Cannes & Atlanta: Creative Cities Building A Bridge For New Opportunities [Midem Digital Edition Spotlight Series]

Though 2020 marked the first virtual conference in Midem’s 53 year history, the storied music conference closed out its Digital Edition on June 5 with exclusive programming that previewed the road back to Cannes for next year’s Midem on June 1-4, 2021 – a route that makes an important stop in Atlanta.

Cannes & Atlanta: Creative Cities Building a Bridge for New Opportunities was one of several Midem panels that previewed a multi-year partnership between Georgia’s cultural hub, home to the A3C hip-hop gathering, and France’s entertainment nexus, which hosts Midem every summer. With both Atlanta and Cannes’ vibrant live events businesses directly impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, the session sent a positive message of support to both cities’ music communities.

Midem Director Alexandre Deniot said of the cross-cultural pact:

“I’m delighted that we have initiated this connection to mark the beginning of a partnership between Atlanta and Cannes. This is the first step on the road towards an important collaboration between the two cities to be launched at Midem in Cannes, June 2021.” 

Dr. Eloisa Klementich, President and CEO of the City of Atlanta’s economic development authority Invest Atlanta, explained the importance of the city to hip-hop icons like T.I. and Killer Mike. “They have said some profound words for the city at this difficult time. This music, this creative class is what is going to allow us to link generations together. So that they can communicate… music seems to be this common language.” 

Echoing the importance of the entertainment industry to Cannes and the numerous cultural projects initiated by Mayor David Lisnard, the City of Cannes’ Deputy Mayor Thomas de Pariente said: “Cannes is a global destination which promotes culture and the creative industry as the main pillars of its economic and social development.” 

“music is our collective unifier”

At a time when solidarity and unity amongst the world’s music community has never been more vital, the session’s moderator Shain Shapiro, CEO of urban development firm Sound Diplomacy, noted: “Music is our collective unifier. We need music… to ensure we are brought together.” 

Midem Digital Edition also featured an exclusive discussion between global hip hop icons “T.I.” Harris and multi award winning South African rapper Nasty C.

Team T.I. Weighs In

T.I. – the award winning entrepreneur, philanthropist and activist who has sold millions of and more than 35 million singles – spoke about his pop-up Trap Music Museum located in Atlanta. This major tourist attraction which chronicles and celebrates the contributions of Trap music draws visitors from all over the world. 

Nasty C is called “the voice of his generation” and the “coolest kid in Africa”. He was recently signed to a joint venture deal between Def Jam Records and Universal Music Africa. 

A potent example of hip hop’s  increasingly global powers is T.I. and South African rapper Nasty C’s brand new track “They Don’t,” a timely protest anthem inspired by the ongoing fight for racial justice that has taken on new meaning during the current social unrest across the globe.  

T.I.’s Grand Hustle Music Group tapped Midem to help promote this track via custom video content they produced and shared and a multi-platform global social media campaign they executed:

“we are all facing the same challenges”

“Midem is a great vehicle to bring cultures together and make the world a little smaller,” Thuy-An Julien, Chief of Staff and Chief Business Officer to Tip “T.I.” Harris, tells Hypebot. “As hip-hop has grown in its reach, it is important that a bridge be created between the different artists in different countries. We are all facing the same challenges – Injustice for people of color, and a pandemic that has changed the world as we know it. The support for the track ‘They Don’t’ by Nasty C and T.I. was strong and showed their true commitment to the change. I applaud Midem for its commitment to keeping the music and the connections growing from ATL to Cannes to South Africa. Hip Hop has no borders.”

“what hip-hop was made to do”

In closing T.I. adds “What hip-hop was made to do: to bring people together, and focus on the things that unite us, more so than we focus on the things that divide us.” 

For more than 50 years, Midem has brought the global music community together in Cannes. This year, Midem Digital Edition featured 264 speakers from 48 countries, 64 sessions, and 23 livestreamed keynote sessions, talks, and presentations. 

This marks the 8^thand final article of the Midem Digital Edition Spotlight Series. Midem’s content platform remains open, free registration for all of the complete sessions here: https://www.midem.com/en-gb/midem-digital-edition.html