GRASSROOTS GIGS RECEIVE £1M FUND

The touring and production costs for more than 300 gigs in the U.K. this summer will be covered by a £1m investment fund thanks to a partnership between The National Lottery and Music Venue Trust.

The gigs will form part of The National Lottery’s Revive Live Tour, which will see such artists as The Futureheads, Olivia Dean (pictured), Twin Atlantic and The Magic Gang perform at hundreds of grassroots music venues throughout the U.K.

More than 20 tours will be taking place once venues are able to open (7/19, should all go to plan). Up to 30k tickets, or around half the capacity of these shows, will be gifted to National Lottery players.

Special one-off performances by Sir Tom Jones, Rag’n’Bone Man, Mahalia, James Arthur, Frank Turner, Sam Fender and Fontaines D.C. will also be part of the tour.

Music Venue Trust CEO Mark Dayvd called the tour “a fantastic initiative which will kickstart the return of great events across the country.”

Over the last 14 months, MVT research has revealed, 83% of venues have faced closure and are emerging from lockdown burdened by a collective debt of £45m.