Why the Australian Christian Music Industry Needs Events like the Christian Music Conference

On a Friday morning in Sydney, a room full of artists, songwriters, managers, educators and industry leaders gathered with one thing in common: a shared love for Jesus and music. What followed was a full day of conversations, insights, performances and connections that made one thing very clear. The Australian Christian music industry is growing, and spaces like this matter.

A few weeks ago we had the privilege of partnering with the Christian Music Conference 2026, and honestly, we are still thinking about it...

As a platform that exists largely online and in the digital space, it was incredibly refreshing to step into a physical room filled with people we have only ever spoken to through DMs, emails and comment sections. Meeting face to face with artists, industry professionals and creatives who all share a love for Jesus and music was such a joy. It reminded us that God is truly moving in and amongst the Australian Christian music space, and there are far more people involved than most realise!

We arrived early to set up our stand and immediately started reconnecting with old friends while meeting many new ones. Some of the highlights were spending time with the incredible teams at Excelsia University College, CCLI and CASIO, who are all playing such important roles in supporting Christian music and creatives. Many others also played a massive role in the day including Christian Heritage College, Rejoice, Compassion, Ace Lending, Hope 103.2, Kingdom Creatives, CMAA, FAY THE STUDIO and GMA.

At our stand we invited people to curate a playlist live on the spot, building a collaborative listening experience together throughout the day. The final playlist is now available for your very own listening purposes:

We also created listener personality cards, where people could grab a leaflet based on the type of listener they are and take home a curated playlist to explore later.

Another part of our stand featured our newest initiative called Glory Gather, where we shared a sneak peek of our freshly updated website page and vision. When we explained the idea, essentially “LinkedIn” but designed specifically to serve the Christian music industry, and people were immediately curious.

Our heart is to help develop, disciple and connect Christians working across every part of the music industry, not just artists. One of the most meaningful interactions came from our little “therapy session” box. People could grab a Mentos in exchange for writing down one thing they feel they need next in their career. The responses were honest, relatable and deeply encouraging to read.

But to call the day simply a networking event would miss the bigger picture...

The heart behind CMC, led by our good friend Cameron Gullo (from 1606 Management), is to grow the genre and advance the Gospel, and that vision was evident from the very beginning of the day.

The conference opened with worship led by CXMMXNS (Ben Fielding and Reuben Morgan), setting the tone for the entire gathering. This was followed by prayer from Jonathan Gullo, before Cam Gullo officially welcomed everyone and shared the heart behind the conference. Throughout the day, several incredible MCs helped guide the program including Nathan Brown (CMAA), Danibelle & Brendan (Hope 103.2) and Chelsea La Rosa (Compassion).

The first keynote came from Bhavani Williams from CCLI, who spoke on “C³: Church, Copyright and Creatives.” Her session unpacked the relationship between churches, songwriters and licensing, offering valuable insight into how worship music travels through both congregations and digital platforms. One of her most stand-out insights was that 50% of Australians are currently discovering new worship music through YouTube, while 43% are discovering it through CCLI. She also noted that many of the most impactful songs today are being written through collaboration, highlighting how community continues to shape the modern worship landscape (which we love).

Following this, Christian Heritage College had Jethro Staggs take the stage, sharing about the role of education in equipping the next generation of Christian creatives and leaders.

Next, Steve McPherson (who currently works at MultiTracks.com and brings decades of experience across worship, production, and publishing) delivered a session titled ‘Who’s Listening?’ where he explored how audiences interact with music today and how artists can think more intentionally about their listeners. One particularly memorable takeaway was his encouragement to songwriters and creatives that “the more the listener can contribute to a song, the better. Leave them room to contemplate and fill in the gaps with their imagination.”

After a morning tea break and plenty of networking conversations, the conference continued with The Writers Round, hosted by Danibelle and Brendan, giving attendees a glimpse into the collaborative process behind the songwriting of three incredible artists. We heard beautiful performances from Ethan Beer, Lucy Sugerman and Southland, who deserve everyone's ears on their recent releases!

Next came Tim O’Connor from VEVO, who presented a session titled “How Music Videos and Advertising Can Grow Christian and Gospel Music.” His talk emphasised the growing power of video in music discovery and artist development. Tim shared that music content now makes up roughly one third of YouTube’s overall viewership, and emphasised that music videos have never been more beneficial for artists than they are right now, particularly for those looking to expand their audience globally.

After lunch, the afternoon began with a special performance from Australia’s own Delta Goodrem, whose vocals were quite literally angelic. Seeing such an iconic Australian artist perform in this setting was a moment many in the room will not forget.

The program then continued with an Excelsia University College segment featuring Lotte Latukefu, highlighting the role that faith based education can play in nurturing the next generation of musicians, leaders and creatives. Next came a live podcast recording with Kingdom Creatives exploring the question “Does anyone still need my art?” The conversation resonated deeply with many creatives in the room who are navigating purpose, calling and sustainability in their careers. They even touched on the story behind Hillsong Worship taking over Times Square for the No Other Name Cover in 2014.

Keep your eyes peeled here for when that episode goes live!

The final keynote of the day was delivered by Jonathan Mason from CURB, who shared insights from his extensive industry experience through his session “From Independent to In Demand: Building Leverage Before You Sign.” Jonathan reminded artists that there is no single path or most important partner in the industry. Instead, he encouraged creatives to “pick passion over position” and to find people who genuinely believe in them. As he put it, “that’s the best person to add to your team.” He also left the room with a powerful reminder that applies far beyond music: “Trust the process over the pace.”

We had the chance to interview some amazing artists and creatives right at our stand. We chatted to artists, producers, and good friends of ours!

By the end of the day, our team (shout out to Haynes and Dylan) walked away feeling encouraged, uplifted and expectant for what God is continuing to do in this industry. Even after half a decade working across various roles in music, I left the day having learned even more about licensing, publishing, marketing, collaboration, and what it truly looks like to pursue excellence while remaining Christ-centred.

Events like CMC remind us that we are not building in isolation. There is a whole community of believers pursuing creativity, excellence and Gospel impact together. And honestly, we believe this event should only get bigger. Year after year we would love to see more artists, more industry professionals and more creatives come together like this, because spaces like these strengthen the entire ecosystem.

Huge thank you to Cam Gullo and the entire CMC team for creating a space where faith, creativity and industry can collide in such a meaningful way.

We are already excited for what comes next.

Go get amongst it: https://www.christianmusicconference.com/ 

Photo Credit: Kurt Bingham