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The rows of seats were well-filled when SPOT+ held the panel discussion “Restage: Talent Development in the Live Sector” on May 4th. The large audience turnout indicated a significant interest in addressing the important and complex issue of making the concert industry more representative.

With the growing Danish live music sector, the need for talent development and inclusive recruitment strategies is becoming more pressing. Restage, a collaboration between Dansk Live, the Tuborg Foundation, and Mino Danmark, aims to address this through talent development and by advising music and cultural institutions on how to best engage and collaborate with minority communities.

Many music institutions are already aware of the need to recruit with a focus on diversity and representation. However, this is not always reflected in the staff composition. In the SPOT+ panel discussion, three former participants of Restage’s organizer program elaborated on how difficult it can be to break through as a minority in the concert industry. They also shared their thoughts on what is needed to create change. The goal is not just to tick a box; it’s to make diversity and inclusion a natural part of the organization’s culture and composition.

Helen Tesfazion, Nica Larsen, and Yasmin Branco, former participants in Restage’s program, all believe that Restage addresses the core of the issue. According to them, it is crucial that organizations ask for help, seek knowledge, and dare to take the first step.

The three women’s paths into Restage are similar, and for all three, the program has led to both personal and career development. It has given them knowledge and experience in the live music industry, as well as a community with like-minded individuals that has provided them with confidence and the courage to tackle the challenges.

At the other end of the panel were Erkan Cakmak, A&R at Sony Music, and Sofie Høj from The Artist, both of whom acknowledged that organizations have a huge responsibility to contribute to change in the industry. Sofie Høj pointed out that because the music industry is network-based, it often leads to hiring those you know, who coincidentally look like you.

This tendency can be challenging for organizations to overcome due to a lack of resources and time. However, there is a strong incentive to prioritize it, not least because the network-based approach can result in a loss of talent potential.

Another challenge for many organizations is the transition phase, which is a kind of chicken-and-egg situation, where it becomes difficult for organizations to be representative if they cannot show that they already are.

Erkan Cakmak’s suggestion for part of the solution was that organizations need a so-called bridge to their blind spots. Initiatives like Restage can be a good way to illuminate the blind spots because they can contribute important knowledge about inclusive recruitment strategies.

According to him, a significant part of the solution involves organizational strategy and planning, and ensuring the inclusion of those it concerns. And as Yasmin Branco, volunteer coordinator and event manager at Aarhus Volume, concluded, it is not more complicated than acknowledging that there is a problem and just getting started.

The various perspectives on the issue, as well as reflections from an engaged audience, show that change in the industry will take time. It requires strengthening the relational collaboration between minority communities and cultural institutions, and it requires that organizations wishing to be more inclusive and representative are willing to take the first step and act.


Text: Mathilde From Andersen
Photo: Stine Rosemunte

Stolerækkerne var fyldt godt op, da SPOT+ om formiddagen lørdag d. 4. maj afholdt paneldebatten ‘Restage: Talentudvikling i livesektoren’. Den store tilstrømning fra publikum vidnede om en stor interesse i at få belyst den vigtige og komplekse problemstilling om, hvordan koncertbranchen bliver mere repræsentativ.

Med en stigende vækst i den danske livesektor bliver behovet for talentudvikling og inkluderende rekrutteringsstrategier større. Restage, som er et samarbejde mellem Dansk Live, Tuborgfonden og Mino Danmark, arbejder for netop dette gennem talentudvikling, samt ved at rådgive musik- og kulturinstitutioner til, hvordan de bedst inddrager og samarbejder med minoritetsmiljøer. 

Mange musikinstitutioner er allerede opmærksomme på at rekruttere med fokus på diversitet og repræsentativitet. Men det er ikke altid reflekteret i medarbejdersammensætningen. I paneldebatten på SPOT+ uddybede tre tidligere deltagere på Restage’s arrangørforløb deres perspektiv på, hvor svært det kan være at bryde igennem som minoritet i koncertbranchen. De gav også deres bud på, hvad der skal til for at skabe forandring. Det er ikke bare et flueben, der skal vinges af; målet er, at diversitet og inklusion bliver en naturlig del af organisationens kultur og sammensætning.

Helen Tesfazion, Nica Larsen og Yasmin Branco, tidligere deltagende på forløbet hos Restage, mente alle, at Restage har fat i problemstillingens kerne. Ifølge dem er det afgørende, at organisationerne spørger om hjælp, søger viden og tør tage det første skridt.

De tre kvinders vej ind i Restage ligner hinanden, og for dem har forløbet ført til både en personlig og karrieremæssig udvikling. Det har givet dem viden om og erfaring i livebranchen, samt et fællesskab med ligesindede, som har givet dem selvtillid og mod til at tage kampen op.

I den anden ende af panelet sad Erkan Cakmak, A&R hos Sony Music og Sofie Høj fra The Artist, som begge to anerkendte, at organisationer har et enormt ansvar for at bidrage til en forandring i branchen. Sofie Høj pointerede, at fordi musikbranchen er netværksbaseret, fører det ofte til, at man ansætter dem, man kender, som sjovt nok ligner én selv. 

Det kan være en udfordring for organisationer at komme den tendens til livs på grund af mangel på ressourcer og tid. Men der er stort incitament til at prioritere det, ikke mindst fordi den netværksbaserede tilgang kan resultere i et tab af talentpotentiale. 

En anden udfordring for mange organisationer er overgangsfasen, som er en form for hønen-eller-ægget-situation, hvor det bliver svært for organisationerne at være repræsentative, hvis de ikke kan vise, at de er det på forhånd.

Erkan Cakmaks forslag til en del af løsningen var, at organisationer skal have et såkaldt bindeled til sin blinde vinkel. Initiativer som Restage kan være et godt bud på at få belyst den blinde vinkel, fordi de kan bidrage  med vigtig viden om inkluderende rekrutteringsstrategier.

En stor del af løsningen handler efter hans mening om organisationers strategi og planlægning og om at sørge for at inddrage dem, det handler om. Og som Yasmin Branco, frivilligkoordinator og afvikler hos Aarhus Volume, sluttede af med at sige, så er det heller ikke mere kompliceret end at anerkende, at der er et problem og så bare gå i gang.

De forskellige perspektiver på sagen, samt refleksionerne fra et engageret publikum viser, at en forandring i branchen vil tage tid. Det kræver, at det relationelle samarbejde mellem minoritetsmiljøer og kulturinstitutionerne styrkes, og det kræver, at organisationer, der ønsker at være mere inkluderende og repræsentative, er villige til at tage det første skridt og handle.

Tekst: Mathilde from Andersen
Foto: Stine Rosemunte