• NEXT EDITION
  • 23-27 OCT 2024
  • Manchester, UK

Whatever connections you are looking for, can be found somewhere at WOMEX.

- Edd Bateman (UK)
World Music Method

Perfect place to meet great people, music and movies from all over the world.

- Julien Dufourg (France)
Hart Brut company / Pagans label

60 artists, 7 stages and more than 2600 music pros from 90 countries: The World Music Expo is the biggest meeting of the global pop scene.

- Cosmo
German public radio

Cutting-edge musicians from all the corners of the planet meet at WOMEX each year to celebrate life's challenges and virtues, to inspire each other to keep growing, and expanding in a multidimensional artistic industry,to remind each other why we're here!

- Jeheremy Alexander Characo (Germany)
WUND MUZIK

Womex 21 was something that needed to happen so the Music community (on all it's different actors) met in person, talked and make business. All digital platforms are welcome, but there's nothing like human contact (even with all the COVID security procedures).

- Luis Bandeira (Portugal)
Pinuts Music Agency

WOMEX was an amazing networking experience, as well as Showcase experience. The event allowed us to meet contacts from around the world, and present our project to the type of music industry people we really needed to meet.

- Kishon Khan (UK/Bangladesh)
Musical Director, Lokkhi Terra/Funkiwala Records


I visit quite a few showcase events and conferences every year and WOMEX is always the highlight. There's always a lot of good music and some great music, but even more than that, the spirit of WOMEX is music and enjoyment first, business second, which means, rather than dog eat dog just under the surface, there's a sense of a bunch of very different people who form a floating collegiate.

- Nick Hobbs (UK/Turkey)
Charmworks



WOMEX is without a doubt the most important professional gathering in the world music community. Without it it would be very hard to get any business done at all.

- Minna Huuskonen (Finland)
Music Finland

WOMEX opened my eyes to the breadth of world music and the people who make it. Inspiring and encouraging, I made enough contacts to work on for months!

- Rob Oakie (Canada)
Executive Director Music, PEI Canada

By shifting WOMEX around a variety of geographical locations throughout Europe, the event has successfully sustained a cultural vitality that inspires me to return as often as possible.

- Danny Kapilian (USA)
FGP Associates

The important thing about WOMEX is seeing how many people are working for the same cause, encouraging music cultures to get stronger, letting the world know about their existence and richness, which is a mutual encouragement to get on with the work! You really feel you are part of a bigger movement, and your cultural identity counts.



- Kirill Kuzmin (Tajikistan)
Projects Manager, Bactria Cultural Centre

There are a huge variety of opportunities to explore at the conference for musicians and industry delegates, from international keynote speakers, round-table discussions and industry panels in the daytime to networking receptions and world-class live music [...] WOMEX is a great opportunity for meeting new contacts and professional development whatever your genre.

- Crispin Parry (UK)
CEO & Creative Director, British Underground

The most important international professional market of world music of every kind. This international fair brings together professionals from the worlds of folk, roots, ethnic and traditional music and also includes concerts, conferences and documentary films. It contributes to networking as an effective means of promoting music and culture of all kinds across frontiers.

- UNESCO Global Alliance for Cultural Diversity


Bringing together professionals from the worlds of folk, roots and traditional music and more in an extraordinary five-day event, WOMEX remains a key highlight on the global music scene.

- IMEXSA Independent Music Exporters South Africa



Whether you're a journalist, a radio DJ, a musician, a concert organiser, a booker or a record company, if you're dealing with world music you cannot miss the WOMEX.

- Zjakki Willems (Belgium)
Radio Producer, VRT

The effects of WOMEX in terms of cultural legacy for our music industry and the profile of Cardiff as a world cultural capital will be with us for years to come.

- Phil Sheeran (UK)
Cerdd Cymru: Music Wales Board

WOMEX is a worldwide unique event of cultural diversity in music. Without WOMEX the development of musical expressions in the world the last 20 years would be less rich.

- Birgit Ellinghaus (Germany)
Founding Director, Alba Kultur

WOMEX is a melting pot for world class musical acts. Not one moment did I feel it was contrived or intensely commercially driven. It really felt like a creative arena where people who love their jobs could congregate. As a solo artist I felt accepted and inspired to be apart of such an event.

- Aron Ottignon (Germany)
Urban Trout Records

WOMEX provides a valuable meeting place for international connections and dialogue, as well as refreshing those connections close to home. Combined with the opportunity to see a wealth of emerging international artists, it reminds us of the vitality of music in the globalised world we navigate.

- Joel Mills (UK)
British Council

Having meetings with people from all over the world is so enriching. Any business, big or small, can succeed on the international market. I encourage emerging music businesses to attend WOMEX. The possibilities are endless; your business does not end at the border!

- Marlyn Ntsele (South Africa)
General Manager, iSupport Music Business


One of the highlights of the annual WOMEX conference (besides the discovery of awesome music!) is that it is truly a gathering of the tribes – devoted, passionate cultural entrepreneurs and international music lovers from all over the world who provide continuous inspiration for the following year until we meet again!

- Catalina Maria Johnson (USA)
Radio Host/Producer and Music Journalist, Beat Latino

Always stimulating, WOMEX is the single most useful yearly get together of world music professionals. The energy at the trade show is palpable.



- Tom Frouge (USA)
Avocado Artists¡Globalquerque!

When you walk onto the cavernous floor of the expo, you have the world around you. Labels, artists, promoters, festivals, media - it's all there and they all have a place for jazz!

- Mike Gavin (UK)
Edition PR

To be successful at programming global music, it is essential to attend WOMEX. It is unparalleled for networking, information, and quality of artist showcases.

- Fiona Black (Canada)
Director of Programming, Capilano University