BBC Radio 1 and BBC Learning today announced the details of BBC Radio 1’s Academy, which will take place at the Open in Norwich from Saturday 9th – Friday 15th May 2015.
The Academy will bring a dedicated week of face-to-face activity aimed at 16-19 year olds to the host city of Radio 1’s Big Weekend. With the aim to inspire young people to take the first steps in a career in the creative industries, this year for the first time, the Academy will also be offering attendees the chance to apply for work placements at Radio 1’s Big Weekend.
Tickets will be released online from Saturday 25th April and around 7,000 free spaces for young people to attend will become available. The week long programme will include practical workshops, Q & A’s, industry panels and live music gigs. The itinerary will be comprised of content from six main strands – Music, Radio, TV and Video, Journalism, Gaming, and Digital – in line with the BBC-wide campaign, Make it Digital.
Over the week a plethora of leading names and special guests from across the music and entertainment world, as well as industry professionals and successful individuals will be getting involved in the Academy including: Jessie Ware, Ella Eyre, Lower Than Atlantis, Jamal Edwards MBE, Sigma, Rick Edwards, Jake Humphrey, star vloggers including Jim Chapman and Jack & Dean, and Radio 1’s Newsbeat.
Ella Eyre says: “I’m really looking forward to being involved with BBC Radio 1’s Academy. Song writing is something I love and it will be a lot of fun working with the students.”
This year there will be an additional space at the Academy called ‘The Hangout’, which will act as the nucleus – an informal digital hub offering hands on activities, taster sessions and careers guidance all week. The Hangout will be home to Greg James’ show, Monday – Friday from 4-7pm. Greg will be joined by special guests and shine a light on the young people at the Academy and the work they’re producing. Nick Grimshaw, Fearne Cotton, Scott Mills and Alice Levine will also broadcast from the Academy’s Hangout at various points during the week.
Radio 1’s Live Lounge will be at the Academy across the week with Lower than Atlantis, Ella Eyre and Jessie Ware set to perform. BBC Introducing will run two nights showcasing artists handpicked by Huw Stephens and the finest home-grown music from Norfolk.
The content produced across all strands of the Academy will endeavour to offer practical outcomes that are ‘CV worthy’ to the young people of Norwich. The content will also extend its reach beyond the Academy with a life online, on air and at BBC Radio 1’s Big Weekend. Radio 1 is offering attendees the chance to apply for a selection of work placements behind the scenes at Big Weekend in various areas of production and events and back stage at BBC Introducing gigs.
Sessions and workshops at the Academy this year will include:
· Song writing with Ella Eyre
· Guitar masterclass with Lower Than Atlantis
· Music Q&A hosted by Annie Mac
· Making memes with Jack & Dean – funny vines which will be included in their forthcoming show for Radio 1’s iPlayer
· Making a music video with Greg James – help produce and star in one of Greg’s legendary videos
· Digital Industry session with Jamal Edwards MBE
· Design and game making workshops
· Digital journalism workshop with the Eastern Daily Press
· Music journalism workshop with Norwich’s Outline Magazine
· DJ skills with Danny Howard, Monki & B Traits
· A day in the life of Nick Grimshaw and his team
· Make a package for Charlie Sloth’s show
· Present the Chart Rundown live on Radio 1
· Create content for The Surgery radio show
· Star Q&A’s and Industry panels across all six strands of the Academy
This year’s Academy is set to be the most digitally focussed in support of the BBC’s Make it Digital campaign, a major UK-wide initiative to inspire a new generation to skill up and get creative with coding and digital technology. In line with that there will be opportunities for some young people to learn to code and build an app as well as a digital VFX course.
The full line-up for the Academy will be available on Saturday 25th April when tickets are released.
