YOUR ROOTS ARE SHOWING MUSIC CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES GLOBAL SPEAKERS AND PANELISTS COMING TO BELFAST IN JAN 2026
Your Roots Are Showing, Ireland’s international folk, roots and traditional music conference, arrives in Belfast from 14 to 18 January with its most ambitious and authoritative programme to date.
The 2026 edition brings together Grammy-winning artists, festival architects, cultural strategists, rights specialists and global industry leaders whose work actively shapes the future of folk, acoustic and traditional music worldwide.
This is not a retrospective gathering. It is a forward-facing convergence of people who influence policy, touring pathways, media visibility, cultural preservation, digital rights and artistic sustainability across borders.
Conference Overview
Taking place at ICC Belfast from 14 to 18 January, Your Roots Are Showing brings together one of the strongest folk, roots and Americana communities anywhere in the world.
The 2026 programme includes:
• More than 100 artists from over 20 countries
• Over 60 speakers, mentors and industry leaders
• Four official showcase stages
• 42 workshops covering songwriting, craft, culture, sustainability, innovation, climate action, Web3 and artistic equity
• A city-wide music trail activating Belfast’s venues, cafés and public spaces
Speakers include Amy Grant, Crystal Gayle, Rissi Palmer, Ron Block, Paddy Keenan, Gerry O’Connor, Liam Ó Maonlaí, Linda Coogan Byrne (Why Not Her?), Maria Theessink (Tønder Festival), Ben Mandelson (WOMEX), Matt Bartlett (Midnight Mango), Joan Crump (Hartlepool Folk Festival), Lisa Schwartz (Alchemy Arts), Matthew Morgan (UTA Nashville) many more shaping the global music ecosystem.
Conference Registration
Early Bird €99 – Sold Out
Mid Bird €125
Full Price €150
Student €60
One Day Pass €45
Showcase Night Pass €22
This year’s speaker programme represents the beating heart of the international folk sector, spanning heritage, innovation, digital rights, export development and cultural leadership.
Featured Speakers
Allison Shaw
A leading force in festival architecture and artist development, Allison Shaw has spent over two decades building and transforming major festivals across North America. Her work has reshaped touring ecosystems, audience engagement and sustainable event models. Artists trust her insight, labels follow her direction, and the industry watches the trends she sets.
Anna Fahey
One of the most respected voices in digital rights and copyright infrastructure today. Fahey specialises in metadata accuracy, neighbouring rights and digital revenue systems. Her work addresses the structural failures that prevent independent artists from getting paid, and her sessions give musicians the tools to protect their income in an increasingly complex digital economy.
Ben Mandelson, Founding Director of WOMEX
A central architect of the global roots music economy. Mandelson built WOMEX into the world’s most influential international showcase and conference for folk and traditional music. His work has created export pathways and long-term career infrastructure for thousands of artists. His presence firmly places Belfast within the global folk circuit.
Bavo Vanden Broeck, Director of Flanders Folk Network
One of Europe’s most influential folk-sector strategists. Vanden Broeck has designed touring mobility schemes, artist exchange frameworks and international funding pathways that open European markets to emerging artists. For Irish musicians looking outward, his expertise is indispensable.
Amy Grant
A six-time Grammy winner and one of the most influential crossover artists in roots and Americana music. With over 30 million albums sold, Grant’s career spans four decades of reinvention, emotional storytelling and sustained global relevance. Her understanding of audience connection and longevity is unmatched.
Leslie Fram
Senior Vice President at CMT and a transformative figure in country and Americana media. Fram founded the groundbreaking Next Women of Country initiative, shifting visibility and opportunity for women across the genre. She brings unmatched insight into broadcast strategy, media power and building careers from within major platforms.
