'Fund Our Fun': A series celebrating the UK’s music and nightlife industries, and a rallying call to protect them.
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This, obviously, sucks. But out of political turmoil and economic ruin, new cultural movements always emerge – the birth of hip hop in post-industrial New York and grime’s resurgence following the coalition government’s austerity, are notable examples. There is hope for club culture yet.So, if you’re twiddling your thumbs and waiting for things to return to normal, why not invest some time in thinking about creating an era-defining music scene or cultural revolution in your own town or city? Believe it or not, it usually starts with someone who’s got zero experience but loads of enthusiasm. Interested? Here’s the pros’ step-by-step guide to setting up a scene in your city: Whether you want to start a club night, launch a community space or open your own venue, addressing a need should always be your starting point. Stephan Skelly, who ran Blackpool’s best rated live music venue Bootleg Social, says that he and a friend became business partners and opened a space, after realising that Blackpool “had no dedicated grassroots music venues, no original live music scene any more and no real venue that was catering to the alternative or indie music community.” Before then, he ran a website promoting and reviewing gigs in his hometown. In Manchester, Nickos Arnaoutis set up Hidden – winner of ‘Best Small Club in the UK’ at the 2016 DJ Mag Awards and home to events such as LGBTQ+ celebrating night Homoelectric – after realising there was a need for a space like theirs. “There was something missing in Manchester’s underground music scene, there wasn’t the variety that should be there, which we felt was a void that needed filling,” he recalls of the club’s beginnings in 2015.
Step 1: Find a space that needs filling
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Step 2: Be inclusive
Step 3: Choose a suitable location
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Step 4: Get advice
Step 5: Know the law
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“Being up to date with copyright laws is important too, especially if you’re playing music or screening films,” Teegs adds. Hidden’s Nickos also advises that getting the correct paperwork in place is imperative to get a venue up and running, saying that “It would be impossible for me to get everything passed off [for a license] without a fire risk strategy and an acoustics report.”To work out what they could afford for Blackpool community space House of Wingz, Samantha and Aishley Bell-Docherty added up what they were spending on studios for their classes as hip hop dance teachers and arts facilitators. After finding a space that had previously been used as the art department of the local newspaper, they invited other creatives to share the space and the rent: “We decided that we weren’t taking the risk ourselves because at that time we financing the space out of class fees and bits of money that we were making facilitating work,” says Aishley. Since then, they’ve funded House of Wingz – which, aside from dance classes, also hosts pop up events, music recording sessions and offers a safe space for local young people to come and be creative day or night – via grants from charities and institutions such as the Arts Council and National Lottery.Still, they caution that even with outside funding, it’s best to see what kind of space your venue becomes before committing all your resources. “Keep it really low budget until you have evidence of exactly what it needs to be,” says Aishley. When it comes to running a club night, Sofya recommends to “think, ‘how much can I afford to lose?’ and then go from there.”
Step 6: Budget
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