Announced at Day Three of South by Southwest® (SXSW®) London, Culture, Media and Sport Committee chair Caroline Dinenage unveiled that the death of “grassroots” live and electronic music venues in Britain will be the focus of a new review conducted by a committee of the U.K. Parliament’s House of Commons, with the goals of supporting “a thriving grassroots music scene and building a sustainable talent pipeline that ensures the U.K. music industry remains one of the U.K.’s global success stories.”
ABBA creator, singer, producer, and CEO of Pophouse Entertainment Björn Ulvaeus gave a shoutout to rising star Lola Young during his fireside chat with Guardian journalist Laura Barton at SXSW London today, singing “I’m so messy” when asked what song he is currently listening to. Delving into his lifelong fascination with songwriting and technology, from ABBA to Voyage and AI, Björn also revealed that “right now [he’s] writing a musical assisted by AI,” describing that his team are “three quarters” through the process. On the motivation that keeps him creating, he said “I actually wake up curious every morning.”
Björn also expanded on the tensions around his relationship with AI, explaining how “the AI music generators train on copyrighted material, they have to, they train on all the world’s music, and for that we feel that they should be paying something towards the songwriters and artists who actually created what they needed to create their AI models.” However, on the other side of the coin, he said that though it’s a “misconception that AI can write a whole song, it’s lousy at that, and bad at lyrics as well…” he said, “It’s good with ideas,” insisting that artists must remain at the forefront of AI advancements.
Idris Elba delved into his struggles with dyslexia and motivations behind the development of his new app ‘Talking Scripts’, created alongside Stefen Schwartz and Manon Dave to assist actors and young creates with dyslexia and neurodivergence in learning their lines. In a buzzy two-part SXSW panel discussion exploring ‘Creativity As Capital For Change’ moderated by British Radio Broadcaster and TV Host Clara Amfo at SXSW London’s main stage, Idris said: “What young people don’t realise is how expensive their imaginations are, how valuable their imaginations are when they share ideas.”
Speaking in session ‘Where We Belong: Reclaiming English Identity and Our Collective Story,’ former MP Caroline Lucas said: "We’ve allowed English identity to be defined by the right. People like Robert Jenrick and Boris Johnson will tell you that English identity is essentially white and is ethnically defined...and is threatened by migrants, that's the story they tell. And if the left doesn’t get on the pitch, then that’s the story that will be told….We need to tell the positive stories about ourselves and correct the stories that others tell.”
Lucas and other panelists Zakia Sewell and Andy Green also discussed the idea of 'progressive patriotism’ which Lucas set out (quoting Billy Bragg) as “Patriotism is giving a shit about your country”. She went on to say “it is not impossible that England could be on its own sooner than we may think [from Scotland, NI and Wales]” and that progressive patriotism is “inclusive, in terms of class and background…has to be honest and acknowledge imperial past…and recognise the complexity - we have lots of identities, we don’t have to choose one."
Euan Blair (Multiverse) and Nakul Mandan (Audacious Ventures) unpacked why AI isn’t just a competitive edge but a growth imperative during their panel ‘The Age of Impatience.’ Euan stated: “There’s such an opportunity in nearly every sector, from retail, to IT, to tech, financial services, healthcare, for companies to basically plant a flag in becoming AI first, take the steps to get there, reimagine the way they work, re-constitute their organisational structures – the ones which do so really quickly will win, and win big.” Commenting on the productivity benefits of AI, Euan said: “Let us turn the British workforce into the most AI native and tech savvy in the world. We have the density of educational institutions, soft power, great stories, smart people and a country where we can actually charge our own path, regardless of what you think about Brexit, we actually do have a chance to regulate differently around this area now we’re not in Europe, and I think that gives you an incredible opportunity to reimagine the country.”
President of Como 1907 Mirwan Suwarso and manager and football legend Cesc Fabregas discussed Como’s long-term project and its rapid rise into European footballs consciousness. Touching upon the speculation around Cesc leaving Como 1097, Cesc revealed: “I started with this club because I was thinking about a long-term project. I don’t want to end my career in a club where there is a project for one or two years, and then it all ends.”
“I really believe in Como’s long-term project, I came here as a player and I’m very, very happy because here I can work the way I want. We have the same goals and the same ambition. The president allows me to work the way I want, the way I see things.”
Mirwan Suwarso said: “We have had several clubs ask us, but our position remains the same: we want to continue to grow and work together. And we remain like this. This is the story.”
Actor and producer Letitia Wright accompanied singer/songwriter Tiwa Savage on SXSW London’s main stage for a candid panel discussion which delved into their career successes, failures, transitions, legacies and what it means to be a woman at the centre of industries and movements in society today. Touching on her upcoming album ‘This One is Personal’ which is scheduled for release later this year, Tiwa said it had been her most difficult project yet, as: “This album is about [her] opening up about so many personal things, so it’s been really tough.”
