Independent Venue Week, a 7-day celebration of the UK’s small music venues is back for a fifth year running from Monday 29th January – Sunday 4th February. The aim of the festival being to highlight the importance of small live venues and to also highlight some of the challenges facing them.
With support from Arts Council England and BBC Music, Independent Venue Week encourages breaking artists to experience playing to a live crowd, whilst potentially introducing fans too new music. Showcasing the countries more intimate venues, IVW embraces the efforts and enthusiasm for music that makes the UK’s music scene world class.
Starting out in 2014 as an initiative championing grassroots venues across the UK, the tour collaborated with only 17 venues. However, after gaining momentum, it now provides platforms for artists at over 190 venues during the nationwide series of gigs.
Each year the project is endorsed by ambassadors who front the events, curating their own shows for the week’s programme. Ambassadors for IVW 2018 are; Darryl ‘DMC’ McDaniel’s of Run DMC, Big Jeff Johns the infamous Bristolian gig-goer, Adrian Utley of Portishead, Nadine Shah Tyneside singer/songwriter and jazz prodigy, Jamie Cullum.
Southampton is home to four of Independent Music Week’s official venues; The Brook, The Alexandra Beer Emporium, The Joiners Arms and Talking Heads, during this week, all of which are offering a plethora of musical happenings to engage fans.
Information regarding gig listings can be found on the official Independent Venue Week website.
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