The live performances will take place starting from 19th July 2021 within Grassroots music venues alongside the Music Venues Alliance, 19th July also marks the date in which the Government has issued for Grassroots music venues to fully reopen. The scheme’s tour entitled ‘The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour’ boasts a roster of talented artists and promises over 300 live performances. The array of other music artists joining the pair on their crusade include English singer-songwriter James Arthur, Mahalia, 27-year-old singer Sam Fender and Irish post-punk band Fontaines DC. All artists involved in the ‘Revive Live’ scheme will be working alongside Music Venue Trust and the National Lottery. Both organisations founded the campaign to bring back lost revenue and to support new artists, musicians and the nation’s live music scene.

The National Lottery injected a sizeable donation of £1 million into the scheme which will cover all touring and production costs occurred during the tour and further events. The donation also means that with upfront costs already paid, the grassroots live music industry can start promoting and producing tours and live shows. Along with the donation to the scheme, the organisation is also offering 30,000 tickets for lottery and scratchcard players to win. The 30,000 tickets up to win will make up half of the tickets available, the other half will be on sale to the public.

Nigel Railton, the Chief Executive of National Lottery, part of the Camelot Group has spoken on the organisation’s excitement to be working with the Music Venue Trust within the scheme. “The National Lottery is very excited to be working with Music Venue Trust in what we believe is a truly ground-breaking initiative. The last year has been incredibly challenging for many industries and we hope The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour will help kick start the return of grassroots live music. With every ticket having a built in plus-one, we hope The National Lottery can bring friends back together this summer to once again share the experiences we’ve all missed, while thanking players for the amazing things they make happen just by buying a ticket.”

Sir Tom Jones will be performing for a limited audience of 800 at one of the three performance spaces within the Cambridge Junction. Ran’n’Bone Man will play for an even smaller crowd of 250 ticket holders, the gig will take place in Kent. The venue, Tunbridge Wells Forum, is famed within the county as the performance space was once a public toilet.

The ‘Sex Bomb’ singer has spoken on how proud he is to be part of the scheme and the importance of the campaign. He also talks about how grassroots venues are a key part of a new artist’s career and states the importance of support for such venues. “Musicians can record in their bedrooms, but they can’t learn to perform in public without a place to play, without that, there is no way you can communicate directly to people. It’ll be tough to hone your skills and you’ll never have the thrill of feeling their feedback. Without a grassroots music venue, the neighbourhood won’t have a place where people can come together to discover and support a new talent”. So, support your local pub, club, gym or church or wherever someone has the guts to bring in some entertainment, it makes all the difference both to budding artists and the community, I’m delighted to be able to perform a special show as part of The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour and to be celebrating the return of live music.”

Mark Dayvd, the CEO of Music Venue Trust has also provided the following statement concerning the new campaign. “It’s so important to get artists and crew back out and working, to get our grassroots music venues back up and running, and to get friends, families and communities back together enjoying live music. Grassroots music venues play a crucial role in the development of British music, nurturing local talent, providing a platform for artists to build their careers and develop their music and their performance skills, These venues also play a vital role in the cultural and economic vibrancy of any village, town or city. The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour is a fantastic initiative which will kickstart the return of great events across the country. We can’t wait to get started!”

The Music Venue Trust has been combating the negative effects in which COVID-19 has held over live music and the industry itself since March 2020. They aim to safely reopen all venues using various campaigns and schemes. Their most successful campaign was # Save Our Venues, which saw support and money given to help infuse revenue and business into Grassroots venues. Now with the new scheme, tour of live performances and #ReviveLive, the trust is on a mission to bring live music back.

Johnson’s revised rules will see hospitality and night-time venues closing at 11pm, with last orders to be taken at 10pm. Set to commence from Wednesday, December 2nd, Johnson’s new rules show almost no consideration towards the survival of the night time industry.

Night Time Industry Association Michael Kill released a public statement sharing his worries surrounding the new government restrictions. Kill stated “This announcement by the Government has led us to believe that they are intentionally aiming to collapse our sector…Every town and city across the UK stands to lose valued and much-loved venues.  This will be another stab in the heart of our town and city centres.”

Live music and independent venues, integral parts of British culture, are at stake, Kill warns. Kill argued that “We stand to lose the cultural institutions and amazing workforce of professionals that the UK are renowned for globally. Our clubs, bars, venues, security, freelancers, staff, managers, DJ’s and many more will lose their livelihoods and continue to suffer financial hardship without Government intervention.”

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Kill went on to directly question the Prime Minister’s lack of support for the live music sector. Kill said: “I make a direct appeal to the Prime Minister –what are you doing to save the lives and livelihoods of the many businesses and workers within the night-time economy, businesses that have been closed since March and are continuing to suffer? 

Kill rightly pointed out that “they have staff and freelancers that will lose their jobs irrespective of furlough because the businesses won’t survive.” Kill concluded the statement with: “What do you say to that Prime Minister, I hope you are sleeping well at night because thousands within our sector are struggling to sleep, in fear of their future.”

In a survey taken of 400 UK businesses, the NTIA found that 75.6% of establishments confirmed that they will be closed by Christmas indefinitely. Additionally, 73% of them said they have made workers redundant since the pandemic began.

 

 

 

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Whilst larger night clubs, such as London’s iconic Fabric, were aided by the government following the £1.5b Cultural Recovery Fund, countless others, which the government labelled as “culturally insignificant”, have been ignored.

In response to the Night Time Industry Association, a government spokesperson from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport said today: “Pubs, clubs and grassroots venues are the heartbeats of our vibrant night-time economy and we are continuing to work closely with the Night-Time Industries Association and medical experts to develop advice and guidance so that nightclubs can reopen when it’s safe to do so.”

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Meanwhile, the Music Venue Trust has launched a brand new preservation campaign towards 30 UK Grassroots venues on the edge of permanent extinction. The MVT’s new #SaveThe30 campaign is vital in protecting beloved venues such as London’s Lexington or Halifax’s The Lantern.

Music Venue Trust CEO Mark Davyd stated: “If we don’t act to save them right now, we do expect a large number of them to be permanently closed – it’s as simple as that. Unless a significant movement is made in the next four weeks, we should expect them to start closing in the middle of December.”

More information about donating to the Music Venue Trust can be found here.