Heartburst Management |
paul cheetham

PAUL CHEETHAM has over twenty years experience in the creative industries as a concert & festival promoter, talent buyer, artist manager, conference curator, and event organiser.
Paul began his career working in retail at Our Price record stores while running indie club nights at venues around London in the mid-90's. He joined the Mean Fiddler Organisation in 1997, organising events at the group's venues such as the Mean Fiddler, the Acoustic Room, the Garage, the Jazz Cafe, and the Forum, as well as managing stages at Reading & Leeds, Phoenix, and Fleadh festivals.
Paul moved on to work for the Welldone Concert Agency in Helsinki, Finland which eventually became part of Live Nation Scandinavia. Between 1999 and 2007 Paul was involved in bringing hundreds of international artists to Scandinavia and the Baltics for tours and festivals.
Also during this time, Paul was instrumental in identifying local Finnish talent and helping export some of it to labels, agents, and promoters globally. He worked closely with the Finnish Music Export Office on its inception in 2002 and represented artists at MUSEX events around the world such as SXSW, CMJ, SPOT, By:Larm, Canadian Music Week, Helsinki In Berlin, Popkomm, and Midem.
In summer 2009, Paul relocated to Berlin, Germany and worked as a consultant and advisor to several music offices and events, including the first Tallinn Music Week, before becoming Music Manager for Popkomm and then International Relations Manager for Berlin Music Week. Between 2011 and 2013, Paul ran the Berlin office of the SSC Group, helping manage the company's agency, festivals, and brands, as well as advising on company strategy. 2014 saw Paul spearhead the highly successful online Save Radio Helsinki campaign which attracted over 35,000 Facebook followers in 3 weeks and international media coverage that helped find new owners for the Finnish independent radio station. In 2015 Paul joined the internationally respected Reeperbahn Festival team working mainly on brand development and sales in the USA, South America, and Asia, as well as being a founding member of the Keychange project. At the same time, he also became a Project Manager for NOMEX, producing Nordic Playlist Radio Bar events at Iceland Airwaves, byLarm, Berlin Festival, and Roskilde Festival.
In 2017 Paul joined AEG Europe as Director of Booking for the brand new Verti Music Hall in Berlin and oversaw a highly successful opening with a diverse range of concert and corporate events, awards shows, sporting competitions and e-gaming tournaments.
During the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, Paul started the SuperSwell Podcast, a series of conversations with leading professionals within the creative industries, and was also hired to produce a monthly podcast for live music media platform, VIP Booking.
As well as helping organise seminars, Paul is also an experienced moderator, panelist, and keynote speaker, having appeared at dozens of conventions around the world.
Over the years, Paul has organically gathered a remarkable collection of contacts and connections. His time as a top-line international operator has given him a wealth of experience and know-how in international business. He specialises in event, artist, & office management, strategic planning, and operational leadership.
Paul began his career working in retail at Our Price record stores while running indie club nights at venues around London in the mid-90's. He joined the Mean Fiddler Organisation in 1997, organising events at the group's venues such as the Mean Fiddler, the Acoustic Room, the Garage, the Jazz Cafe, and the Forum, as well as managing stages at Reading & Leeds, Phoenix, and Fleadh festivals.
Paul moved on to work for the Welldone Concert Agency in Helsinki, Finland which eventually became part of Live Nation Scandinavia. Between 1999 and 2007 Paul was involved in bringing hundreds of international artists to Scandinavia and the Baltics for tours and festivals.
Also during this time, Paul was instrumental in identifying local Finnish talent and helping export some of it to labels, agents, and promoters globally. He worked closely with the Finnish Music Export Office on its inception in 2002 and represented artists at MUSEX events around the world such as SXSW, CMJ, SPOT, By:Larm, Canadian Music Week, Helsinki In Berlin, Popkomm, and Midem.
In summer 2009, Paul relocated to Berlin, Germany and worked as a consultant and advisor to several music offices and events, including the first Tallinn Music Week, before becoming Music Manager for Popkomm and then International Relations Manager for Berlin Music Week. Between 2011 and 2013, Paul ran the Berlin office of the SSC Group, helping manage the company's agency, festivals, and brands, as well as advising on company strategy. 2014 saw Paul spearhead the highly successful online Save Radio Helsinki campaign which attracted over 35,000 Facebook followers in 3 weeks and international media coverage that helped find new owners for the Finnish independent radio station. In 2015 Paul joined the internationally respected Reeperbahn Festival team working mainly on brand development and sales in the USA, South America, and Asia, as well as being a founding member of the Keychange project. At the same time, he also became a Project Manager for NOMEX, producing Nordic Playlist Radio Bar events at Iceland Airwaves, byLarm, Berlin Festival, and Roskilde Festival.
In 2017 Paul joined AEG Europe as Director of Booking for the brand new Verti Music Hall in Berlin and oversaw a highly successful opening with a diverse range of concert and corporate events, awards shows, sporting competitions and e-gaming tournaments.
During the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, Paul started the SuperSwell Podcast, a series of conversations with leading professionals within the creative industries, and was also hired to produce a monthly podcast for live music media platform, VIP Booking.
As well as helping organise seminars, Paul is also an experienced moderator, panelist, and keynote speaker, having appeared at dozens of conventions around the world.
Over the years, Paul has organically gathered a remarkable collection of contacts and connections. His time as a top-line international operator has given him a wealth of experience and know-how in international business. He specialises in event, artist, & office management, strategic planning, and operational leadership.
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© Paul Cheetham. 2023