Featured Image: Photo by Anthony Delanoix on Unsplash
Radar Festival has entered into a new agreement with the Music Venue Trust (MVT) charity that will see a percentage of every ticket sold going towards supporting grassroots music venues (GMVs) via the latter’s Pipeline Investment Fund.
Radar is the first festival to agree to donate to the Fund which has awarded more than £260,000 ($327,000/€300,000) to 61 GMVs in the United Kingdom since it was founded in 2022.
“We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to RADAR Festival, for taking this bold step as the first festival to champion the Pipeline Investment Fund. Their support is a strong commitment to the heart and soul of the UK’s music scene, nurturing its roots through the vital network of Grassroots Music Venues,” said MVT chief executive and founder Mark Davyd.
The partnership follows calls from the MVT for a ticket levy on all major stadium and arena gigs to support smaller venues.
These were made in response to reports that 16% of GMVs were lost in the last 12 months in the UK while 38% of all GMVs in the country posted a financial loss.
Radar Festival was founded in 2019 and is due to run from July 26 to 28 this year at the 02 Victoria Warehouse in Manchester.
Its line-up includes acts such as The Midnight, Dirty Loops, Plini, VOLA, and Sungazer.
“I’ve seen the journey in my own venue of young artists playing for the first time and stepping onto a small stage that they know has previously hosted artists that they admire and want to emulate,” said Radar co-organiser Catherine Jackson-Smith, who also owns The Lounge Bar in Alton.
“If we don’t protect the smaller venues then there isn’t a pipeline for the next headliners, and this ticking time bomb is something that the music industry can, and must, take action on.”
Share this