IPIA 2024 ‘A Seat At The Table’ in Retrospect

Estée Blu and karmokar, our hosts, led us throughout the day, creating an inviting tone for the theme.

I saw the beginnings of future collaborations and a community begin to emerge in the space. Before the event started, some people were strangers to one another, others had briefly crossed paths at meetings or events. By the end of the day, I saw conversations end in exchanging contact details and others in warm embraces. I do think these interactions speak to the openness that everyone brought to the table. From the hosts, speakers, and panellists, brave and vulnerable in sharing their experiences, right down to the delegates, who were honest when interrogating and reflecting on themselves and their practices when involving young people.

What I took away from the event, was the importance of holding space for young people.

In doing so, you empower them to take up space in a way that is authentic to their values. If you meet a young person, or any person, where they’re at and respect and respond to what they want to do, you could open an opportunity they wouldn’t have considered before. A lot of what was shared at IPIA 2024 reiterated that.

From Milli-Rose Rubin’s email to the Sound Connections team, who, despite not knowing her saw her potential and respected her aspirations, which led to her first paid commission and unlocking of an ever-evolving creative community. Parris and how their passion for music and overall assuredness in themselves and their identity guided them to create a path of their own. Katie Ansell, Beth White, and Ra’eesah and their trajectory from being members of the Pie Factory, Orchestras For All and Roundhouse respectively, and how their experiences and the value placed on young people by senior figures within these organisations informed their journeys into trusteeship and co-chairing a board. Banji Ibidapo and how his relationship to Wired4Music and his honesty about his neurodivergence allowed him to express his experience within music alongside fellow industry professionals on Shakira Alleyne’s panel. Even down to the performers, Diamantina, karmokar and Natestapes, again, were connected to a community that acknowledged the importance of platforming and celebrating artists and sharing that ethos within the context of IPIA.

As I reflect on the day even more, I see now how the intentional holding of space was also embedded into the culture of creating this year’s IPIA gathering.

This allowed Shakira, karmokar and I, as young people and Wired4Music Associates, to work alongside the Sound Connections team to actively discuss, shape and curate the day, taking on roles we may not have considered undertaking, such as hosting and leading panel discussions and workshops. Overall, we were able to learn from each other and the rest of the team, in a way that felt non-hierarchical, democratic even.

For me, this year’s IPIA gathering was a site of collective reflection and community, where the process of co-collaboration was reflected in the running and outcomes of the event. I hope that this culture of holding space, cultivated in the discussions and reflections shared on the day, can continue beyond conversations, and incite action when finding ways to offer young people a seat at the table.

Photo credit: Bell Caspi Photography