Global public art producer Wild in Art has announced the first recipients of the Greater Manchester Grassroots Music Fund, awarding £36,000 in touring support to 15 artists from across the region.
Launched by Wild in Art as part of its summer-long, city-wide Music for the Senses art trail and delivered by Forever Manchester, the fund was significantly oversubscribed, receiving 29 applications and highlighting the increasing financial pressures facing emerging artists seeking to tour. Grants of between £1,000 and £3,000 have been awarded to help cover essential touring costs, including transport, accommodation, promotion, and production, as well as paying technicians and fellow musicians.
The artists selected reflect the breadth, confidence and creative range of Greater Manchester’s grassroots music scene, spanning punk, folk, jazz, electronic, hip hop and guitar-driven sounds. Funding has been awarded to Stockport rock and soul outfit Alabaster Queen; expansive folk collective Brown Wimpenny; and Manchester songwriter Caoilfhionn Rose, whose work moves between folk, classical and ambient worlds. Jazz-fusion producer and bandleader Dobbö and contemporary soul artist Emmanuela Yogolelo were also successful, alongside experimental indie group Fauna.
Manchester punk favourites Loose Articles, who supported the trail from day one, join blues-rock band MALCOM, Rochdale alternative hip-hop artist Medley, metal-leaning Onion Mash, Mossley-based blues and soul outfit Rare Breed, electronic art-pop duo Shape of Water, long-running Manchester indie band The Empty Page, and fast-emerging teenage garage-punk act The Sick Fix among the recipients.
Loose Articles, commented: “As functioning as a touring band becomes increasingly difficult, we are grateful for the grassroots music fund. It helps musicians stay on the road, which in turn helps the grass roots venues stay open.”
Also receiving touring support is Macharia, whose journey through Music for the Senses demonstrates the wider ambition behind the fund. During last summer’s trail, Macharia’s portrait featured on the back of a guitar as part of Guitar Street, the large-scale public art installation by Lazerian created for the art trail. She also performed at the stripped-back pop-up show at The Cathedral of Sound installation in Mayfield Park, also by Lazerian, which helped launch the fund. With touring support now in place, Macharia represents the full arc of Music for the Senses: from public art and live performance to practical investment in an artist’s next steps.
“I am so, so grateful to have gotten this support, so many aspects of my performances felt unreachable due to finances but this fund has enabled me to bring in elements from home such as Leso’s (Kenyan Coastal fabrics) and beaded jewellery that otherwise would have been very expensive for me to ship over. This has allowed me to bring a slice of home to the stage with me in a way that is so special,” Macharia said. “It has all come together in such a beautiful way and I am eternally grateful. I cannot emphasise how important it is to be supporting grassroots musicians. We have amazing ideas, we have big dreams, we just don’t have the resources to bring those dreams to fruition.”
The Greater Manchester Grassroots Music Fund was created in response to a widening gap between audience demand for live music and the financial realities facing artists at a crucial development stage. While live music continues to thrive, rising touring costs increasingly risk limiting who can progress beyond grassroots level.
Ben Reed, Head of Creative Development at Wild in Art, said: “Whilst demand for live music remains high, many grassroots artists simply cannot afford to tour. Through Music for the Senses, we wanted to turn the city’s love of music into something practical; a fund that helps artists take those next steps and supports the future of live music.”
Kate Lowes, Director of Brighter Sound (sector lead Manchester Music City), added: “The Greater Manchester Grassroots Music Fund is a practical and timely intervention that directly responds to the pressures facing emerging artists. Touring is essential to building sustainable careers, but rising costs are making it increasingly difficult to take that step. We’ve been proud to help shape the development of this fund, which will enable talented artists from across the region to reach new audiences, grow their careers and continue to strengthen Greater Manchester’s global music reputation.”
The fund follows Manchester City Council’s recent £250,000 commitment to supporting grassroots music venues. While that investment helps secure the stages themselves, the Greater Manchester Grassroots Music Fund focuses on the artists, helping ensure a strong and diverse pipeline of talent ready to step onto them.
Developed by Manchester Music City with Wild in Art and delivered by Forever Manchester, the Greater Manchester Grassroots Music Fund supports artists at a key moment in their touring journey. The fund is financed through the Music for the Senses guitar auction, featuring instruments donated by, or inspired by, artists including Mani, Oasis, New Order, Elbow and many more.
