DJ and tastemaker Annie Mac has revealed plans for a new overseas festival as her AMP empire continues to expand.
AMP (Annie Mac Presents) has grown from the small third room in London’s Fabric nightclub to comprise a multi-platinum compilation series, live showcases, UK and international tours, along with the Lost & Found festival in Malta.
“Essentially, AMP is a curation brand,” Mac told Music Week. “I want it to be trusted as somewhere you will hear, see and experience the best and most exciting new music.
“I’ve been doing it for 12 years and I want it to grow up with me. It’s about broadening [AMP] and making sure that it is looked upon as a trusted curation brand for different types of music - a place where artists feel safe to come and play and be part of, and where viewers or consumers know they’ll see something they like, but also maybe discover something new."
The brand’s most ambitious project to date, AMP Sounds, will take over Camden in February for nine nights of music across three venues - Koko, The Jazz Cafe and Roundhouse, where it will culminate with a closing party on February 24. Mac's 6,000-capacity Lost & Found festival in Malta, meanwhile, is now in its fourth year and will feature acts such as Diplo, Jamie xx and J Hus in 2018.
"I don't want to expand massively over there," she said. "Part of its success is because it is a certain size. I'd rather start another festival and keep [Lost & Found] small and great - small being like 7,000-8,000, which is still quite a lot when you're thinking they are mainly British people who are paying for tickets and flights. But unless we were to completely move the site, it's only capable of being a certain type of festival, which is a festival that puts on dance music.
"What I would love to do, under the umbrella of AMP, is a festival that can encompass all types of music. That’s something that we’re planning at the moment. It is in its very early stages but is definitely something that we will achieve under the AMP banner.”
Mac said the proposed new festival would also be held away from the UK and be limited in capacity.
"I think small is key in terms of to keep the essence of it - to keep the spirit and the enjoyment factor up for the people who are paying for the tickets," she said. "So I really want to try and get another festival off the ground in the next few years."
Read Mac's thoughts on clubbing's mobile phone problem here. An in-depth interview with Mac appears in the latest issue of Music Week, available now in all good newsagents. To subscribe and never miss a vital music biz story, click here.
