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Music Venue Trust launches scheme to support new female gig promoters

By Chris Cooke | Published on Friday 9 March 2018

The Music Venue Trust has teamed up with a thing called Music Planet Live to launch a new initiative that will encourage and help 100 young female promoters to each stage a gig in a grassroots music venue of their choosing. The scheme is part of MVT’s Fightback programme of fundraising events.

The ‘Fightback: Grassroots Promoter’ programme will make £100,000 available in ‘subsidy guarantees’, basically under-writing shows that participating promoters stage. They’ll still need to aim to break even on the gig, but the initiative will take the risk out of promoting a grass roots music event. Promoters taking part in the scheme will also have access to knowledge and advice.

MVT and MPL note that “under 25s who want to promote a show are often put off by the risk or the lack of information about who to speak to, how to get the best deal, or what connections they need. At the same time, grassroots music venues are crying out for new young promoters with fresh ideas. Add into that mix a lack of diversity in the music industry and it adds up to a series of barriers to young women taking up promoting and adding their unique voice and ideas to the grassroots scene”.

MVT’s Beverley Whitrick adds: “We want to make a big change to the independent promoter scene in the UK, enabling 100 young women to take a chance on promoting a show they believe in. With their support, we are not only going to raise money for Music Venue Trust, we are going to start the process of identifying the next wave of fantastic new independent promoters and tackle head-on diversity in this sector”.

There is more information about how to take part in the project on MVT’s Facebook page here.