The Jansen, The Panturas, Navicula and more join the regional showcase festival’s well-curated roster

AXEAN Festival has officially revealed its complete lineup for this year’s edition!

After establishing its foothold in the international festival circuit with a consistent track record and a compelling success narrative, AXEAN Festival 2024 continues to hit the high mark with a diverse roster of music acts from Southeast Asia and beyond.

New addition to the lineup

Joining the previously announced batch of performers are some of the biggest artists in Indonesia: The Jansen, a lo-fi indie punk duo known for blending poetic lyrics with brash, unapologetic music; The Panturas, a surf rock band formed in 2016; and Navicula, one of the most prominent rock acts in Bali.

“The reason why we wanted to invite them, and also other popular local artists wherever we host our event, is because these talented artists may be big in their home markets but could be unknown to the rest of the world,” AXEAN Festival co-founder and team leader Piyapong Muenprasertdee explains. “We believe that local talents can reach an international audience if they are put in front of the people who can bring them to the global market. And having local heroes spearhead this attempt, other smaller local artists can have the courage and confidence to follow suit, resulting in more attention from the world to our region’s music, pushing for that tipping point to put Southeast Asia on the global music map.”

Other newly added artists in the lineup include Assia Keva, Rafi Sudirman, Skandal, and Spella Ruby from Indonesia; Golden Mammoth, Lust and Zee Avi & The Good Things from Malaysia; Mix Fenix from the Philippines; BLACKARMATUS x DJ XULALIT from Thailand; and Dattie Do from Vietnam.

Jimbaran Hub, the venue for this year’s AXEAN Festival 2024

Introducing TAICCA’s Taiwan Beats Showcase

Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA) also returns as one of the festival’s major partners and continues its involvement in supporting artist development initiatives through its Taiwan Beats Showcase at the AXEAN Festival 2024.

This year’s showcase will spotlight three outstanding Taiwanese talents: The Chairs, a Golden Melody Awards (GMA) winning band; I’mdifficult, an experimental pop band known for their ‘sophisti-pop’ sound; and the vibrant Jurassic-Pop duo, The Dinosaur’s Skin. Presenting the dynamic and eclectic music scene from Taiwan, TAICCA will host a networking event, connecting Taiwanese talents with key figures in the music industry.

TuneCore participating in the fourth-year running

TuneCore, the leading independent development partner for self-releasing artists—owned by Paris-based Believe, one of the world’s leading digital music companies—returns to AXEAN Festival for the fourth consecutive year as a stage sponsor. This year, TuneCore presents “TuneCore Village,” a dedicated stage showcasing independent artists from across the region. A total of 18 artists from the Believe Group will be featured in this year’s lineup, with 6 artists represented by TuneCore and 12 by its parent company, Believe.

Cyrus Chen, Head of TuneCore SEA, emphasizes TuneCore’s commitment to providing resources and opportunities for regional artists to connect with global audiences. “Southeast Asia has such a rich and diverse music culture, and we are committed to helping indie artists thrive and be heard globally. Festivals like AXEAN help pave the way for the next generation of musicians.”

More about AXEAN Festival 2024

Happening at Jimbaran Hub in Bali, Indonesia, from September 28-29, 2024, the first intra-regional showcase festival in Southeast Asia promises to be a “celebration across borders” where music, culture, and arts come together to create an unforgettable experience for its patrons and new attendees.

Aside from the showcase performances featuring over 40 emerging and established acts, the festival also puts a spotlight on the music conference format with industry mixers and networking activities on the side. The acclaimed international showcase festival also recently introduced a private songwriting camp as part of its artist-centered programming. As explained earlier in the first press release, “The initiative aims to foster a spirit of creativity and inclusivity in a globalized setting while nurturing cross-cultural collaboration amongst the finest and most promising songwriters, producers, and artists in the ASEAN region and also from other regions of the world.”

Given how the SEA region is “rich with musical cultures and thriving local music scenes consisting of traditional and all imaginable modern music genres and sub-genres that are virtually invisible to the world,” Piyapong holds great expectations for AXEAN’s potential to serve as a platform that empowers artists and music professionals to navigate this constantly evolving landscape and emerging trends. “To put it simply, I believe from the facts and numbers I have researched, our regional music industry is much smaller than our potential! Thus, we need to have the support of our artists, our music communities, our music businesses, and hopefully our governments and commercial sponsors to help export our artists and grow our presence on the global music stage!”

The AXEAN co-founder from Thailand adds, “Whether you already are a fan of one or more of our showcasing artists, or you’ve never heard of them before, we’d like to invite you to come and show support to your local and regional artists, give a warm welcome to the interregional artists who’ve traveled from faraway, and discover new music and artists! And of course, come enjoy and experience the beautiful island paradise – Bali!”

About AXEAN Festival

Birthed in 2020 as a virtual music showcase festival, AXEAN Festival—formerly named ASEAN Music Showcase Festival or AMS—launched into the “real world” in 2022 and grew to become an internationally recognized platform that features musical talents from Southeast Asia and beyond whilst providing a place for artists and music industry professionals from around the world to connect through genuine face-to-face networking opportunities.

The latest edition (AXEAN 2023) was held at Goodman Arts Centre, Singapore, between October 27-29, 2023 and was attended by:

• 50 artists, including 39 artists from all 10 countries of ASEAN and 11 international artists from France (1), Hong Kong (3), India (1), Japan (2), South Korea (1) and Taiwan (3) were featured on 2 outdoor and 2 indoor stages;
• 74 international talent buyers or “delegates” from 16 countries located in Southeast (38), East (14) and South (3) Asia; Australia (8); Europe (9) and North America (2)—plus over 14 Singapore-based delegates; and
• More than 7,700 audiences estimated by automatic body counters installed at the venue’s entranceways over the course of 2 days.

About Believe

Believe is one of the world’s leading digital music companies. Believe’s mission is to develop independent artists and labels in the digital world by providing them the solutions they need to grow their audience at each stage of their career and development. Believe’s passionate team of digital music experts around the world leverages the Group’s global technology platform to advise artists and labels, distribute and promote their music. Its 1,919 employees in more than 50 countries aim to support independent artists and labels with a unique digital expertise, respect, fairness and transparency. Believe offers its various solutions through a portfolio of brands including Believe, TuneCore, Nuclear Blast, Naïve, Groove Attack, AllPoints, Ishtar and Byond. Believe is listed on compartment B of the regulated market of Euronext Paris (Ticker: BLV, ISIN: FR0014003FE9). www.believe.com

About TuneCore

TuneCore is the leading independent development partner for self-releasing artists to build audiences and careers – with technology and services across distribution, publishing administration, and a range of promotional services. TuneCore Music Distribution services help artists, labels, and managers sell their music through Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, TikTok, Tencent, and more than 150 download and streaming stores worldwide while retaining 100 percent of their rights for a low annual flat fee. TuneCore Music Publishing Administration assists songwriters by administering their compositions through licensing, registration, worldwide royalty collections, and placement opportunities in film, TV, commercials, video games, and more. The TuneCore Artist Services portal offers a suite of tools and services that enable artists to promote their craft, connect with fans, and get their music heard. TuneCore, part of Believe, is headquartered in Brooklyn, NY, with offices in Los Angeles and Nashville, and operates globally through local teams based in the UK, Germany, France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Italy, Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, South Africa, India, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam and Singapore across 5 continents. www.tunecore.com