The National Lottery has joined forces with the Music Venue Trust (MVT) in a new initiative to boost live music across the UK.
The lottery, one of the UK’s biggest culture funders, will contribute £1 million to directly underwrite touring and production costs of over 300 live shows this summer – allowing the grassroots live music industry to start promoting shows with upfront costs of touring already sorted.
In addition, The National Lottery’s ‘Revive Live’ Tour will run throughout the summer, with the likes of The Magic Gang, Twin Atlantic, Olivia Dean and The Futureheads set to perform at grassroots music venues across the UK.
Special one-off shows by Sir Tom Jones, Rag ‘N’ Bone Man, Mahalia, James Arthur, Frank Turner, Sam Fender and Fontaines D.C. will also take place at grassroots music venues to mark the return of live music.
Sir Tom Jones said: “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 neighborhood 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.”
Up to 30,000 tickets, roughly half the capacity of the shows, will be given to National Lottery players, providing fans with the chance to return to music as soon as possible. Tickets for The National Lottery Revive Live Tour go on sale on Monday 12 July from 8pm.