Liveurope – A decade supporting emerging musical talents

Liveurope, one of Europe’s fundamental programs supporting venues and emerging talents, is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. The platform, which now connects music institutions across 24 countries, was launched in 2014 with the goal of promoting promising musical acts at the beginning of their careers. By doing so, it ensures cultural exchange among member countries and showcases the diversity of Europe’s music scene.

Over the past decade, Liveurope has provided a springboard for talented artists to reach the international stage and has established a strong network among clubs and concert venues.

From its inception, the platform has aimed to reduce the fragmentation of the music market and create opportunities for artists to showcase their talents beyond borders. The results speak for themselves: the program has played a key role in launching the careers of now-global artists such as Sevdaliza, MØ, Rosalia, and Alice Merton.

A38 Ship and Liveurope

Representing Hungary as the sole member, A38 Ship has been part of this collaboration from the beginning. Over the past 10 years, the venue has hosted more than 451 artists from countries such as Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal, and Spain. In 2024 alone, many exciting acts have graced the stage, including Lúpina, Daniel Hjalmtysson, Two Lanes, Kitty Florentine, Donna Blue, Siksa, Grand Sun, Sophia Djebel Rose, Personal Trainer, and Echt! These performers are poised to become prominent names in major festival lineups in the years to come.

Icelandic dark rock/post-punk singer and multi-instrumentalist Daniel Hjalmtysson shared his thoughts on touring internationally and connecting with audiences:
“While we have an audience back home, that appreciates the music, we feel the music belongs here more than it does back home.”

The Liveurope platform also boosts Hungarian musicians’ ambitions for international touring. Artists such as The Anahit and The Devil’s Trade have gained not only new experiences but also expanded their networks and built professional connections through the program — opportunities that would have been challenging to achieve otherwise.

Rita Csányi, founder of The Anahit, highlighted the program’s impact:
“It turned out that the attitude toward music is entirely different there, and we played to a full house as a support act. What surprised us even more was how well they received our music. The biggest miracle was that later on we were invited back for another performance at a university festival, also thanks to this program.”

Dávid Makó (The Devil’s Trade) emphasized that Liveurope has not only helped build their careers but also contributed to their technical growth:
“It’s crucial for musicians to open their eyes, and for a competitive environment to develop among performers. This won’t happen if you keep playing the same circuits year after year. You need to go farther, to more places, and programs like Liveurope are excellent for that.”

The mission and impact of Liveurope

Liveurope’s primary mission is to promote musical diversity. One of the program’s key achievements is providing financial support for event programming, helping clubs grow and adapt to economic and societal challenges.

Fernando Bittencourt Hersant and Teresa Ripanti, organizers of Liveurope, spoke about the network’s mission:
„Promoting European music in all its diversity is at the very core of our DNA. Over the years, we’ve supported artists from 40 different European countries, covering everything from rock and metal to folk and jazz.”

When the program launched in 2014, they quickly identified a common problem: „13 venues came together and realised they shared a common challenge: most of their lineups were filled with local and Anglo-Saxon acts. And there was a real appetite to change that and bring more artists from unchartered European territories to their stages.”

The results of the past decade clearly demonstrate the program’s success: „I hear a lot from our venues that it was nearly impossible for them to book artists from more distant European countries before Liveurope. Like, Sala Apolo in Barcelona wouldn’t have thought about bringing a great band from Hungary or Greece. Or Ancienne Belgique wouldn’t book as many Nordic artists.”

Liveurope also prioritizes gender equality and safer concert spaces:
„In 2021, we took an important step toward gender equality by signing the Keychange pledge, which pushes for more gender balance in all levels of music organizations. Since then, we have been collecting data on the artists we support and have set a common goal with all venues to push for more gender-balanced bookings. We are also regularly creating editorial content to highlight crucial topics like the strategies our venues are implementing to become safer spaces, what it’s like to be a woman in the music industry today, and the challenges LGBTI communities around the continent are facing.”

Beyond promoting cultural diversity, Liveurope contributes to the sustainable development of the music industry, particularly in the club sector, which faces significant operational challenges in today’s economic environment. Rising production and touring costs driven by inflation have made supporting young talent riskier than ever. The organizers stressed the importance of maintaining accessible ticket prices and ensuring that clubs continue to take risks in booking emerging artists. „Promoting up-and-coming European artists is much riskier now than it was a decade ago. Productions and touring costs have exploded after the inflation crisis, but venues can’t simply hike up ticket prices to compensate for it if they want to keep shows accessible to their audiences.”

Liveurope 2025

The 10th anniversary marks a milestone and a launchpad for an even more ambitious decade ahead. In 2025, A38 is set to host several exciting acts, including Tramhaus, Sylvie Kreusch (former muse of Warhaus), Mikk, Raklap, and UTO.