What led you to become involved in the events industry ? It wasn ’ t planned at all ; I fell into it by working in venues throughout my time at university . I knew a lot of people who were involved in the underground scene in London , so I found myself being around and enjoying that type of crowd more and more . I love music and creating an experience so much ; this is the perfect job for me because I get to curate how I think a show / set should be .

What ’ s the first career highlight that comes to mind ? There ’ s so many . Starting my organisation Acoustic Live is a favourite . We are dedicated to supporting emerging artists and giving them the tools to get them started in the early stages of their careers . I ’ m very proud of that .

Have you always been interested in live music ? Always . I remember watching the Spice Girls and Michael Jackson on TV when I was younger and wondering what it would be like to see them in person . I ’ ve attended shows and festivals for a long time .

Do you play any musical instruments ? I play the violin . I think that ’ s where my love and appreciation for music started .

How did you become diversity ERG leader at Live Nation ? Myself and my colleagues had a conversation about starting an employee resource group that encourages diversity , open dialogue , celebration of each other ’ s cultures and coming together , and Embrace Nation was born . We then collectively decided who should lead and co-lead our ERG . It ’ s an honour to work with such an incredible group of people dedicated to cultural change .

What progress have you seen since and what ’ s top of the list in terms of measures to help create more diversity in the industry ? I have seen so many great initiatives pop up over the past 16 months . They are really helping move the diversity needle across the board , and it ’ s positive to see more being done for women and gender non-conforming communities , disabled people and people of colour . There ’ s space for all of us and there is so much room for growth . I believe considering the actual definition of diversity

and not being tokenistic would help create more diversity in the industry . Organisations such as The F List , Black Music Coalition , the Power Up initiative , Women Connect , Exist Loudly , No Signal ( Black radio ), Black LGBT Fund , Queer Sex Ed Curriculum , Shadow To Shine and so many more are doing really important work to open the doors for underprivileged communities .

The pandemic has been an awful period , but were there any high points or valuable lessons learned ? I learned the true value of quality time . It ’ s always been something I appreciated , but even more so once the pandemic hit . I was able to spend long periods of time with my close family members as we were in a bubble together . During that time , I had some really life-defining conversations that I will treasure forever . I feel very blessed .

What are you most looking forward to now that full-capacity shows are back ? I ’ m looking forward to experiencing the atmosphere of the live music scene again . It ’ s been so long I almost forgot what it ’ s like to be in a venue watching and working with my favourite artists .