The Circle of Light collective borne out of last year’s groundbreaking mental health project funded by Youth Music is joining forces with Hockley Hustle to stage an all-day festival in support of the national charity.
Light Hustle is part of Youth Music’s Give a Gig Week initiative and will take place on Saturday 4 April at Fisher Gate Point Centre for the Arts, a new city centre venue set to become a hub for creative projects from music and writing to art installations and performance.
The gig will be staged by young people, building on the opportunities given to the Circle of Light participants to get involved in the planning, programming and delivery of their own event.
Spread across two spaces, Light Hustle will bring together artists from Circle of Light with special guests from the Nottingham music scene.
Matt Griffiths, CEO of Youth Music said: “Young people supported by our projects nationwide are getting involved with Give a Gig Week by putting on their own events – developing valuable skills, showcasing their creativity, and breaking down barriers. Circle of Light’s Give a Gig Week festival is set to be an extraordinary day in which young people have been instrumental, from planning to performing, learning the ropes of all aspects of the music industry to transforming a disused space into a creative haven. The audience is in for a treat!”
Circle of Light has certainly been life changing for many of the young people who took part last summer, none more so than singer-songwriter Mae Monypenny, who went from struggling to write songs to winning the Youth Music Live Performance Award (sponsored by Marshall) and has since had opportunities including recording at Spotify’s #secretgenius studios in London. Funding from players of People’s Postcode Lottery is helping Youth Music to support young musicians like Mae to develop their careers.
Another Circle of Light participant Poppy Scoffings has been selected to attend Youth Music’s Content Creation workshop at London’s Red Bull Studio to get some expert advice from industry professionals. After the workshop, content creators will be commissioned in various paid roles (including social media, blogging, videography, photography, interviewing) at events throughout Give a Gig Week 2020.
Ben Welch, Hockley Hustle, said: “The event is kickstarting our collaboration which will see us curating a bespoke mentorship programme for a number of Nottingham musicians to provide development in their craft, providing opportunities and link ups within the music business and how to look after their wellbeing.”
Ian Gardiner, from Offshoots, the community interest company which won the funding for Circle of Light, said: “We have seen firsthand the positive impact on young people given the chance to work creatively together, sharing ideas and offering each other support. Here at Fisher Gate Point, we are now able to give the Circle of Light a permanent base from which they can continue to collaborate, write, rehearse, record and perform together.
“This new partnership with Hockley Hustle will once again open up more opportunities for all the young people involved. Light Hustle will be the culmination of an intense few weeks to bring together their first ever event.”
An independent local brewery will be supplying the beer as part of an ambition for the venue to work with and support local homegrown businesses. The Hollow Stone Brewing Co is named after the road opposite Fisher Gate with a large hollow stone sandstone cave, which would have been used for brewing and storing beer in years gone past.
All of the Hollow Stone beers are vegan and named after caves or coving terms including Krubera, named for the deepest darkest cave in the world and Oligo Nunk, a dry hopped american pale ale named for a cave system in America.
Tickets are available from Gigantic for a voluntary donation of £5 with all proceeds going to Youth Music.
