Sydney's biggest (and perhaps most baffling) new major event has just revealed more details about what's to come. After revealing the headliners for its second iteration back in May, SXSW Sydney has been drip-feeding us updates about what to expect this October. Now, we’ve got updates – with the organisers of the multidisciplinary fest today adding a further 500-plus artists, speakers, experiences, workshops, screenings, and games to the 2024 program.
From what we can tell so far, it’s going to be big – with a satisfyingly diverse range of performances, talks, workshops and parties taking over venues across the city for the week-long event which showcases the latest in tech, creativity and innovation.
Additional speakers added to the line-up today include Reed Jobs (founder of venture capital firm Yosemite), Julie Inman Grant (Australia’s e-Safety Commissioner), Clare Bycroft (researcher at DeepMind AI) and Grace Brown (CEO of Andromeda Robotics). The newly added talks and events include an exploration of the role that biotechnology will play in our future, titled Why the Future of the World Will Be Defined By Biotech; a discussion centred around the impact of our clothing choices called How Changing Your Clothes Can Change Your Life; and an examination of the implications of deep fakes on society titled Democracy Under Fire: The Threat of Deepfakes, Disinformation and Fake News on a Global Scale. Other sessions announced today will address topics ranging from controversial superfoods to smart cities, with a line-up of immersive workshops designed to complement the speaker program.
The carefully formed line-up of musical acts making up the SXSW Sydney Music Festival was formed from more than 1,200 submissions, with Sydney-based tastemakers Ruby Miles (Triple J) and Reg Harris (former Music Director at FBi Radio) whittling down the list. In addition to a strong selection of home-grown acts, expect to catch artists from Colombia, India, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan and the UK. Throughout the event, musical performances will pop up across 25 stages in Chippendale and surrounds. New Aussie artists added to the bill include Sydney-born indie favourites The Buoys and Vic-based surf rockers The Grogans, who will join the likes of R&B sensation Maina Doe, multi-hyphenate artist Ayesha Madon (Heartbreak High) and rising Marranunggu brothers J-MILLA & Yung Milla. Recently announced international acts include Voice of Baceprot (Indonesia), I’mdifficult (Taiwan) and Death of Heather (Bangkok). We can also expect a high-energy rap show from East London’s JESHI, an ethereal melodic journey from Phoebe Rings (NZ) and an enchanting performance from Filipino singer/songwriter Clara Beninan.
You’ll find more details on the SXSW Music Festival over here, and the full list of headliners over here.
SXSW Sydney 2024 will run from October 14–20.You can score your ticket and keep an eye out for new announcements over here.
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