The world’s leading festival-booking event expands to the US for the first time, with multiple leading booking agencies confirmed as founding partners and delegates from the US, Europe, Latin Americs
This September, We Group will collaborate with International Festival Forum to deliver one of the live music industry’s most influential business events IFF launches in North America for the very first time.
Taking place from September 14-16, 2026 at The London West Hollywood, IFF LA marks the first international expansion of International Festival Forum since its launch in London in 2015. The event will bring together festival programmers, talent buyers, booking agencies and industry partners from across North America and beyond for three days of deal-making, networking and artist discovery at the heart of the global live music business.
For We Group, the project represents another major milestone in our growing portfolio of owned and operated industry events, following the successful return of Winter Music Conference in Miami earlier this year.
Building the Festival Industry’s Most Important Conversations
Over the past decade, International Festival Forum has established itself as the leading marketplace for festival booking.
Each year, the London edition welcomes around 1,000 delegates representing hundreds of festivals and thousands of artists worldwide. It has become a critical meeting point for agents, promoters and programmers responsible for shaping festival line-ups across the globe.
The launch of IFF LA responds to growing demand from the North American market for a dedicated platform that brings together the people responsible for booking artists, programming festivals and creating live experiences.
Working alongside the International Live Music Conference (ILMC) team, We Group is helping bring that vision to life in Los Angeles.
Creating an Event Designed for Business
At its core, IFF LA is designed to help people do business more effectively.
A defining feature of the event is its agency pop-up office model, which allows festival bookers and agents to arrange private meetings ahead of the conference. Rather than relying on chance encounters, delegates can arrive with schedules already packed with meaningful conversations and potential booking opportunities.
Founding agency partners include some of North America’s most influential talent agencies, including CAA, Ground Control Touring, High Road Touring, IAG, Paladin Artists, ROAM, TBA Agency, The Team, UTA and WME.
Alongside pre-arranged meetings, delegates will take part in conference sessions, workshops, networking events, happy hours and hosted lunches designed to encourage collaboration across the festival ecosystem.
Extending the Experience Beyond the Conference
As with the London edition, IFF LA is about more than meetings.
Each evening, the event will extend onto the Sunset Strip through a curated artist showcase programme, giving emerging and breakthrough artists the opportunity to perform directly in front of the professionals responsible for booking them onto festival stages.
These showcases have become one of the defining elements of International Festival Forum, helping connect new talent with the decision-makers who can accelerate their careers. Previous editions of IFF have played a role in the development of artists including RAYE, Lewis Capaldi, Dermot Kennedy and Sam Ryder.
The event will begin with a rooftop opening party overlooking West Hollywood, creating opportunities for delegates to connect before the conference programme officially begins.
We Group’s Role
As production partner for IFF LA, We Group is supporting the delivery of the event across planning, operations, production, stakeholder management and attendee experience.
Our teams are working closely with ILMC, agency partners, venues, sponsors and suppliers to create an environment that reflects the scale and ambition of the North American launch while maintaining the highly curated experience that has made IFF successful in London.
Attendance is invitation-only and limited to 500 delegates, ensuring a focused environment where meaningful conversations and business outcomes can take place.
Looking Ahead
Los Angeles is home to many of the companies and decision-makers that shape the global live music industry, making it a natural location for IFF’s first expansion beyond the UK.
By bringing together festival programmers, agents, promoters and industry partners in one place, IFF LA will create new opportunities for collaboration, artist discovery and business growth across the North American festival market.
For We Group, it is another opportunity to produce industry-defining events that connect communities, create commercial opportunities and help shape the future of live entertainment.
