Following the success of a very busy start to festival season, we first want to apologise for the lack of recent updates. Things have been moving at a relentless pace behind the scenes, and we're pleased to say that the year has got off to an incredible start.

Our festival season began with our second consecutive year hosting a Rock and Metal Alliance stage at The Alternative Escape, running alongside The Great Escape Festival, this opportunity was made possible thanks to the support of Arts Council England, and we were proud to showcase some of the most exciting emerging rock and metal artists from the UK and beyond.

Compared to last year, both our reach and our footprint have grown significantly. This showcase featured artists representing not only the UK, but also Spain, Denmark and Canada, highlighting the increasingly international nature of the RMA community and the growing demand for greater rock and metal representation within showcase festivals.

The industry turnout throughout the day was exceptional, seeing so many agents, managers, promoters, festival bookers, media representatives and other music professionals engaging with the artists was incredibly rewarding and demonstrated that the work we have put in over the past year is beginning to bear fruit.

However, our vision for RMA has always extended beyond industry networking. We also want our events to be a place where rock and metal fans can discover their next favourite band, connect with like-minded people and celebrate the incredible talent emerging from our scene. Once again, the fans turned out in huge numbers, filling the venue throughout the day and creating an atmosphere that perfectly reflected the passion and strength of the grassroots rock and metal community.

To everyone who attended, performed, supported, partnered with us or simply helped spread the word—thank you. Your support continues to help us create new opportunities for emerging artists and strengthen the global rock and metal community.

RMA @ THE ALTERNATIVE ESCAPE

FEATURING :

SXSW LONDON 04/06/26

Riding the momentum from that, we headed straight into SXSW London for our first year as co-curators. We were hosted by the brilliant Dream Bags Jaguar Shoes — a venue that genuinely felt built for rock and metal. Small, sweaty, and packed with energy, it nailed the atmosphere we were aiming for.

The festival itself was an immersive mix of music, technology and film, and it absolutely delivered from the crowds to the wider programme, SXSW London really set a new benchmark, and we were proud to be part of it. From day one we were connecting with global music industry delegation and even discussing new collaborations and partnerships for the longer term. The major thing for us was once we shouted out to people you guys turned up and filled the room we had people from all over the industry and people attending who did not work in music but were just there to show support and find out more about our work as well as a vast majority of heavy music fans.