Jeremy Corbyn will be celebrating a one-year anniversary in April of a project that’s become groundbreaking and important.
Corbyn’s 1st anniversary. Well, not his…
The Peace and Justice Project, founded by Jeremy Corbyn in 2021, launched the Music For The Many campaign in April 2023 to protect grassroots music venues and demand the government creates a support fund to protect the futures of at-risk venues.
In 2022, 22 million people saw live music at grassroots music venues and brought £500m into the UK economy. However, operating costs ran at over £499m, leaving a profit margin of only 0.2%.
This is unsustainable and has put thousands of jobs under serious threat. So, the Peace and Justice Project and Corbyn are determined to change things with Music For The Many.
In the past year, the campaign his seen numerous gigs – including in Margate, London, and Sheffield.
Now, it’s celebrating its 1st anniversary. The Peace and Justice Project said:
Tickets for the Music For The Many 1st anniversary gig at MOTH Club in London on Monday 15 April are on sale now.
Join Jeremy Corbyn and more for a one night only show featuring headliners DITZ and very special guests Saint Agnes, as well as support from MOSKITO and Gender Crisis.
The first year of this campaign has seen us supporting grassroots music venues up and down the country with exciting shows to amplify our demands for a small ticket levy on corporate sponsors of large music arenas to secure the long-term future of small independent spaces.
Music For The Many
As Corbyn himself recently wrote for Kerrang! magazine:
It is absolutely no exaggeration to say that, without urgent action, we face the real risk of losing an entire generation of talent and artistry to cuts and austerity. Without grassroots music venues, up-and-coming performers, bands and musicians will not be granted the necessary space to harness and develop their craft, or build enough of a following to move on to bigger things such as record deals or the chance to play at larger concert venues.
With that in mind, it is not unreasonable to say that the massive corporations, many of whom have reported massive profits in recent years, should pay their fair share into the delicate ecosystem of British live music.
So, Corbyn has called on corporate sponsors of large music arenas to:
pay a small levy on ticket sales that can be directly re-invested into a specific Grassroots Music Venue Fund to ensure the long-term security of grassroots music venues.
The Peace and Justice Project said:
We’ve still got so much work to do and we really hope to see you there to support this campaign and grassroots music venues in the UK.
You can get tickets for Music For The Many at MOTH Club here. Also, you can take action by writing to your MP here.
Feature image via the Peace and Justice Project
By The Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.
