SMILEfest, Southampton Solent University’s festival of the music and media industries, returns to take over the city of Southampton next week, with events running throughout March.

The festival, now in its seventh year, offers a mix of live concerts, club nights, workshops, exhibitions and challenges in addition to a music and media industries conference – all of which are organised, managed and promoted by students and staff from the university’s variety of music courses.

Among the guests this year are Radio 1 DJ Danny Howard, The Libertines’ Gary Powell, member of legendary punk band The Slits Viv Albertine and pioneering house DJ Graeme Park.

Over the past six years, the festival has hosted a wide range of household names, including a rare live interview with 1980s icon Steve Strange, a special guest appearance from Oasis manager Marcus Russell and the man behind Bestival and Southampton’s latest festival Common People, Rob Da Bank.

Special events held during previous SMILEfests include Twitterthons, a vinyl memories exhibition, an outdoor concert in Guildhall Square and live performances from Reverend and the Makers at the Southampton Guildhall and King Charles at Mo’Club.

Visit smilefest.co.uk.