There’s more to our music than Oasis, says Manchester mayor — SkimNews
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- Bev Craig pledged £2m in investment funding for Greater Manchester's music scene at the Beyond the Music AI summit at MediaCity in Salford, emphasizing a "real intentionality" around nurturing local artists
- Craig said "there's more to Greater Manchester's music scene than just Oasis," stressing diversity and warning that the industry is becoming "more and more middle-class, more and more London-centric"
- Co-op Live arena hosted the Brit Awards and the Mobos' 30th anniversary earlier this year — Craig said she specifically wanted a major event celebrating Black music, culture and creativity, hosted just after the Brits
- Beyond the Music's festival featured performances from up-and-coming Black and minority ethnic artists including Bawo, JayaHadADream and Alt Blk Era
- Craig outlined commitments to AI literacy for music professionals and to monitoring tech's impact on employment, income and diversity in the sector
- The £2m is in addition to a £4m Culture Fund announced earlier this month, aimed at improving access to rehearsal and production space across the city region
- Culture minister Ian Murray told the conference that with a prime minister — Andy Burnham, who convened the final day — who "picks up his guitar to murder Smiths tracks," there is "passion from the very top"
Why it matters: Combined with a £4m Culture Fund announced earlier this month, Craig's £2m brings new regional music investment to £6m, explicitly targeting rehearsal space access and BME artists in an industry she says is increasingly middle-class and London-centric — redirecting Manchester's music economy toward artists who wouldn't otherwise break through.
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