Cactus City Studio was the UK’s first ‘safe space’ recording studio founded by music manager, entrepreneur and performer Vanessa Threadgold in response to consistent reports of abuse from her roster of female artists.
Together with Salli Flaherty (Salli LSx), they expanded Cactus City into a fully-fledged organisation alongside a growing team of like-minded creatives and equality advocates.
Last year, they launched the iconic Charter Of Good Practice – a visionary, progressive and much needed list of simple pledges, which studios and their users can make to show commitment to bringing change for women and gender minorities.
This week, they just launched a brand new podcast – Not a Groupie, designed to highlight and validate the experience of women in music! Not a Groupie raises awareness and educates others on the positive actions people can take, to change the music industry for the better.
Every episode, Not a Groupie has a different guest who they talk to about their job roles, what qualities are essential to do those roles and the trials and tribulations of their careers!
The first episode features Bee Adamic, CEO and founder of Liberty Music PR. In this episode, Cactus City host and artist Soph Hamartia invites Bee to unpack the key skills you need to make a career as a publicist, how building her own network led her to start her own company, and why it’s important for mums in music to band together to create a positive network.
At a time when it is so integral that the voices of marginalised folks in music are brought to the front, Cactus City Studio and Not a Groupie, are leading the charge and making a tangible difference.
You can stream Not a Groupie on all major platforms and learn more about Cactus City Studio here.