How to Build a UCCN Music City

Joey Hendrickson, by Laura Carter
Becc Bates
Paulo Longo

Moderated by Joey Hendrickson (USA), with Rainer Kern (Germany); Becc Bates (Australia), Music Development Office, South Australia; Gillian McDaniel (Jamaica), Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment & Sport; Paulo Longo (Portugal), Head of the Department of Culture

The UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) was created in 2004 to promote cooperation with and among cities that have identified creativity as a strategic factor for sustainable urban development. The 116 cities which currently make up this network of music cities, work together towards a common objective: placing creativity and cultural industries at the heart of their development plans at the local level and cooperating actively at the international level.

What does it factually mean for the city, its citizens, musicians or the music industry? Apart from prestige, what other real benefits can a city draw on from its membership to the UCCN? In times where more and more networks that unite cities that place music above other genres of culture are emerging, the question is raised: Why UCCN, what makes this network so exceptional?

Other questions arise regarding the cooperation within the network. Can cities that are so diverse geographically, economically and culturally find a common ground for effective collaboration? How can they effectively share best utilise the same support techniques for the music industry?

The subject of how to build a UCCN Music City and more will be discussed with four representatives that are the face of seemingly different cities of music.