study BE THE CHANGE: Women Making Music 2021 to identify why independent female creators remain underrepresented in the music industry, raise awareness on their challenges and begin to incite change through strategic alliances with partners across all areas of the music industry.

About TuneCore
TuneCore is the global platform for independent musicians to build audiences and careers – with technology and services across distribution, publishing administration and a range of promotional services. TuneCore Music Distribution services help artists, labels and managers sell their music through Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, TikTok, Tencent and more than 150 download and streaming stores worldwide, while retaining 100 percent of their sales revenue and rights for a low annual flat fee. TuneCore Music Publishing Administration assists songwriters by administering their compositions through licensing, registration, worldwide royalty collections, and placement opportunities in film, TV, commercials, video games and more. The TuneCore Artist Services portal offers a suite of tools and services that enable artists to promote their craft, connect with fans, and get their music heard. TuneCore, part of Believe, is headquartered in Brooklyn, NY, with offices in Los Angeles, Nashville, Atlanta, and Austin, and operates globally through local teams based in the UK, Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa, India, Japan and Singapore across 5 continents. www.tunecore.com  

About Believe
Believe is one of the world’s leading digital music companies. Believe’s mission is to develop independent artists and labels in the digital world by providing them the solutions they need to grow their audience at each stage of their career and development. Believe’s passionate team of digital music experts around the world leverages the Group’s global technology platform to advise artists and labels, distribute and promote their music. Its 1,270 employees in more than 50 countries aim to support independent artists and labels with a unique digital expertise, respect, fairness and transparency. Believe offers its various solutions through a portfolio of brands including TuneCore, Believe, Nuclear Blast, Naïve, Groove Attack and AllPoints. 

Believe is listed on compartment A of the Euronext Paris stock exchange (Ticker: BLV.PA, ISIN : FR0014003FE9) 

About shesaid.so

shesaid.so is a global community of women and gender minorities in the music industry. Independently built in London by Andreea Magdalina in 2014, shesaid.so has since grown to 15,000+ members around the world across 15+ chapters including New York, Los Angeles, France, Germany, Sweden and South Africa to name a few. Our international community is diverse, ranging from artists, composers, musicians and other creatives, through to C-SUITE leaders, mid-level executives, small business owners, freelancers and 18-25s. We achieve our mission through community, mentoring programs, strategic partnerships, networking, educational content and other industry opportunities.

www.shesaid.so