Newcastle Gateshead Music City plan to enrich everyone’s lives
An initiative called Newcastle Gateshead Music City has been announced by The Glasshouse International Centre for Music and Generator, the North East music development agency.
Described as “a game-changing initiative to drive investment, boost jobs and supercharge education and skills”, it has the backing of North East Mayor Kim McGuinness and singer-songwriter Sam Fender.
It follows similar announcements on Teesside and Wearside in recent months.
In July a bid to make Sunderland part of the European Music Cities Network as Sunderland Music City was revealed, with organisers hoping to attract more international artists and help local acts land more gigs in member cities including Berlin, Gothenburg, Reykjavik and the only other UK member, Manchester.
September, meanwhile, saw the launch in Stockton of Sonic Futures, led by Generator and Tees Music Alliance and with funding from Tees Valley Combined Authority aimed at boosting tourism and the local economy.
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Hopes are high for Newcastle Gateshead Music City although it would seem to be early days, with an office to be established and a board to be appointed with representatives from music, business and the creative industries.
Immediate aims include the creation of “a visionary and ambitious music strategy” showing how music can support the community and drive growth.
This means the commissioning of “vital” research to establish the region’s current music assets and potential for growth.
Newcastle Gateshead Music City, say those behind the scheme, “will empower the region’s brilliant musicians and music professionals to succeed within a thriving music ecosystem”.
The ambition is for career opportunities here to rival those anywhere in the UK.
Longer term goals include the generation of between 2,000 and 4,000 music-related jobs and a £750 million boost to the local economy from the music sector.
Kim McGuinness said: “For generations, North East music has shaped our region’s identity and powered our dreams. But for too long it has been treated as an optional add-on to our economic success.
“As North East mayor I’m working with people from across our region to put the creative economy at the centre of our plans for economic growth.
“That means not just more fabulous music coming from talented local artists, but also space for recording, backing for live music and, crucially, a skills plan for the creative industries.
“The Music City project will help make these plans a reality not just in Newcastle and Gateshead but across our North East, and I look forward to working with The Glasshouse, Generator and musicians across the region on delivering these plans.”
Sam Fender, the music star from North Shields, threw his support behind the scheme.
“Music is an integral part of our culture that has been neglected historically in the North East,” he said.
“It’s about time we put more resource into nurturing our local talent to ensure it’s taken seriously as a priority sector.”
Mick Ross, chief executive of Generator, which has recently linked up with major record labels including EMI North and Warner UK, spoke of “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to put the region on the global map for music and the creative industries”.
He added that Newcastle and Gateshead had “the perfect ecosystem of development organisations like Generator, existing and future venues, educational facilities and industry investment, and, crucially, a cultural environment and population that wholly embraces the creative sector and the economic opportunities it presents for everybody.
"Adding the collective civic and political willingness to make such ambitious plans come to fruition, now is the time for all those component parts to come together and to make Music City happen.”
Alongside Sunderland Music City and Sonic Futures, it would help to make the region a national music powerhouse.
Wendy Smith, creative director of The Glasshouse ICM, said Newcastle Gateshead Music City would lead to a better and more resilient music ecosystem.
“We have an amazing music history that we can celebrate, a vibrant music scene right now and an even more exciting future,” she said.
“Growing music here will create jobs, increase people's skills and make sure every child or young person can get involved with music as learners, creators and audiences.
“We want to see children from all backgrounds and life circumstances learning music now to be the artists on our stages in the future.
“This Music City will be for everyone, impacting people of all ages and from all walks of life in our region.”