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Mahalia, Tom Jones, Rag ‘N’ Bone Man Join Revive Live Initiative UK
Ricky Vigil M/Getty Images – Mahalia performing at International Women
The British-Jamaican singer, songwriter and actress will perform a one-off show on “The National Lottery Revive Live Tour”.
The UK’s Music Venue Trust (MVT) and the National Lottery have partnered on an initiative to help revive the country’s grassroots live music sector.
Under the collaboration, the National Lottery will contribute £1 million ($1.38 million) “to directly underwrite the touring and production costs of over 300 live performances this summer, enabling the grassroots live music industry to start promoting shows again in the knowledge that the upfront costs associated with touring are covered,” according to the announcement.
The money comes from a National Lottery promotional fund. To a degree, it makes up for the lack of government- or privately backed coronavirus event insurance schemes, which would allow the UK’s live sector to plan events despite the risk of being forced to cancel them at the eleventh hour due to new restrictions.
David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images for Roxy x Liberty Fabrics – Olivia Dean will tour the UK’s grassroots venues on the National Lottery Revive Live Tour.
The picture shows the rising British soul singer attending the launch dinner for Roxy x Liberty fabrics at Sea Containers in London, England, July 1, 2021.
Headline artists in what has officially been dubbed “The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour” include Olivia Dean, Twin Atlantic, The Magic Gang and The Futureheads. They will perform “at hundreds of grassroots music venues throughout the country,” according to the announcement.
More than 20 tours will be taking place, once venues are able to open, in line with government guidance. National Lottery players have the chance to win free access to every show. Up to 30,000 tickets, or around half the total capacity, will be gifted to National Lottery players, who are invited to bring a plus-one.
Sir Tom Jones, Rag ‘N’ Bone Man, Mahalia, James Arthur, Frank Turner, Sam Fender and Fontaines D.C. will perform special one-off shows at grassroots music venues to support the initiative.
Sir Tom Jones commented: “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.”
Over the last 14 months grassroots music venues have been heavily impacted by the coronavirus crisis, 83% of venues have faced closure during this period and are emerging from lockdown burdened with a collective debt of £45 million ($62 million), according to a MVT survey.
A recently conducted survey of music fans by UK industry body LIVE shows that the majority are ready to return to live music, “with over 75% ready to attend shows immediately,” according to the survey results, which clearly indicate “that enthusiasm for live music has been intensified by the crisis, with one third of gig-goers say they will attend shows more frequently than they did previously.”
Mike Marsland/WireImage – Sir Tom Jones at Music For The Marsden 2020 at The O2 Arena in London, England, March 3, 2020.
The iconic singer supports the Revive Live initiative by the UK’s National Lottery and MVT.
Nigel Railton, Chief Executive of National Lottery operator Camelot, said: “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 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.”
Mark Dayvd, CEO of Music Venue Trust, said, “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 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!”
Culture Minister, Caroline Dinenage said: “It’s been a challenging period for our brilliant grassroots music venues which is why we’ve provided more than £200 million to over 800 music organizations from our unprecedented Culture Recovery Fund. As we continue to work towards live events being fully reopened from July 19th, I’m pleased that this collaboration will help get many artists back playing live at local venues across the country.”
Jo Whiley, Radio DJ, Broadcaster and Ambassador for The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour, said: “We have fantastic venues all over the country that provide a stage for an amazing range of musicians, and all have been impacted by the pandemic.
“The National Lottery Revive Live Tour is an amazing opportunity to showcase the incredible artists and support these grassroot music venues that are so integral to our cultural fabric. I’m sure many people have missed the experience of live music over the course of the lockdown, myself included. I can’t wait to go to see these amazing musicians on stage again!”