Lea Stonhill is a highly experienced Music Programmer most recently working as Head of Music at Radio X, the UK’s indie music station owned by Global. As a passionate music content curator, Lea is a respected member of both the radio and music industries and joined the prestigious Mercury Prize judging panel in 2022 - the annual music prize awarded for the best album released in the United Kingdom. With experience working on both start-ups and in large organisations, she’s had variety of creative and editorial roles (such as Music Manager at Shazam) as well as experience in strategic audience growth and brand development.
The music on your radio station is everything! With an endless supply of alternative choices for listeners, getting it ‘just right’ is essential. From agreeing on the correct strategy, all the way through to scheduling the first song on the Morning Show each day, there are a lot of different things to consider! This session will guide you through the complicated world of music programming and address some of the big topics. How do you make changes to your format without losing listeners? What can you do to stop your older songs from burning? Can you break the pattern of predictability that some formats have? And how much of a role should music research actually play? Our team of experts will share the secrets of how they tackle the challenge of creating exciting radio formats and playlists, giving you plenty of tips and tricks to try out for yourselves in this, ‘The Ultimate Guide to Music Programming’!