AAM To Debut New Paid Internship Program 'Placements' In 2025

26 November 2024 | 11:18 am | Mary Varvaris

The program aims to “provide a realistic and sustainable” training pathway to help nurture the next generation of artist managers.

AAM's Placements artwork

AAM's Placements artwork (Source: Supplied)

The Artist Association of Artist Managers (AAM) has introduced its debut artist management paid internship program, Placements.

The pilot program, supported by the NSW Government through Sound NSW, will take place in 2025. Its aim is to “provide a realistic and sustainable” training pathway to help nurture the next generation of artist managers.

Placements is a paid internship program that highlights the “real-life, proactive, initiative-led industry experience” that’s essential for burgeoning artist managers entering the music industry. It’s about increasing knowledge and providing “advanced, specialised skills” through practical experiences, such as on-the-job training, professional development, and vocational learning.

Set to support two NSW-based companies and two NSW-based early-career/aspiring artist managers; Placements will be a six-month internship happening from January to June 2025.

Applications are now open for early-career and aspiring NSW-based artist managers, with the applications closing at 2 pm AEDT this Friday, 29 November. Head to the program’s website for more details regarding eligibility criteria, key dates and information, and how to apply.

The AAM aims to discover what’s involved in developing a successful paid internship model that benefits both the participants and the host company through Placements. The program will exist as a research and development program, with the results used to contribute to future programs specific to artist management in Australia.

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Earlier this year, the AAM introduced Michael’s Rule—in honour of the late Michael McMartin, Hoodoo Gurus’ longtime manager who passed away earlier this year—and pushed for a compulsory new method of having Aussie artists open for international tours.

“Everybody knows that there are less Australian songs on the charts right now than at any time since the early 1960s,” Maggie Collins, the Executive Director of the AAM, said when discussing the importance of Michael’s Rule.

Members of the AAM support artists such as Amyl & The Sniffers, Budjerah, Powderfinger, The Teskey Brothers, Midnight Oil, Cold Chisel, Birds Of Tokyo, The Presets, Missy Higgins, Kasey Chambers, Ball Park Music, John Butler Trio, Karnivool, Miss Kaninna, Grinspoon, Something For Kate, Alex Lahey, and many others.