MusicFutures & UKMusic Present: Career pathways in the music industry

Skills and talent development are crucial to the sustainability of the UK’s music sector. In a rapidly evolving and technology driven music industries the skills and training landscape needs to be responsive to the needs of employers while preparing the current generation of young people and students for uncertain employment environments. While music industry employers’ concerns about the disconnect between education and training’s capacity to effectively prepare students and trainees for the world of work are well documented, we tend to hear less from the young people pursuing pathways into careers in the music industries.  MusicFutures, in collaboration with UK Music, presents this panel to hear from those who have engaged in a range of career development initiatives to discuss their views on the effectiveness of the training and education to prepare them careers across the music sector.

Meet the speakers!

Learn more about Music Futures

Launching in February 2025, MusicFutures is a bold new five-year UKRI Creative Cluster led by the University of Liverpool, in partnership with Liverpool John Moores University, and core sector partners ACC Liverpool, Adlib and LIPA. Based at ACC Liverpool's waterfront campus, MusicFutures is dedicated to transforming the Liverpool City Region into the UK's leading hub for music research, development, and innovation.

With a mission to drive breakthroughs in technology, sustainability, and creativity, MusicFutures brings together a dynamic network of over 1,500 regional music businesses, alongside Liverpool City Council, the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, and nearly 30 regional and national organisations – including UK Music, LIVE, and the UKIPO. By connecting artists, entrepreneurs, and researchers, MusicFutures is shaping a more equitable, sustainable, and globally competitive future for the UK music industry.

Learn more about UK Music

UK Music is the collective voice of the UK’s world-leading music industry. We represent all sectors of our industry – bringing them together to collaborate, campaign, and champion music.

Our work to deliver on this mission focuses on the following areas:

• UK Music provides a platform for music industry leaders to share ideas, concerns and goals that allow us to speak on their behalf with an authoritative voice.

• UK Music guides policy-makers towards decision-making in the best collective interests of our membership, now and for the future.

• UK Music amplifies the voice of its member organisations, consistent with the collective interest, increasing and supporting their political access.

• UK Music undertakes and publishes research on the economic and social value of music, acting as a resource for its membership and policymakers.

• UK Music promotes the music industry as a key national asset to central, devolved and local governments and Parliaments, as well as other relevant policymakers, stakeholders and influencers.

• UK Music advocates for copyright and related rights, which underpin music, to be recognised and valued at all levels of the UK government, throughout the wider economy and by consumers.

• UK Music supports and encourages initiatives to grow the music industry’s talent pipeline and nurture the development of our future workforce.

• UK Music works to boost diversity, inclusion and intersectionality in the music industry through a data-driven approach and supporting its members’ initiatives.