Five years ago, friends and electronic music visionaries Ben Turner, Danny Whittle, Mark Netto, Pete Tong and Simeon Friend launched the inaugural International Music Summit.
The idea behind the event was to bring together the best talent in the electronic music industry to share experiences, hoping to inspire and influence the next generation. This year’s highlights included a forum involving Paul Oakenfold, Luciano and Carl Cox reflecting on their highly successful careers; representatives from Twitter, YouTube and Spotify explaining their role in the bigger picture of dance music dispersion around the globe; and Professor Green sharing the stage with his manager, lawyer, publisher and booking agent to offer real insight into the machine behind a successful recording artist. And the conference didn’t overlook the new wave of electronic music supporters, celebrating young talent such as Luke Hood (UKF) and Jamal Edwards (SBTV) contemporary pioneers of online music communities.
But the IMS isn’t all work, work, work. Come the evening, the event takes over some of Ibiza’s landmark venues providing a platform for top dance musicians to strut their stuff and get people in the party mood. Thursday saw special guests Diplo, Goldfish and MINX, join David Guetta for a mad special IMS headline set and the Friday finale saw Carl Cox top a line-up featuring Loco Dice, Seth Troxler and Pete Tong.
On top of all that, 2012′s IMS was home to a group of upcoming DJs from across Europe as part of Burn Studio’s residency program, an initiative championing the next generation of DJs. An IMS partner for the last three years, Burn’s repeated support represents a sustained dedication to actively supporting future pioneers of electronic music. 1,500 entrants from across Europe were whittled down and after a local mix-off eleven finalists were handpicked to compete for one of three highly desired residencies at world renowned Ibizan clubs. At IMS the hopefuls got a taste of the lifestyle and exposure that awaits them and the chance to network with the industry’s most revered promoters and agents. As the entrants wait to hear their fate in mid-July, English competitor Andrew Atkinson serves-up an exclusive mix for i-D online.
Text: Liam Tootill
