The Association for Popular Music Education is pleased to announce our 2025 conference will be held at the University of Memphis in Memphis, TN, USA, from June 4–7, 2025. The conference will be held in person and virtually in a hybrid setting.
Popular music plays a crucial role in our modern lives, serving as a powerful form of artistic expression that encompasses all aspects of the human experience. It merges art with contemporary culture and tradition, making it relevant in our constantly evolving world.
Incorporating popular music into the learning environment offers an opportunity to explore and integrate its rich variety of genres, stories, cultures, and creative expressions into these spaces. By understanding the roots that connect our lives and cultures, we stand to gain valuable insights into ourselves and our shared histories. As Davis and Blair (2011, citing Bowman, 1998) suggest:
Popular music is best understood within a social and cultural context to understand and appreciate its value. Therefore, music is culturally bound and is never pure but constantly transforms to society’s volatile characteristics. (p. 126)
Our 2025 North American conference will be held in Memphis, TN— the birthplace of rock and roll, the home of the blues, and a pivotal location in the civil rights movement. What better place to explore popular music’s influence on culture, history, and current events?
The APME conference provides a space for our diverse community to reflect on the connections between popular music and culture. We serve as a vibrant ecosystem that promotes and advances popular music at all educational levels, both in and beyond the classroom. We invite you to connect with, learn from, and contribute to our community as we explore our shared heritage through popular music.
Submissions extended to December 15, 2024
Invited Presenters will be notified on January 15, 2025
Conference Registration
Registration for the 2025 conference will open on February 1 and will be accessible through our Sched conference app.
The APME Memphis 2025 schedule will be posted soon. In the meantime,
click here to explore our APME 2024 Los Angeles schedule.
Conference registration fees
Individual – $245
K–12 Teacher — $125
Student — $50
Supporting Mid-South K–12 Teachers
In our continued efforts to support local music education communities in our conference locations, APME is offering FREE conference registration to the first 50 Mid-South K–12 teachers who register for the conference. Please contact us at conference@popularmusiceducation.org if you are interested in taking advantage of this opportunity and joining us in Memphis. We hope to see you there!
Supporting BIPOC and First-time Attendees
In our continued efforts to promote access and equitable experiences, APME is offering a limited number of registration fee waivers and discounts for participants to attend the conference in person or virtually.
We seek applications from participants who meet at least one of the following criteria:
- Are a first-time conference participant;
- Are a part of an underrepresented group in popular music education (including, but not limited to, a member of the BIPOC, AAPI, LGBTQIA+ communities); and/or
- Demonstrate financial need
The application will be posted on November 1, 2024, and the deadline to apply will be March 1, 2025. We will notify invited applicants by March 20, 2025. If you have any questions, please contact us at conference@popularmusiceducation.org Please note there is a separate application for registration fee support for graduate students.
Supporting Graduate Students
Graduate students are an essential part of the popular music education community. As they continue their studies in higher education, it is essential that APME support graduate students as they create a network of like-minded educators who share their passions for both education and popular music. With this in mind, APME is offering a limited amount of financial support on registration fees for graduate students to attend the conference in person or virtually.
Additionally, we are also looking for a limited number of graduate students interested in supporting the conference through serving as a valued member of our onsite conference support team. In return for your commitment and service, APME will offer financial support on registration fees and onsite housing. If either of these supports interest you, please fill out this form. Please note this opportunity is for graduate students only.
The application will be posted on November 1, 2024, and the deadline to apply will be March 15, 2025. If you have any questions, please contact us at conference@popularmusiceducation.org
Hotel Information
Holiday Inn – The University of Memphis
3700 Central Ave
Memphis, TN 38111
(901) 538-8004
$130 plus tax
Available June 4–8, 2025
Book by May 5, 2025 Code: APM
Click here to book the Holiday Inn online
Local Information
Coming Soon!
APME LIVE Student Festival
The Association for Popular Music Education welcomes applications from student ensembles and soloists to participate in the APME LIVE Student Festival to be held at the University of Memphis on June 5–7, 2025.
This non-competitive festival will provide an encouraging educational atmosphere for all to perform for peers and the local community and also take part in sessions to learn from a team of outstanding popular music clinicians and professional musicians. All middle school, high school, and collegiate popular music ensembles, producers, and soloists from ALL GENRES are encouraged to participate.
The 2025 APME LIVE Student Festival application will be available on September 1, 2025.