Beyond The Music 2026 — music & creative industries festival and conference, Salford
Beyond The Music is the co-operative global music and media conference and festival, returning to MediaCity, Salford for its 2026 edition — four days and nights where the music, film, broadcast, gaming and innovation worlds actually sit in one room and try to agree what they build together.
What’s on
• Festival (6–9 Oct) — 150+ artists across MediaCity venues, with curation from SXSW, BBC Introducing, The Line of Best Fit, Amazon Music +44 and more. Second wave announced includes Tom A. Smith, ALT BLK ERA, JayaHadADream, The Slow Readers Club and Cody Frost.
• Conference (7–9 Oct) — 100+ speakers in round-stage Summits (not panels), each built to reach a decision with a delegate vote closing every one. Speakers so far include Stacey Tang (Co-President, RCA Records UK), Dr Jo Twist OBE, Tom Gray, Nazir Afzal OBE, Sophie Jones, Nina Nesbitt and Catherine Martin.
• Opening night (Tue 6 Oct) — a 24th anniversary premiere of 24 Hour Party People, with Michael Winterbottom, Steve Coogan and Andrew Eaton in conversation, plus a launch party.
• The Creative Industries AI Summit (Fri 9 Oct) — the first global summit where every content industry agrees a position on AI, built around licensing, provenance, attribution and enforcement, convened by Andy Burnham.
• Billboard UK 40 Under 40 — the first ever UK edition debuts at the 2026 Opening Lunch.
The 2026 theme: everyone who makes creative work has a moral and material claim on it — a right to be credited, and a right to be paid.
Delegate passes from £255; 3-day festival tickets from £70. A Pay It Forward scheme supports access.
