Independent Venue Week: Last News

2024 annual report at The Houses Of Parliament last week (Thursday January 23), the Music Venue Trust invited new patron Kate Nash along for a performance and to deliver a speech.The singer-songwriter has been very vocal about the dire conditions that most recording artists find themselves in – taking to OnlyFans for her ‘Butts For Tour Buses’ campaign to protest the industry and raise money for live shows. Speaking in the House Of Commons, she described touring as “one of our favourite things to do, but it is becoming increasingly more difficult to do.”She explained how despite being “pretty successful” with “thousands and thousands of fans” and being able to “sell out a venue or two”, the practice of planning a tour was now “never exactly what you think and you’re always going to go over budget.“The way touring works right now is that you’re always over-budget, you go into the red, and fingers crossed you make nothing,” she continued.

Gwenno and rEDOLENT have been announced as ambassadors for the 2025 edition of Independent Venue Week.The seven-day celebration of independent music and arts venues is returning, running from January 27 to February 2, with hundreds of live shows to take place across the UK.Singer-songwriter and Mercury Prize nominee Gwenno has been named as the ambassador for Wales, and will play a special solo show at Cardiff’s Acapela Studio on January 29.Edinburgh band rEDOLENT, meanwhile, who recently picked up the Scottish Album of the Year for their debut album ‘Dinny Greet’, will be the ambassadors for Scotland, will also play an exclusive show during the week’s festivities.Independent venues have until Friday (December 6) to sign up to participate in Independent Venue Week, while fans can explore what shows will be happening near them here.We're so happy to reveal Gwenno and rEDOLENT as our Artist Ambassadors for Wales and Scotland ⭐️They are joining our overall Artist Ambassador, YolanDa Brown OBE DL. Read the full story here: https://t.co/ilZHzi6UP5 Supported by Welsh Government via Creative Wales pic.twitter.com/V69r8f55sK— Independent Venue Week (@IVW_UK) December 2, 2024Gwenno and rEDOLENT join overall artist ambassador YolanDa Brown for the 2025 event.Speaking about her involvement, Gwenno has said: “I’m delighted to be this year’s IVW Welsh Ambassador, having spent so much of my musical life playing and going to gigs at independent venues across Wales and beyond for the past 25+ years.”“I’m so looking forward to performing at the beautiful Acapela in Pentyrch, a venue that I’ve heard so much about and have always wanted to play.

Huw Stephens and Steve Lamacq will present their BBC 6 Music Shows from a different grassroots venue every day of Independent Venue Week.Lamacq was joined by Stephens on the first instalment of his new weekly Teatime Session, which airs on Mondays from 4-7pm, to announce the initiative in celebration of the UK’s weeklong event to recognise the importance of independent music venues.Between January 29 and February 2, the presenters will be hitting the road to broadcast their shows from grassroots venues across the country and will also host performances from different artists each day.Lamacq will host from Oh Yeah Music Centre in Belfast on January 29 ahead of an Independent Venue Week performance from Ash.Stephens will be presenting his show from Edinburgh’s Whistle Binkies on January 30, where 86TVs will perform later that night; The Fulford Arms in York on January 31 ahead of a gig from NewDad; Polar Bear Music Club in Hull on February 1 where English Teacher will be playing; The Rockin’ Chair in Wrexham (Friday 2nd February) before a live set from Antony Szmierek.Those artists will join Lamacq and Stephens for intimate live performances and interviews across the week.Listeners can attend two exclusive intimate live performances with Ash in Belfast on January 29 and Antony Szmierek in Wrexham on February 2. You can apply to attend via a free ballot here, which will be open till January 15.

English Teacher have been announced as the ambassadors for next year’s Independent Venue Week.The next edition of the popular celebration of grassroots music venues returns on January 29, 2024, with the aim of encouraging fans to start the new year by visiting their local venue for a gig. Venues up and down the country come together with artists, promoters, agents, record labels and media to put on special live events across the UK to highlight and celebrate the work they do.Altogether, 205 venues in the UK have signed up to participate this year and the artists confirmed to perform that week include The Zutons, CVC, Steve Mason, Hinds, Peaness, Skinny Living and TVAM.

LEGALThe UK’s Intellectual Property Office has written to Parliament’s culture select committee with a list of the music industry experts that have been involved in the data and transparency working groups that were convened in response to that committee’s inquiry into the economics of music streaming. Information about the members of those working groups was requested at a recent select committee session which discussed the ongoing IPO-facilitated work that is considering solutions to the various issues that have been raised by artists and songwriters about the streaming business. The lists are available on the Parliament website here.————————————————–DEALSBMG has acquired the royalty interests of Haddaway, including those of his big hit ‘What Is Love’.

DEALSSony Music Publishing has signed songwriter LostBoy – real name Pete Rycroft – best known for his work with Ava Max and Tom Greenan. “I’m so happy to be part of the Sony Music Publishing roster”, he says. “The support from the whole team over the last couple of months has been amazing.

Independent Venue Week 2022 and why it’s more important than ever to shine a spotlight on these live music spaces.Between lockdowns, last-minute cancellations, high rents, Brexit uncertainty, and the  battle for meaningful government support, the last two years have seen the UK’s grassroots music scene endure unprecedented levels of instability. As the most recent wave of coronavirus starts to recede, it’s tempting to view 2022’s Independent Venue Week as something of a victory lap for those that have endured.“Now more than ever, it’s more and more important for small venues to be shouted about,” Julian Ive of Newcastle venue The Cluny told NME.

Wet Leg, Years & Years and James Bay.The ninth consecutive edition of IVW will take place across over 210 independent UK venues between Monday (January 31) and Sunday, February 6. It’ll host more than 485 performances, including live gigs, comedy shows, Q&A sessions, films and documentaries.BBC Radio 6 Music DJ Steve Lamacq will celebrate Independent Venue Week 2022 by presenting a series of one-off shows between January 31 and February 4.It’ll kick off with Franz Ferdinand at PJ Molloys in Dunfermline ahead of Yard Act performing a hometown gig at Belgrave Music Hall in Leeds on February 1.

James Bay will be performing some intimate solo shows as part of Independent Venue Week in early 2022.The BRIT award-winning singer-songwriter will be touring grassroots music venues across the UK, with dates confirmed in England, Scotland and Wales. The ‘New Songs New Stories’ solo tour starts in Cardiff on January 24 and finishes up in Stockton on February 4.

Wet Leg have been announced as next year’s ambassadors of Independent Venue Week.The 2022 event, which champions the annual celebration of independent music venues, will take place across the UK from January 31 to February 6.BBC 6 Music and former NME writer Steve Lamacq took to the stage at The 229 Club in London today (October 27) to unveil Wet Leg as this year’s ambassadors.“We grew up in a place where we had no music venues at all and after living in Bristol and London, it’s been incredible to experience what it’s like to be a part of a scene; to feel that sense of community that you can pin point geographically to a place, to a venue, I think is quite important and quite special particularly for emerging bands and artists,” Wet Leg