A Waterford man is a presenter and producer on a worldwide podcast.
Mark Graham has been involved in all episodes of the podcast, the last of which airs today.
BalconyTV is a cultural phenomenon that has been syndicated to 100 cities around the world, it’s brokered million dollar deals, clocked up hundreds of millions of international viewers, and is now owned by one of the largest record companies in the world.
Ed Sheeran, Mumford and Sons, Kaiser Chiefs, Jessie J, The Script, and even Paris Hilton all appeared on BalconyTV in the early part of their careers.
Not bad for a hungover whim dreamt up by a couple of students and a jazzer on the balcony of their Dublin apartment.
From humble beginnings to the pinnacle of the international music industry, the story of BalconyTV is as engaging as it is entertaining, and until now that full story has never been told.
From rags to riches to redundancy, the story of BalconyTV is a microcosm of how the international music industry operates; a tumultuous rollercoaster ride with dizzying highs and sickening lows, that leaves punters disorientated, wobbling and woozy, checking their pockets as they stumble away with the screams and laughter of the ride still ringing in their ears.
The Untold Story of BalconyTV is a three part podcast documentary presented by The Irish Music Industry Podcast.
The founders, producers, performers, presenters, and patrons of BalconyTV from around the world share stories and insights into what made it work, what made it fun, why it’s still relevant, how a major record label has gobbled it up, and most importantly, what lessons can be learned from its riotous rise and fall.
This podcast documentary will be the final instalment of The Irish Music Industry Podcast, a series that has become essential listening for music professionals and music lovers over its four year run.
“It feels like this is a good way to end the series”, says producer and presenter Mark Graham.
“The podcast was created to address topics that I wasn’t able to cover in depth with BA Music students that I teach at SETU, and it grew from there to hit the number one spot on the Irish podcast charts at least once during every season. It’s meant to be an educational thing that hopefully doesn’t always take itself too seriously, and it feels like a lot of the relevant stuff we’ve been discussing over the last four years is wrapped up neatly in this one entertaining and informative story.”
All three episodes of The Untold Story of BalconyTV will be available from today on all the usual podcast platforms.
About Mark Graham:
Mark Graham is a lecturer in the Department of Arts at SETU (South-East Technical University).
He spent 10 years performing at home and abroad with the band King Kong Company.
Mark has previously worked for Today FM and RTE Radio.
His book, A Year of Festivals in Ireland, documented his quest to attend three Irish festivals per week for an entire year.
He ended up attending three festivals per week for three years, while writing his Festival Fit column for The Irish Times.
A Year of Festivals in Ireland won Travel Book of the Year at the Irish Travel Writers Awards.
The associated Year of Festivals blog won Best Popular Culture Blog at the Irish Blog Awards.
In 2019 Mark launched The Irish Music Industry Podcast. He is currently converting two double decker buses into mini homes and working towards a PhD in the area of Music Industry Ethics.
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