Project Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What if I signed up as a spectator and then signed up as a participant? What should I do?

You don't need to do anything special, however; you may see in your HeySummit account or via email links for both spectator and participant access (unfortunately, we can't remover the spectator access if you got both ticket types). Always use the participant links as you will have preferential access for the duration of the weekend.

After I sign up, what else do I need to do/do I need to prepare anything? What is check-in?

You will have to "check-in" to the event similar to checking into a flight. We will send you an email when check-in opens & try to provide additional reminders. Check-in will open 36 hours before the event starts (5AM UK time on Thurs, Feb 24) and close 1 hour after it's started (6PM UK time on Friday, Feb 25). At this time you'll be able to provide information about your skills, provide a bio & pick teams (if you want to).

This check-in is to ensure everyone is still planning on attending and allows you to provide the most up to date information about you as possible. This also allows you to pick team mates once everyone has already registered.

Unfortunately, if you do not check in within the allotted time, your participant ticket will be canceled and you will be unable to participate.

Prior to the start of the event, some of our sponsors & data providers may ask for you to sign up to gain access to data. If we need additional information from you or need you to do anything, we'll let you know. This will be optional but will be beneficial for you to take advantage of.

Can I still participate if I have no experience/can't code?

Of course! Everyone is welcome regardless of previous experience. Your ability to write, design, present or most importantly, your passion for music and eagerness to learn new things are more than enough!

Can I still participate if I participated last year?

Absolutely! We're glad that you loved it so much that you want to give it another go.

Can I still participate if I work in music and/or data professionally?

Of course! Last year we had everyone from beginners to professionals working on projects. We understand there are many reasons why a professional might want to participate. For example, if their everyday work is proprietary in nature, having a portfolio piece that they're able to share can be very valuable.

If you happen to have a bit more experience, you'll be paired with less experienced people just to keep things balanced. Your teams will appreciate your expertise! That being said, if you'd rather lend a helping hand, we are looking for mentors to support those project participants, as well. Just send an email to [email protected] to inquire.

What if I can't make it the whole weekend? How much time is expected for this? How do I check-in at the the start of the event?

To sum it up, you must be available from:

• Fri, Feb 25: 6:30PM local time (6:30PM LA time at the latest)
• Sat, Feb 25: Meeting times/availability to be agreed upon by your team on your own.
• Sun, Feb 26: Meeting times/availability to be agreed upon by your team on your own.
• Sun, Feb 26 for Project Presentations: 6:45-10PM UK | 7:45-11PM FR | 10:45-2PM LA | 1:45-5PM NY | 12:45-4PM TN

We completely understand that 3 days is a big commitment, especially a Friday. Because of that, we're going to be flexible for Friday attendance. Though we understand participants have signed up from all over the world (and we love that!), this event's timing is most convenient for those in the Americas, Africa & Europe. While we can allow some flexibility on availability for some of the event, ALL participants must be available to present their projects as judges will be making their decisions live.

In addition, in order to be fair to your team members, ALL participants must be available by Friday, February 26 at 6:30PM (in your time zone) with the latest being 6:30PM LA time. If you have not checked in with your team for the event by that time, your spot will be forfeited. Note: Those in the Americas will miss all of Friday's talks if you do not join until 6:30PM and they may not be available for playback later.

Each day of the event, once all team members are accounted for, there will be a process to report in that all are present to ensure everyone participates & we can reach out to anyone missing directly.

If you cannot be available for these times, we ask that you PLEASE cancel your registration, last year, our waitlist has almost 200 people on it. You can do so here: http://measureofmusic.com/cancel.

You'll be working with other people and you don't want to let them down so be sure that you're willing to commit to this! At the conclusion of the 3 days, we're expected that you've spent around 24 hours working & watching (about 8 hours each day!). If that seems like too much, perhaps you should get involved by being a spectator instead.

What if I already have a group I want to work with? What if there's someone I don't want to work with?

You'll have the opportunity to share that with us at check-in. We'll do our best to accommodate all requests but we also want to ensure the event is fun and fair, so should we need to redistribute participants to ensure everyone has a diverse array of talent we may. If you request to not be on someone's team, that request with absolutely be adhered to.

How many groups will there be?

We have to cut off registration so we don't watch too many hours of presentations. Groups will have between 5-7 people. The max amount of participants will be under 150 people.

If the event is virtual, how do we all communicate?

All talks will be on Zoom. Throughout the weekend there will be a Slack channel for everyone to be able to talk with one another easily. Teams will also be able to use any platform of their choosing to communicate with one another, such as Google Hangouts (free).

What data can I use for my project?

For your project, you can use any data that is free, publicly available and not in violation of any company's terms & conditions. This means that you CANNOT use your own company's data, your personal data (such as your own Spotify For Artists data), data that is available to you through your university or data scraped from any website where their terms & conditions prohibit such activity.

The only exception is if you are willing to and are legally able to offer up data to all participants. Meaning, if you are willing to give everyone read-only access to your YouTube data in case they also want to use it for their project, then you may use that data in your project.

These restrictions are why we've worked to provide you with so many sources of data! If you have any doubts as to whether a data source is acceptable in advance or during the event, do not hesitate to ask.

I have more questions/I want to get involved!

Happy to answer them & thanks for the support! Email us at [email protected].