Amazing spaces, great people and major music: Independent Venue Week is back!
This week it’s Independent Venue Week 2023 running from Monday (Jan 30) to Sunday (Feb 5), where we celebrate independent music and arts venues, and the people that own, run and work in them. More than 300 independent venues are hosting hundreds of gigs and events across the country, including in a number of our Priority Places, with artists including Suede, Young Father, beabadoobee and The Unthanks.
Now in its tenth year, the week-long event shines a spotlight on the skilled people running independent spaces across the country, and the wide range of artists they host. Building on previous support, we’re proud to have invested £328,868 of National Lottery funding in this year’s celebrations – only made possible thanks to National Lottery players.
Anniversary ambassadors
Radiohead’s Philip Selway and Brit Awards Rising Star nominee bebadoobee are the ambassadors for #IVW23
Highlights from the week so far
Our Director for Music, Claire Mera-Nelson, said: “Independent Venue Week is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the vital role that independent music venues play in supporting artists and bringing great entertainment to communities. These venues are the lifeblood of the UK’s music scene, and we’re proud to support them in lots of ways, including through IVW’s fantastic tenth anniversary year.”
IVW’s community programme will run a series of events across the country, including Soundcheck Sessions for young people across the country; a partnership with charity Attitude is Everything to improve the experience for deaf, disabled and neurodivergent audiences; and a six-week peer-to-peer support programme focusing on mental health and wellbeing in Leeds.