Crystal Gayle
A true icon of country and roots music, Crystal Gayle is a Grand Ole Opry member with 22 number one country hits and a career that reshaped the role of women in Nashville. She was the first woman in country music history to earn a platinum album, opening commercial doors that had previously been closed to female artists. With a catalogue that bridges classic country, folk storytelling and crossover pop success, Gayle represents both legacy and longevity. Her career offers rare insight into navigating industry power, sustaining relevance across decades and building a global audience without losing artistic identity.
Fiona Bloom
An internationally respected PR strategist known for breaking artists before they reach the mainstream. Bloom’s work spans continents and genres, with a rare ability to cut through algorithm-driven noise and build lasting artist narratives with global impact.
Paddy Keenan
One of the most important living figures in Irish traditional music and among the greatest uilleann pipers of all time. Keenan represents the living lineage of the tradition itself, connecting generations and reminding artists that innovation and heritage grow strongest together.
Ron Block
A fourteen-time Grammy winner and a defining musician of modern Americana and bluegrass. Best known for his work with Alison Krauss and Union Station, Block’s career exemplifies longevity built on craft, discipline and artistic integrity.
Gerry O’Connor
One of Ireland’s most respected fiddle players and custodians of the Oriel tradition. As a performer and educator, O’Connor has shaped generations of Irish musicians and offers deep insight into transmission, style and cultural continuity.
Linda Coogan Byrne
A leading PR strategist and one of the most influential changemakers in the Irish and UK music industries. Through Why Not Her?, Coogan Byrne exposed gender bias across national radio, dismantled entrenched gatekeeping systems and forced industry accountability at scale. Her work reshaped policy, programming and public awareness, earning her the Outstanding Contributor to Gender Equality Award at the UN Awards in London and induction into the UK Music Industry Roll of Honour.
Rissi Palmer
Rissi Palmer is a groundbreaking voice in country and Americana music. Her debut single made her the first Black woman in 20 years to chart on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs, and she has since become a leading advocate for underrepresented voices across the genre. As the host of Apple Music’s Color Me Country, she amplifies artists of colour within roots music and has established the Color Me Country Artist Grant Fund to support emerging creators. Palmer brings a vital perspective on equity, representation and the evolving landscape of roots and country music.
Liam Ó Maonlaí
Liam Ó Maonlaí is one of Ireland’s most distinctive and enduring musical voices. Best known as the frontman of Hothouse Flowers, he blends traditional Irish song, sean-nós, rock and world influences with rare emotional depth. A multi-instrumentalist and cultural ambassador, Ó Maonlaí’s work bridges heritage and contemporary expression, offering profound insight into the living tradition of Irish music on the global stage.
Matt Bartlett, CEO of Midnight Mango (UK)
Matt Bartlett is the CEO of Midnight Mango, one of the UK’s fastest-growing live booking agencies. Known for his people-centred approach, he has overseen the development of a 250-artist roster and pioneered new training and support structures for agents across Europe. Under Bartlett’s leadership, Midnight Mango has booked thousands of shows annually while reshaping how emerging artists build sustainable touring careers.
Maria Theessink, Artistic Director of Tønder Festival
Maria Theessink is the Artistic Director of Denmark’s Tønder Festival, one of Europe’s most respected folk and roots events. Under her leadership, Tønder has become a key destination for international artists and a vital gateway into the European touring circuit. Theessink’s programming vision connects tradition with innovation, making her a central figure in shaping Europe’s contemporary folk landscape.
Why This Line-Up Matters
Your Roots Are Showing is not a passive conference. It is a curated gathering of people who actively shape touring routes, cultural policy, representation, media visibility and artist careers worldwide.
Delegates do not just listen. They gain access to the decision-makers, thinkers and practitioners who influence how folk and roots music moves through the world.
About the Conference
Your Roots Are Showing takes place from 14 to 18 January 2026 at ICC Belfast, featuring panels, showcases, workshops, masterclasses, networking and city-wide programming.
Tickets and Registration: www.showingroots.com
Location: ICC Belfast
Dates: 14–18 January 2026
This is Belfast stepping fully onto the global folk stage.