Andrew Marston with highlights from HopFest, Bewdley

Shiraz Hempstock describes herself as a singer/songwriter with mature vocals.

She started performing with a choir aged 9; her first solo performance was at 11 in a coffee shop singing two Adele songs; by 13 she'd secured a place at a performing arts school in Birmingham.

At 14, Shiraz was practising at open mics in Worcestershire and she’s been going from strength to strength ever since.

Her current influences include Ed Sheeran, the 1975 and Nina Nesbitt – while her childhood influences included Miley Cyrus and Duffy.

"Amy Winehouse-esque vocal maturity from one of the newest shining lights on the local scene” - Andrew Marston.

• See our session snaps

This was their eighth annual event, featuring tonnes of local bands.

This year they extended the festival to three days - so on the Sunday, we were there hosting a stage dedicated to Herefordshire and Worcestershire artists chosen from the BBC Music Introducing Uploader.

The event, run by a group of volunteers, is paid for by ticket sales alone.

• See our coverage of the event

• The biggest events in Herefordshire & Worcestershire

This Saturday, some of the biggest names in '90s pop are coming to Worcestershire County Cricket Club.

Gabrielle, BoyzLife, Louise, S Club, Whigfield, East 17 and Chesney Hawkes will be on the outfield for an all-day spectacular at New Road.

On last night's show, we heard from Louise (of Eternal), S Club and Chesney Hawks; tonight we catch up with Gabrielle and BoyzLife - a mix of Westlife and Boyzone members.

• The People's History of Pop

The 33rd Upton Jazz Festival promises a variety of musical performances across the town.

However, this year, it's only taking place in the pubs because of a lack of volunteers.

Instead, organisers promise improved camping, a bigger choice of stalls, food and drink, plus free car parking.

• The biggest events in Herefordshire & Worcestershire

It's a pick 'n' mix shop that straddles the Herefordshire-Wales border and swells the population of Hay-on-Wye early each summer.

We were there, once again, with some of our favourite handpicked musicians from Herefordshire & Worcestershire, recording four sessions for broadcast.

• See our session snaps
• In conversation with Alan McGee

It was the biggest new music business gathering to ever to be held in the UK, with more than 100 sessions and 250 speakers ensuring every aspect of the music business was covered.

Held across three days, Amplify offered exclusive access to the UK music industry’s biggest names through intimate talks, music masterclasses and recording workshops.

In the digital age many bands and artists are independently releasing their own music with great success.

Presented by the Association of Independent Music (AIM), the panel we hear from this week give top tips for how to set yourself up to succeed in the music business independently.

Speakers include:

• Melanie C - Singer
• Paul Pacifico - AIM
• Paul Hitchman - Kobalt Music
• Laura Sykes - Secretly Label Group
• Nina Nesbitt - Singer/Songwriter
• James Brown - Pulled Apart By Horses

If you run a venue or you’re a music promoter, then we want to hear from you!

Since the beginning of 2011, we've taken our BBC Introducing show out on-the-road to various areas across our patch to bring people a flavour of the local music scene.

Every month, we rock up at a different venue with a pile of microphones, cables and recording equipment along with several vans full of enthusiastic musicians!

As well as the bands being able to invite an audience, we also bring along a number of music industry professionals to comment on the live acts.

We tend to host our sessions on evenings/weekends is because it's normally a quiet time for venues - so effectively you get a free gig curated with the best bands (from the thousands who have submitted their music to us), full tech provided, plus tonnes of publicity from the bands and the radio station - so effectively you just need to open your doors!

To get involved, email [email protected]