Where will we find the next Taylor Swift if grassroots venues shut down? - Christine Jardine

Tomorrow’s stars need to start somewhere, but grassroots gig spaces are being lost across the country, writes Christine Jardine

There’s a June date in our household calendar that is creating an unreasonable amount of excitement and has been since confirmation of the tickets landed.

Taylor Swift is the latest in a line of mega musical names to book out the largest venues across the country, including three nights in Edinburgh.

The excitement Swift and other stars generate is matched by the boost they can bring to the local economy.

But increasingly questions are being asked about whether enough is being done by Government and the industry itself to support smaller grassroots venues which provide a first opportunity for future stars, but often later struggle to survive.

In September 2023, NME reported that up to 10 per cent of the UK grassroots gig spaces would be lost by the end of last year, with 120 known to have closed.

In Scotland that has led to pressure for a £1 levy to be introduced on events for more than 5,000 people, with that money going to the Music Venue Trust to support smaller sites.

The organisation has estimated that this could generate £1 million a year from major venues to invest.

To make the argument the Trust’s CEO Mark Davyd has been widely quoted as claiming that a ‘disproportionate number’ of Scottish venues are now relying on funding from the Trust.

Elsewhere other organisations are beginning to join the campaign or launch their own efforts to boost the sector.

One taxi provider Freenow is donating £1 from every fare, a move that has been supported by singer songwriter Ed Sheeran.

And some online retailers now offer an option to donate directly to the MVT when buying tickets.

Ticketmaster ran a promotion after Venues Day in October 2023, and independent retailer Skiddle will match all donations from buyers, doubling their contribution.

But there are those who argue that the existing ticket prices, which in some cases are more than some families are able to spend on food in a month, already include too many surcharges.

For example you can be looking at adding a service charge, a facility charge and a handling fee on top of a ticket price of three figures.

In Edinburgh we are more aware perhaps than most places of the importance of smaller venues to the growth of the future entertainment industry.

It is difficult to imagine the Festival Fringe surviving without the plethora of pubs, clubs and halls which are its heart.

And while the Festival will benefit this year from £8 million in government funding, there is a much wider cultural demand which needs support.

Perhaps if the Scottish Government could make its mind up whether to increase its cultural funding, we could see some stability in the industry.

But Westminster too should play more of a part in creating the right financial climate for grassroots venues across the country.

In the past I have been among the many thousands who enjoyed David Bowie, Elton John, The Stones and the Spice Girls. Bowie, John and the Stones in particular would have been grateful for smaller venues in their early careers.

In the post-Covid, cost of living crisis times we find ourselves in, if we want to ensure a healthy future for their successors and the industry itself, we surely have to act now to keep it alive.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Christine Jardine is the Scottish Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West