Danielle Caruana On The Seed Management Workshop: ‘The Industry Doesn't Happen To Us, We Happen To The Industry’

Self-made, DIY, bedroom artists have become more and more prevalent in the last five years given the isolated and detached nature of the COVID-19 pandemic. Budding musicians and eager creatives had no choice but to turn to the tools within the four walls of their own homes, inevitably sparking an influx of self-managed, self-sustaining artists. In the same breath, a new generation of people eager to step into the music management seat was born, sparking an even broader influx of managers seeking out the knowledge they need to succeed in their respective careers and navigate the, oftentimes intimidating, entity that is the music industry.

The Seed Management Workshop was created by artists for artists as a way for the wider music community to share their resources, knowledge and wisdom with managers and self-managed artists who are just starting to traverse the music industry. Spearheaded by John Butler and Danielle Caruana – creatively known as Mama Kin – the workshop has seen 298 managers and self-managed artists apply and participate in the program since 2006, immersing themselves in industry expertise and gaining lifelong connections within the community.

“I think the workshop for us is an expression of the experience we want to have,” Caruana told The Music.

“When we first created The Seed Fund, our mission was to make this connective tissue between the people who are successful or kind of experiencing this modicum of success within the industry, and those who are just emerging, so that the ones who are just emerging, know that we've got their back, that we're part of an ecosystem,” 

“But what we realised was that we could give money away til the cows come home, but it was never going to actually give us the feeling of connectivity of getting people into a room together. So we thought, let's carve out a moment for people to realise that this industry is made up of a community of people who are really open with sharing their information and their assets and hacks. That's why we created the Management Workshop, and that very thing has remained the absolute central focus.”

The pandemic caused a five-year hiatus for the workshop, which allowed Caruana and Butler to go back to basics, and work through smoothing out the bumps before its imminent return in 2025. But since the workshop's inception, the world of technology, the internet, music and communication has evolved rapidly – almost everything is digitally front-facing. The Seed Management Workshop aims to keep real-life interaction and human connection alive, especially within a community that thrives off of creative expression and maintains a sense of integrity that can’t be replicated through a phone screen. 

“I think if the workshop was something that delivered the most current tech etc., we would be absolutely in the shit because that's not actually what it's about. We pull people into the room who are at the edge of that stuff, and we go, let's have a conversation with you, rather than you deliver it to us,” she said.

“The act of making music is an active connection with creativity and with an audience, and that then creates connectivity with the wider community. So rather than going, what are the latest apps we should be using, what are the metrics and what are the algorithms doing, we talk about that as a gateway to how this services our creative connectivity. What is the part in here that keeps us human?”

“We're there to ask questions. Questions are timeless, the answers are changing. When we started in 2006, Instagram didn't exist. But there are questions that we asked in that first workshop that we will still be asking in this one.”

The workshop has seen prolific artists like Alex Lahey and managers like 2023 AAM Manager of the Year Andrew Stone thrive in their success as a musician and manager, with Lahey even stating that the workshop “kickstarted” their career. Over the years, The Seed has proven to be a strong pillar in the Australian music industry and plays an integral, ongoing part in encouraging young and emerging artists to take that leap of faith, knowing they have people to land on if they need to. For the workshop’s return next year, Caruana holds a strong belief that this is just the beginning for an entirely refreshed, rejuvenated community of young creatives.

“The industry doesn't happen to us, we happen to the industry,” she said.

“The way we think and innovate within that will shape the future experiences of creatives and punters and people within the community and the industry alike. Without people who have an innovative spirit, we're going to keep just repeating the same old formulas until they collapse and die around us. So this is a chance to hop into the driver's seat of our own community and our own industry and realise that if we need new ideas, we have people who have our back to go to.”

Applications for The Seed Management Workshop 2025 are now open. Get your application in here before Tuesday, November 12th.