This year at Liverpool Sound City, PPL and PRS for Music are teaming up to host a ‘must-see’ panel hosted by BBC 6 Music’s Emily Pilbeam. Starting and sustaining a career in music means understanding the business of music and all of the potential revenue streams that are vital for any artist, producer or songwriter to build a career. Whether it’s grants to fund your next album or royalty payments from a live performance, radio play or a television sync, there is a lot to take in.

To the untrained eye, there can sometimes be confusion between PPL and PRS for Music and the work that both organisations carry out. In the simplest of terms, PPL represents performers and record labels, and PRS for Music represents songwriters, composers and music publishers. PPL collect and distribute royalties on behalf of performers and recording rightsholders (usually record companies and self-releasing artists) for the use of their recorded music when it is broadcast or played in public. PRS for Music collect and pay out royalties to its songwriter, composer and music publisher members, when their music is broadcast, streamed, downloaded or played live.

PPL and PRS for Music are dedicated to protecting and championing their members’ rights. The two organisations also invest deeply in the wider UK music scene through several programmes including PRS Foundation, which helps fund new music and offers grants to support careers from the grassroots up, its initiatives include the International Showcase Fund and the PPL Momentum Music Fund.

On the panel, Emily will be chatting to PPL Momentum Music funded Lusaint about her career to date, from starting out in Manchester to becoming the most Shazam’d artist in a day, to having chart success in France and selling out dates around Europe. Lusaint will be joined by her manager Robert Davies and experts from PPL and PRS for Music who will discuss how royalties flow back to music creators.

Whether you are already a member of PPL and PRS for Music, or embarking on your creative journey, this panel will provide invaluable insights from music industry experts and top tips on how to make the most of your membership.