This spring we’re supporting the Musicians’ Union with Levy Market Mixtapes which sees a host of local record labels, venues and other independent music organisations each putting together a playlist for the market. We’ll be releasing a new mixtape each week and asking you to donate to the Musicians’ Union Coronavirus Hardship Fund.
Tomorrow we’re back for our second market of the year and it’s looking like perfect spring weather for a lazy Levy Market mooch. You can have a browse of all the stalls you can expect to find right here,
And that means the second instalment in our Levy Market Mixtapes series for you to enjoy while shopping at the market AND while you’re at home, in the garden or on the move – basically, wherever it is you end up enjoying your market purchases provided you can take Spotify with you.
This time round we’re showcasing the releases of Scruff of the Neck.
Scruff of the Neck started out in 2009 running gigs in the back rooms of student pubs. Over ten years later, the independent label is now a fiercely independent set-up, promoting concerts, managing artists, staging festivals, producing videos, designing merch and publishing music, all with the aim of supporting new artists in their careers.
Their playlist is highlights some of the great artists currently on their books – Corella, Shelter Boy, The Lottery Winners – alongside some of their tips for new artists making a big splash on the indie music scene.
Listen on Spotify here.
And remember: all of this music was written and recorded by artists who, for over a year, have not been able to perform live. At all. This is the main source of income for almost all musical artists and the lifeforce of the UK music industry. So if you like a song you hear – why not buy the artist’s record? You could even order it direct from the Scruff of the Neck shop? Did you also know that Spotify, while it has a reputation for not being the most lucrative platform for its artists, now allows them to feature a ‘Fundraising Pick’ link on the top of their Spotify profiles, allowing you to pay them direct for their music?
More urgently, you can also donate to the Musicians’ Union Coronavirus Hardship Fund which we’re asking all our customers to support if they can this spring.
The Musicians’ Union provides small grants of £200 to musicians in urgent financial hardship. They have distributed over £1.3M to members via their hardship grants since April 2020, but there are many more who are still in dire financial circumstances.
So when you visit the market at the weekend, please enjoy listening to the sounds of your city, take them home with you and make a donation if you can – anything at all can make a difference. We’re all looking forward to live music returning later this year – let’s do what we can to ensure that there are people there to play for us.
