For Promoters, Producers, & Talent Buyers

Be proactive

• Make a conscious effort to consider acts that include talent from under-represented groups. Yes, there is a supply-side component to the problem, but it's a chicken-and-egg scenario. Building a strong talent pipeline requires people to see themselves represented on stage.

Start at the beginning

• A minimum benchmark is commit to seriously considering a certain % of acts who aren't in your usual programming demographic. Get more hats in the ring for consideration and the rest will follow. (This is also a helpful hiring tactic when it comes to your crew & production team.)

Use existing networks

• Ask the agents you work with regularly who else they have on their books who may be part of under-represented groups.

• Check out some of the existing artist databases.

Make yourself explicitly easy to reach

• If you're serious about wanting to know about new artists who perhaps don't have agent representation, make it easy for them to get on your radar. Is it easy to find contact info for your booker? Are you encouraging people to do so?

Reach out to under-represented communities specifically

• Explicitly encourage artists from under-represented groups to participate during any open calls for submissions, talent searches, or competitions. Recognise that certain kinds of people have been historically excluded and made to feel unwelcome in a lot of music spaces, so you need to make a little extra effort to convince people that they ARE welcome. For example: instead of soliciting entries/demos/submissions by saying "This is open to everyone!" try "This is open to everyone, and we really encourage artists from the BIPOC community and women / gender non-conforming folks to apply!"

• Build relationships with people in those communities to get your word out to them. You can start with acts you already know who have connections, and ask them to help you spread the word about support slots, competitions, or other booking opportunities.

Make your own team more representative.

• The Facts2020 survey and anecdotal evidence indicates that the more diverse your programming team, the more diverse your programming. Get better representation in the decision-making room.

Value Statements

• Make inclusivity and diversity part of your organisation or event's value statement. Codifying a commitment in writing is a helpful anchor point to revisit on a regular basis as well as a lens you can apply to tricky decision-making situations.

Support the Talent Pipeline

• As we've said... there is a supply-side issue. Offering opportunity to acts from under-represented groups is one way to support that pipeline, but think about how you as a promoter or organisation can help support artist development initiatives as well.

• If you do your job properly by booking under-represented groups in second- and third-tier slots supports their journey to first-tier, headline spots.