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Bido Lito! June 2015
ALL MAPPED OUT
Words: Phil Morris / @mauricedesade
Illustration: Christian Davies / @christianbeardavies
Any musician who’s ever tried booking their own tour will be
aware of how problematic it can be to navigate the complex web of
independent promoters and venues in the UK’s regional outposts.
And they’re not alone in finding it difficult: when Arts Council
England looked at how they could help develop talent for the UK
music industry, it was realised that a lack of sustainable promoters
throughout the regions of England presented a clear barrier for
strong emerging talent to set out on a first tour, a fact that was
backed up by agents from the leading UK live music agencies. So
they commissioned GENERATOR to do something about it. Phil
Morris finds out what they came up with to overcome this hurdle.
I think we can all agree that culture should occupy a central place
in every community. Its power to transform our quality of life ought
not be underestimated. In order to ensure standards are applied
equally across the country, exemplary metropolitan cities like ours
can find ways to assist in the development of cultural practices
elsewhere. In 1952, Liverpool was twinned with Cologne to foster
understanding, friendship and commercial bonds. Can the idea of
inter-city fellowship be lifted to stop the rot of satellite towns and
cultural wastelands?
Generator, the UK’s leading music development agency, have
been empowering artists and creative enterprise in the North
East for over twenty years. Even if you aren’t acquainted with the
comprehensive business support they offer, you probably are
familiar with Newcastle's Evolution Emerging festival, or their spinproof buzz roundup, The Tipping Point. Expanding on a national
scale, Generator’s influence in developing the business processes
behind the music industry has become profound.
Responding to Arts Council England’s renewed vigour for
supporting grassroots music, Generator recently established the
MAPPED OUT project, a national touring network that links emerging
talent with fledgling promoters. Generator’s artistic-development
honcho Bob Allen explains that, “the crux [of Mapped Out] is
supporting new promoters and getting new talent into the places
it doesn’t normally get to.”
Borrowing from the concept of twinned towns and sister cities,
the initiative consists of twelve advocates, two within each region
outside of London. The idea is essentially to pair an experienced
promoter in a metropolitan city with a developing promoter in a
neighbouring town. So, for instance, in the North East The Cluny in
Newcastle are working alongside a promoter based in Hartlepool.
For the tour itself an entry-level artist, selected by the organisations'
pool of collaborators, is then given the opportunity to perform at
each venue of the nexus.
The subsequent benefits are twofold: artists are given the
opportunity to raise their profiles on a professionally plugged series
of dates, while promising promoters are mentored in key aspects
of best practice (such as digital marketing and the principles of
design and brand building) by people and venues who are wellversed in the minutiae of promoting shows. The virtues of the
enterprise extend further still, as Bob explains: "Promoters get a
bit of support and subsidy to help put on these shows and to help
build an audience of new music in those areas, as well as having
shadow opportunities with promoters in the big cities. We also have
opportunities for promoters to go to the likes of Liverpool Sound
City and The Great Escape and meet agents and build relationships,
as well as attending masterclasses we put on at Generator.”
bidolito.co.uk
Stuart Box runs The Ferret in Preston, and is one
of the promoters benefiting from participation in the
Mapped Out Tour. Stuart’s relief in finding like-minded
“enthusiastic people… doing it for the love of
music” is understandable. Preston, like many
peripheral gig destinations, is increasingly in
danger of becoming a cultural wasteland. The
area has experienced two major venue closures
in the past six months – 53 Degrees and Blitz
– leaving The Ferret as the only viable dedicated live
music venue still operating in the city.
Notwithstanding, the challenges of the
economic downturn