Feature photo by Danielle Del Valle/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Story by Bailey Brantingham and Emma Burden
“Brat” summer might be over, but the cultural phenomenon of pop powerhouse BFFs Charli XCX and Troye Sivan transcends seasonal fads. The pair made a pit stop at Nashville’s Grammy U Fall Summit on Oct. 1 — the night before their sold-out Bridgestone Arena concert.
The second annual Summit was held on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 at East Nashville’s Riverside Revival. The Summit centers around two days of networking and panel events for creatives breaking into the music industry, aiming to create meaningful interaction and connection between young professionals.
This year’s keynote panel featured Charli XCX and Sivan, two frontrunners in the global pop culture race, discussing the impact of “Brat” and their joint Sweat tour on the music industry.
“This is my first national event,” Ily Aguilar, Grammy U’s Texas Chapter representative, said. “There’s just so much to learn from professionals in the music industry, and I was just really excited to hear from them and hear their experiences and for all Grammy U members to hear their experiences.”
The Summit opened Monday with a casual networking event followed by performances from Tennessee State University students Keearah and Mille Manny. Pop sibling trio Girl Named Tom filled in as the headliner after Nashville singer-songwriter Soccer Mommy canceled due to illness.
“We’re getting both sides at Grammy U,” Belmont University music business student Maria Toker said. “We’re getting the business side, and we’re getting the creative side. Yesterday we got networking. All three aspects of the music industry have intermixed.”
Grammy U organizers like National Membership representative Della Anderson and Mastercard’s Vice President of Global Sponsorships Latoya Bennett-Johnson emphasized the importance of events like the summit. Not only did students attend Tuesday’s panels with music marketing professionals, Charli XCX and Sivan, they also gained invaluable insight into the industry with fellow Grammy U members, young professionals in the music business and seasoned music producers.
Tuesday opened with a panel moderated by Nathan Pyle featuring music marketing professionals Erica Buchi, Fred Rubenstein and Bri Small. While the panelists shared plenty about their own careers and clients, there was one overarching theme. Many musicians fostered trends with album releases this summer, but only one achieved unprecedented global fruition — Charli XCX’s “Brat.”
As the first panel concluded, attendees grew antsy in anticipation of the keynote discussion. Refreshments were served outdoors, and as the crowd filed in and out of seats, they shared sentiments of excitement and angst. Two of pop music’s biggest stars were about to take the stage.
“I grew up watching Troye’s videos,” Grammy U member and Belmont songwriting student Hannah Kelsey said, referencing Sivan’s past career as an internet personality. “I was there for his first EP drop. I was such a huge fan.”
The calm and collected audience switched gears as Charli XCX and Sivan entered, screaming and waving back to the pair as they settled onto the stage decorated to resemble a Y2K living room, ready to answer questions from long-time collaborator Leland. The pair settled on orange velvet couches flanked by gramophone trophies to discuss topics including AI in the music industry, the remix of Charli XCX’s track “Talk Talk” and the process of creating albums like Charli XCX’s now-iconic “Brat” and Sivan’s “Something To Give Each Other.”
“The album was led by a feeling,” Sivan said about the creation of his most recent album. “Sort of an idea. There were ideas before there were songs: community, sex, dance music, nights out, Melbourne.”
A question about the encroaching use and abuse of AI in the music industry resulted in a lengthy conversation with input from both panelists and moderator.
“I’m all for new tools,” Charli XCX said. “There’s always going to be a new piece of tech or a new system that freaks everyone out and makes everyone panicked about how the industry is going to remain afloat… I think that AI will become its own instrument.”
Charli XCX and Sivan have been best friends and musical colleagues for years, with collaborations dating back to 2018. Leland prompted a discussion about the pair’s most recent collaboration, a remixed version of Charli XCX’s “Talk Talk” featuring Sivan.
“We never actually were in the same room for it,” Sivan said. “It was a back and forth, and we were trusting each other. The thing about a remix album is that you’re getting everyone’s process applied to your music, and it’s going to be so interesting. It was a really, really fun experience for us.”
As the Grammy U Fall Summit concluded, attendees left ready to relax after two days of nonstop music industry networking and mastering. Only a moment of reprieve will be granted to Charli XCX and Sivan — and die-hard fans — though, as they wind back up the next night for Nashville’s stop of the Sweat tour.
Bailey Brantingham is the Lead Lifestyles Reporter for MTSU Sidelines; Emma Burden is a Reporter for MTSU Sidelines.
To contact the Lifestyles Editor, email lifestyles@mtsusidelines.com.
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