As COVID-19 restrictions continue to ease, this year’s edition of the showcase music festival LUCfest is to rock Tainan with more than 60 domestic and international acts from Nov. 25 to 28, organizers said.
The four-day event is to feature 60 to 80 artists and bands on six stages throughout the historic city, while industry professionals from around the world, including artists and record company executives, are to participate in online panels and networking events, festival cofounder Hung Wei-ning (洪維寧) said.
LUCfest stands out from other festivals because it aims to promote talented Taiwanese artists internationally by creating a platform for exchanges of information and resources between the Asian and Western music industries, Hung said.
Photo: CNA
“To put it simply, the greatest beneficiaries at showcase music festivals are the artists themselves. Of course, the audience will also be very happy to enjoy music from a wide range of up-and-coming artists and bands,” Hung said.
The first group of performers was announced at a news conference in Taipei on Thursday and includes alternative hip-hop rapper Murky Ghost, shoegaze dream-pop singer LÜCY and electropop outfit Go Go Machine Orchestra.
Hung said that while living in the Netherlands for 15 years, she organized music events and even brought Asian acts to perform in Europe.
After her return to Taiwan, she organized the festival because every year she finds new bands that deserve the opportunity to break into the international market, Hung said, adding that bands are noticed very slowly otherwise.
“I think we [Taiwanese bands] deserve more attention, and I think our music is great and we’ve got a lot of talent — and I really want to showcase our bands to the world, so that is why I came back to Taiwan and started this,” she said.
She feels that the independent music scene in Taiwan is now flourishing after having been around for more than two decades, Hung said.
“We see old, young and very skilled musicians being really active at this stage, so we are very confident that they are going to make waves on the international stage,” Hung said.
LUCfest was first held in 2017 and had record attendance of more than 100,000 people last year, Hung added.
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