Outsiders: System Failure: apè Aliermo on care and cultural infrastructures (Venus Fest Edition)

In the final part of our collaboration with Venus Fest, we meet apè Aliermo, the festival’s Artistic Director, as the festival celebrates its 10th anniversary. We reflect on creating space for women and gender-diverse artists and talk about representation and persistent inequities within the music industry. Our conversation explores the importance of queer, trans, racialized, and experimental music communities and what it means to build festivals around accessibility, community, and care. We discuss the role festivals like Venus Fest can play in challenging barriers within the industry while creating opportunities for artists to experiment, connect, and build community on their own terms.