UK music industry calls on government to slash VAT on tickets for survival

Glastonbury line-up poster has been edited to remove every artist that started their career in grassroots venues – and hardly any names are left standing.The first taste of the festival’s 2024 line-up was shared on Thursday (March 14), with Dua Lipa, Coldplay and SZA topping the bill.But as revealed by the Music Venue Trust’s edit of the poster on social media, the vast majority of the dozens of names announced so far started their careers coming through the small music venues that now find themselves straining under unbearable pressure in the UK in 2024.Yesterday I was read a quote from a senior figure in the live music industry which ran as follows: “We don’t see any problems in the pipeline for developing the next Ed Sheeran's etc due to grassroots music venues closing, the headliners are still coming”I call bullshit. https://t.co/vGe4RlBUIx— Mark Davyd (@markdavyd) March 16, 2024Only names such as Nigerian afrobeats superstar Burna Boy, the K-pop group SEVENTEEN and Camila Cabello, who rose to fame on the US version of The X Factor, remain when the direct beneficiaries of grassroots venues are taken away.Music Venue Trust CEO Mark Davyd commented on the edited poster, writing on X/Twitter: “Yesterday I was read a quote from a senior figure in the live music industry which ran as follows: ‘We don’t see any problems in the pipeline for developing the next Ed Sheerans etc.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music For their headlining set opening the Rolling Loud California festival in Los Angeles on Thursday night, Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign merely stood onstage for an hour while pre-recorded music from their already released first album played over the loudspeakers. While the wording in the official announcement of the late-added performance was unspecific — “Vultures headlining new Thursday night,” the since-deleted post read — it’s safe to say that most people expected the duo, who have been working together under the name Vultures, to at least deliver vocals.

Millions of workers across the UK will get a boost to their wages worth hundreds in less than a month.

Thania Garcia Together with Spotify, the 100 Percenters, who have long rallied for more equitable treatment for songwriters in the industry, will offer career grants of $2,500 each to ten professional songwriters and producers. The partnership is supported by Spotify’s Creator Equity Fund as the latest part of its ongoing commitment to fostering equity in the audio space. Applications for these grants will be open starting March 15 and will close April 15.

Donald Trump’s supporters are more patriotic than liberals in New York and California, right?

Reading & Leeds and Glastonbury.Raised in Kilmacthomas, Power moved to London when he was aged 15 and eventually went on to establish the venue and events group Mean Fiddler in the early ‘80s. Towards the end of the decade, the group took control of the Reading festival, before broadening their sights to other music events.These included Leeds Festival, Glastonbury, Phoenix Festival, Hop Farm Music Festival, Benicàssim, Tribal Gathering, Homelands Liverpool and Fleadh.

Figures released by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) show that more than a thousand pubs across the UK closed their doors in 2023.

Robbie Williams and Kylie Minogue, has said that the presence of advancing artificial intelligence technology in the music industry is “terrifying”.The songwriter, who is best known for collaborating with Williams over the last two decades, expressed concern that AI technology has the potential to replace songwriters during a talk for music and entertainment industry apprentices at the Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies in Nottingham.“I think we may get to a stage in the future where an album will need to have a badge saying ‘this is an all-human record’,” he said. [via The Guardian]“From what I’ve seen of AI, the acceleration is pretty terrifying, in terms of what it can do and how it could replace songwriters.“Any person could put into an AI programme something like ‘I want a song 100 BPM that sounds like a cross between ABBA and Arctic Monkeys’.

King Charles's close friend, Captain Ian Farquhar, has sadly passed away at the age of 78. He was a skilled huntsman and died at King Charles's Highgrove Estate.

Flights from Manchester Aiport are set to get more expensive, following the Chancellor of the Exchequer's announcement of an increase in air passenger duty to help pay for wider cuts to National Insurance.

key demand – a cut in the VAT charged on tickets.In response, several representatives from various live music organisations have responded negatively to the proposed budget.Jon Collins, the CEO of Live (Live music Industry Venues & Entertainment), issued a statement expressing frustration on the lack of action in cutting VAT rates.He said: “Today’s Budget represents yet another missed opportunity to accelerate the growth of the live music sector and the wider economy while also providing urgently needed support for grassroots music through the reintroduction of a lower VAT rate. 20% VAT on tickets in the UK is vastly out of step with our competitors in Europe and North America and has become a material factor limiting the number of gigs, tours and festivals our world class industry can put on.”He continued: “Fewer shows mean reduced economic activity in towns and cities across the country – an estimated £1m is spent in local businesses for every 10,000 people who attend a gig – and heaps further pressure onto grassroots music venues that are closing down at an alarming rate.

