MUSIC MATTERS ASIA BLOG

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MUSIC MATTERS ASIA

I managed to make it to Music Matters Asia this year. As an artist, producer and owner of a music production company, I found Music Matters Asia a great platform to make new connections and to catch up with industry colleagues. The Music Matters organizers "Branded Asia" did a wonderful job organizing the event and providing a very entertaining finale with Jamie Cullum. He is a very talented vocalist and musician!

During these two days, I attended a couple of programmes, e.g. Asian Indies segment, Tales from the Frontline, The Rise of the Machines, etc and found them informative.  In the Asian Indies segment on day one, I was pleased to hear that the indies industry is going strong and what formats they are using to promote content. While attending the 2nd day programmes, Tales From The Frontline reminded me that we need to stay in touch with technology because if we choose not to, it is easy to miss out new ways to get your content heard and bought.  There are always so much going on in the industry that we need to catch up with and MM is the ideal channel to help us in Hong Kong.

So what was my goal at MM? Of course networking for my business! However, I had a different goal in mind. About 7 years ago, my brother who lives in the USA found out that he has MD. MD (muscular dystrophy in full) refers to a group of genetic, muscle diseases that weakens the muscles that move the human body. Out of nowhere he started showing signs of MD. It started with a limp that turned into constant pain and losing control of his legs and fingers. He was the first in my family to have the disease.

So since I am in the entertainment industry and have a close tie to this illness, I want to raise money for the Asian and American MD organizations.  In America, on Labor Day weekend the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon starts on Sunday evening preceding Labor Day and continuing until late Monday afternoon, syndicated to approximately 190 television stations throughout the United States. In recent years, the telethon generally runs live for 21 hours, from 9 PM ET to 6 PM ET, though actual start and end times may vary by station. The Telethon has originated from Las Vegas for 23 of the 40 years it has aired. I have been thinking about a way to get a local music TV station to help promote and provide a live broadcast for a concert or concerts in Asia that can also broadcast in America during the MDA Telethon. In my opinion, it will be a win win for all involved, i.e. raise money for research, provide better services for families dealing with the illness and have a yearly concert series with Asian and Western artists in Hong Kong.

How does this benefit my brother? Actually it does not help his health situation but it does help his daughter, her children and many other people who are in the same families of these patients like my brother because the illness is genetic.

By having a chance to go to Music Matters, I was able to network with the right people for this benefit and chat with fellow artists about future collaborations and producing.  Once again, thanks to Branded Asia and a big thanks to Alive Not Dead!

If you would like to help get this benifit off the ground, please message me on Alive Not Dead

Gary Gibbons