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Red Bull Music Academy To Shutter
Red Bull has announced the end of The Red Bull Music Academy, a critically-lauded international music program that began 21-years ago, and its Red Bull Radio offshoot. Both platforms will cease operations this coming October.
In a statement, Red Bull said it would end RBMA’s “centralized approach” and move to a model that “empowers” Red Bull teams and local experts in different territories (full statement below).
Yadastar, an outside consulting firm based in Austria running creative on RBMA since 1998, posted on Twitter that “Yadastar and Red Bull have mutually agreed to part ways at the end of October 2019.” Co-founded by Torsten Schmidt and Many Ameri, the Yadstar post also noted it had produced a “world of workshops, festivals, studio sessions and events in more than 60 countries.”
RBMA, which began in Berlin 1998, has since traveled the world over from New York to Cape town to Sao Paulo to Tokyo bringing in aspiring producers, DJs and musicians to attend music lectures, workshops and performances led by a diverse slate of music veterans. Past students included Flying Lotus (Melbourne, 2006), Blackcoffee (South Africa, 2003), Tokimonsta (London, 2010) and Hudson Mohawke (Toronto, 2007).
(Photo: Drew Gurian/Red Bull) –
In May 2014 Red Bull Music Academy had a street party at the former site of the Paradise Garage and led an initiative to rename the street Larry Levan Way in honor of the club’s highly influential resident DJ.
Most impressive was the RBMA’s stellar line up of music luminaries brought in to lecture and often perform. This included: Terry Riley, Bjork, Iggy Pop, Can’s Damo Suzuki, Giorgio Moroder, Janelle Monae, Robyn, Harry Belafonte, Brian Eno, Sheila E., Q-Tip, Erykah Badu, Tony Visconti, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Jeff Mills, Carl Craig, Philip Glass, Jean Michelle Jarre, Laurie Anderson, Mario Caldato Jr., Ken Scott, St. Vincent, Nicky Siano, Cerrone, Arthur Baker, Nile Rodgers, David Rodigan, Sly & Robbie, and Hugh Masekela among many others.
RBMA also spearheaded several initiatives impacting music and musicians themselves: This included a celebration of Larry Levan of Paradise Garage fame and an effort to rename King Street in lower Manhattan Larry Levan Way; Giorgio Moroder coming out of retirement to DJ; and helping Bjork produce one of her virtual reality videos from her Vulnicura album.
(Photo: Dan Wilton/Red Bull) –
Brian Eno being interviewed as part of the Red Bull Music Academy in 2013 in New York City.
Red Bull Records, a label whose signings include AWOL Nation, was reportedly not impacted by the restructuring. And the Red Bull Music Festival is still scheduled to hold two editions in New York (with FKA twigs, Rosalía, Teyana Taylor, Tierra Whack and Holly Herndon) and Tokyo this spring.
Red Bull’s official statement:
“After twenty years of supporting artists worldwide with its music program in a rapidly changing world, Red Bull will maintain its purpose of providing a global platform to promote creativity – but it is changing the means of delivery. Red Bull will be moving away from a strongly centralized approach, will gradually phase out the existing structure and will implement a new set-up which empowers existing Red Bull country teams and utilizes local expertise. Red Bull will continue to explore new ways to support promising and cutting-edge artists wherever they may be.”