Jeremy Hunt has dealt a fresh blow to Douglas Ross after the Chancellor admitted the North Sea oil and gas industry was one of the "losers" in the Budget.

Ellise Shafer During the reading of the U.K. government’s spring budget on Wednesday, Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt revealed a 40% corporate tax relief for film and TV studios through 2034. The plan also includes independent films shot in the U.K.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will deliver his Spring Budget later today (March 6).

Selena Gomez is walking back her comments about leaving the music industry.

Thania Garcia Raphael Saadiq has signed with Tyler Childs at Forward Artist Management, the management company announced Monday. The Grammy-winning and Oscar-nominated producer and singer-songwriter is a member of the American soul/R&B band, Tony! Toni! Toné!, with whom he recently went on tour for the first time in 25 years. Saadiq co-wrote and produced both of Beyoncé’s latest country singles, “16 Carriages” and “Texas Hold ‘Em,” the latter of which is currently the No.

IU aka Lee Ji-eun is scheduled to headline six huge concerts at arenas all over the U.S. as part of her “HER World Tour.”The sprawling tour, which officially got underway in IU’s home country South Korea on March 2, will mark the first time that the “LILAC” singer will perform in North America.In fact, as of now, she’s never performed outside of Asia.Once she arrives stateside, IU will kick off the tour at Newark, NJ’s Prudential Center on Monday, July 15.After that, she’ll drop into Atlanta’s State Farm Arena (July 19), Washington, D.C.’s Capital One Arena (July 22), Rosemont’s Allstate Arena (July 25), Oakland’s Oakland Arena (July 30) and Los Angeles’ Kia Forum (Aug.

More than two years since the cost of living crisis began to bite, families are still facing tough decisions about their money. While inflation may have slowed down from its fiercest spike, bills are still on the rise.

Neil Young on Spotify, he can be caught on the road this year.The two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee is trekking all over North America on his ‘Love Earth Tour’ with Crazy Horse from April through July.That includes a pair of gigs at Queens’ Forest Hills Stadium on Tuesday, May 14 and Wednesday, May 15.And now that we’re officially “After The Goldrush” of on-sale announcements, ticket prices have settled.Based on our findings, at the time of publication, seats start at $72 before fees on Vivid Seats for select shows.Other Neil Young concerts have tickets beginning anywhere from $79 to $409 USD before fees.Curious how much it will cost you to hear the 78-year-old legend croon “Old Man” live this year?“For What It’s Worth,” we’ve got everything you need to know and more about Neil Young and Crazy Horse’s 2024 ‘Love Earth Tour’ below.All prices listed above are subject to fluctuation.A complete calendar including all tour dates, venues and links to the cheapest tickets available can be found here:(Note: The New York Post confirmed all above prices at the publication time. All prices are in US dollars, subject to fluctuation and include additional fees at checkout.)Vivid Seats is a verified secondary market ticketing platform, and prices may be higher or lower than face value, depending on demand.

Muse, Stormzy, Lewis Capaldi, Ed Sheeran and Dua Lipa.“The MTV EMAs is one of the biggest global music celebrations, bringing together local and international artists to create iconic performances for fans around the world,” said Bruce Gillmer, President of Music, Music Talent, Programming & Events, Paramount, and Chief Content Officer, Music, Paramount+. “With music at the very heart of Manchester’s rich creative heritage, this vibrant city – with the state-of-the-art Co-op Live – will guarantee a supercharged 2024 show.”Councillor Bev Craig, Leader of Manchester City Council, added: “As a city that is known the world over for our legendary music scene, MTV could not have picked a better place for this year’s EMAs.“With the expertise, experience and reputation we also have for delivering successful, world-class events, we’re confident Manchester will provide a superb platform for the best MTV EMAs yet, and look forward to welcoming MTV and the global music community to our city for what is set to be an epic celebration of music and artists.