This Seminar will feature Leena Sowambur Online marketing specialist who has run online campaigns for stars such as Beyonce, Shakira and Pink and has worked with every major label in the country.

This seminar is FREE of charge and is a part of the Croydon Music support program sponsored by Croydon Business/ Croydon Enterprise. To register for this seminar please email us for your space, places will be limited.

After closing Croydon’s Fashion week to great effect Croydon Live will be providing entertainment for Croydon’s shoppers as a part of Croydon’s Christmas celebrations. We will be featuring some of Croydon’s finest as usual but we also have recruited a special guest in the the guise of Virgin music recording artist Ava Leigh.

So come on down to the town centre and enjoy some great entertainment while you shop, or just come and spend some time with us and enjoy some talented performers.

Ava Leigh is the UK’s new reggae starlet, she has worked with some of reggae music’s most influential producers including Sly and Robbie and is releasing her new single Lalala on the 5th January. Ava may seem like a new artist but even though she is young she has been performing for a number of years and is the voice of the NEXT advertising campaign with the song Masquenada. For more info on Ava go to  www.myspace.com/avaleigh

Throughout the year Croydon live has had the pleasure of featuring some of the best acts not just in Croydon but in the UK, many of these acts have gone on to achieve great things such as having their music feature on advertising campaigns, touring with renowned successful artists, appearing in stage productions, being flown to the USA to be offered large recording contracts and more.

To celebrate some of the successes of some of our featured artists and to kick off the festive season Croydon Live will feature some of the acts that have thrilled our audiences this year such as Opera singer James Edwards, Gospel Choir IDMC and many more.

So bring your family and friends, work colleagues or bosses and come and kick off the festive season with some of the best performers around. FREE ENTRY!

Croydon Music has just launched its Croydon Live You Tube channel featuring artists that have performed at the brilliant night. It isn’t the same as being there to experience some of the best performers around, but it will give you an opportunity to see the great performers Croydon produces. We want to expose Croydon talent to the world and there is no better way of doing this than on the internet.

We also want to know about all Croydon performers so if there are any talented stars out there and they are on You Tube send us an email so we can add them to our favourites, we then can provide a central point for performers to visually showcase their talent.

We have posted videos from our last showcase featuring Soulcyde, Carolyn Vox, Kimberly Anne, The Myke Masters Band and Gavin “Hollerzz” Holligan with more to come, we have also attached clips from Cellar Door and more, if you don’t know these names then get to know them as they are some of the most talented performers around.

So get your You Tube account and subscribe to the channel so you can see the best talent around.

P.S. Leave a comment too!

Check out Kimberly Anne singing Mummy’s Boy soon to feature on UK advertising campaign for Polariod.

Our main topic of discussion for this meeting is “Ready for Business!” it is important that individuals who intend to make it in the music industry realise they have to look at themselves as a business. We also welcome any other issues as many problems that have been shared at our meetings, have found some form of solution.

So come on down and meet like minded music industry folk, make so good contacts as we have seen some of our attendees move ahead with contacts made at our meetings. We hope to see you there!

Let us know and get you free music profile on Croydonmusic.co.uk

Since Croydon Music has been interacting with the music community in Croydon we are amazed at the achievements and quality of the musical community here in Croydon and we want everyone to know about it.

Exposure for businesses and performers is difficult to come by so we want to do our bit, we have a section on our website to expose your business, achievements and direct links to your website, so if you are interested this is what you have to do.

Get an up to date biography with a clear photo or company logo and your web address and send it to us at contact@croydonmusic.co.uk and we will post it for you. If you are an artist don’t just send us your CV but send us some information on yourself so readers can get to know you and what you are about.

Please make sure your photos are clear and feature only individuals involved in the business.

By day the music industries most important and influential figures discuss and plot the future of the music industry in seminars and debates and when night falls In the City Live showcases some of the UK’s most promising unsigned talent. In the City live boasts it help launch the careers of bands such as Oasis, Radiohead, Coldplay, The Darkness and much more. This year it will be based at The Midland Hotel and various live music venues throughout the city.

In the past the festival has fetured industry specialist such as Malcolm Maclaren, Pete Waterman, Clive Davis, Melvin Van Peebles discussing issues such as How to slow the UK chart, Urban A&R in Europe, Europe is the markwt and more.

If you are interested in attending the festival you can get more details at its website, www.inthecity.co.uk.

EMI seem to distancing themselves from the story stating the original article in industry magazine Music Week “Inaccurate”. If there is any more news on this topic we will make sure you know about it.

So please let us know you thoughts, Does Croydon have a music scene at all? If you think it has how do you think it can be improved?

A brilliant dynamic performer with a massive stage presence, Myke Masters plays bass with a style that is his own, making him a unique and refreshing front man. A first rate bassist who cannot be pigeon-holed easily, no one comes close to making the bass sing the way he does. Totally creative and original, Myke’s compositions and playing style inspire his band. Myke has to be in contention as one of the UK’s best bassists, a truly enigmatic musical artist. Some of his many influences include, Louis Johnson, Stanley Clarke, the late Jaco Pastorius, Mark King, Bernard Edwards, Nathan East, Marcus Miller and Earth Wind and Fire.

One of the UK’s best ‘up and coming’ new drummers, with an orthodox style, powerful, rhythms and dynamic solos, Megs is a natural born drummer with solid timing and stability. When you see and hear Megs play drums, it is a joy to behold, truly amazing. Also a talented song writer, Megs’ music tells a complete story that leaves the listener feeling good. Some of Megs’ many influences include: Dave Weckl, Dennis Chambers, Omar Hakim, Peter Erskine, Steve Gadd, Lenny White, John Robinson and Earth Wind and Fire.

An understated yet passionate and soulful player, with an element of coolness that runs through his playing, Colin started at a young age with the alto saxophone and has now extended his range to include the tenor and soprano. His influences include John Coltrane, Michael Brecker, Chick Corea, Dave Weckl, Alan Holdsworth and The Pat Metheny Group, who Colin describes as pure inspiration.

The newest addition to the MMB line up, and a great solo guitarist, Manu brings a new dimension to the band, from a Brazilian background he brings a quality to his sound once heard never forgotten.

To see MMB go to www.youtube.com/croydonlive

www.myspace.com/mykemb

If you are any of the above, or are working within the music industry in some form or another and are based in Croydon, we want to talk to you!

Croydon is currently experiencing a period of change and growth and we want you to be a part of that growth. We wish to build a strong musical community in Croydon, with local success stories for local businesses, We have all heard the stories of Amy Winehouse, Katie Melua and others, and as we are pleased for these individuals we would love these stories to be written about Croydon based individuals.

So how do we do this?

First thing is to meet you, Croydon Music hosts regular networking events to meet Croydons musical community. The time has past for people to sit at home and wonder why nothing is happening, let’s discuss the issues facing the musical community in Croydon and meet others who are active in music within the borough.

In November 2007 in association with Croydon Enterprise we held a music seminar where we invited an recording industry specialist, the Musicians Union and more to talk about the music business, we also held a discussion on what individuals wanted and thought could be done within the borough. We want more of you to be involved in this dialogue because what you have to say directly affects what will be put forward in plans for Croydon’s music agenda.

So be a part of Croydons future and register to be a part of Croydon’s musical community.