The 1975 lead singer Matty Healy has warned of musical “silence” if UK pubs and bars that give artists their first opportunities close down.
Healy serves as an ambassador for the new Seed Sounds Weekender.
The nationwide festival will feature more than 2,000 events. These events will take place across more than 1,000 ‘seed’ venues in September.
The Seed Sounds Weekender aims to spotlight the UK’s seed music scene.
It will also celebrate the venues and artists that keep live music moving.
The organisers want to strengthen the path from emerging artists to major acts.
They also want to create sustainable opportunities for musicians.
At the same time, the festival will support bars, pubs, restaurants and hotels that help develop UK music.
Healy warns of ‘silence’
“Local venues aren’t just where bands cut their teeth, they’re the foundation of any real culture,” Healy noted in a statement.
“Without them, you don’t get The Smiths, Amy Winehouse, or The 1975. You get silence.”
GigPig, the sponsor of Seed Sounds Weekender, highlighted in a statement of their own that small gigs and seed music venues that provide emerging artists their first platforms are essential for the broader music scene.
“Without those first stages for artists, there is no future pipeline,” said the press release.
“Festivals rely on artists who’ve cut their teeth somewhere. Record labels sign artists who’ve built confidence and followings gig by gig.
“Grassroots venues need acts who know how to handle a stage.
“Seed venues are where that journey begins. They’re the unsung heroes of the music industry.”
Struggling grassroots music scene
More than 200 grassroots venues closed down or stopped offering live music in 2023 and 2024, according to the Music Venue Trust.
In 2024, the Culture, Media and Sport Committee called for a levy on tickets to large concerts at stadiums and arenas to help fund grassroots platforms, and venues such as the Royal Albert Hall have supported the initiative.
“The UK’s seed venues are where music careers are born,” GigPig co-founder Kit Muir-Rogers told Sky News.
“Collectively, this space promotes more music than any other in the live-music business, yet it has gone overlooked and under-appreciated.”
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