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Europe’s leading showcase festival and conference ESNS (Eurosonic Noorderslag) takes place on 14–17 January in Groningen, the Netherlands. The event celebrating its 40th anniversary has chosen the whole of Europe as its ‘focus country’. Estonian talent at ESNS is represented by mariin k. and Pridian.

On Thursday, 15 January, Estonia’s international metalcore success story Pridian takes the stage at Mutua Fides. The band caught the attention of German label Century Media Records at TMW 2023 festival and is now signed to the imprint with their debut album Venetian Dark, released this May. They have performed worldwide, including at major events like Euroblast and Mystic Festival, and have represented Estonia at Reeperbahn Festival’s ESTonishing stage. With a modern, aggressive sound laced with electronics and meticulously polished detail, the band has earned accolades such as’ futuristic band of tomorrow’ from the global metal press.

On Friday 16 January, mariin k. perform at VERA. Led by guitarist and singer Mariin Kallikorm, the band’s debut album rose skin, released in April via Seksound, has earned a coveted spot on KEXP and praise from Darla Records’ tastemakers. mariin k.’s sound merges shoegaze’s layered noise with dream pop’s intimacy, drawing comparisons to scene icons from Slowdive to Best Coast. The band have performed at prestigious international events including Supersonic Block Party in France, Live at Heart in Sweden and Ireland Music Week, and appeared alongside Pridian on Reeperbahn Festival’s ESTonishing stage. This autumn they also joined ESNS’25 success story Night Tapes as special guests on their UK tour.

On Thursday, 15 January, Estonians will also feature in the ESNS conference at the Oosterpoort centre. Tallinn Music Week’s Head of PR & Communications Ingrid Kohtla will moderate the panel ‘Platform the underdog: East-West Exchanges from the Media Perspective’, tackling how media can dismantle stereotypes and level the playing field for Eastern European artists. Tallinn Music Week’s Executive Producer Eva Johanna Lepikov will participate in the panel ‘How do we get our organisations to do what we want them to do’, exploring how organisations navigate change. Night Tapes’ manager Britt Randma, whose band won the Music Moves Europe award at ESNS 2025, will represent the region’s next generation of music industry professionals on the panel ‘Exploring The Baltic Way’.

On Friday, 16 January, Music Estonia will host a networking breakfast at CHCO Café in collaboration with Tallinn Music Week and Iceland Music. Representatives and artists from the Estonian and Icelandic delegations will meet with music professionals attending ESNS. The event is supported by the Estonian Embassy in The Hague. 

Meetings between European and global music market professionals will also be facilitated through the European Music Exporters Exchange (EMEE) network.

The ESNS festival and conference brings together nearly 4,000 music industry professionals—representing festivals, agencies, venues, media and more—from across Europe and beyond, with annual meetings of international networks also scheduled. The festival’s music programme features over 350 artists performing at nearly 40 venues and clubs, drawing a total audience of over 40,000. The conference programme includes nearly 150 panel discussions, interviews and presentations on the most pressing topics in the music sector.

Music Estonia, Tallinn Music Week and Raadio 2 are also part of ESNS’s European Talent Exchange network, which amplifies the circulation of European music at festivals and in media across the continent. The network comprises 25 European music export offices, 130 music festivals and 30 representatives from European Broadcasting Union (EBU) radio stations, plus other members and partners. Since 2003, the programme has supported 2,290 European artists from 36 countries, enabling them to perform at 5,673 concerts at 198 partner festivals.

In previous years, Estonia has been represented by, amongst others, Night Tapes, Tommy Cash, Ewert & The Two Dragons, Duo Ruut, Tuulikki Bartosik, Mart Avi, Maarja Nuut, Kitty Florentine and Daniel Levi.

See the Estonian events schedule: HERE

Full schedule from ESNS homepage.