“They’re the foundation of any real culture. Without them, you don’t get The Smiths, Amy Winehouse or The 1975. You get silence”: New study suggests thousands of young people have given up on music because there’s nowhere to play

A new report suggests that young people are increasingly abandoning any ambitions to play music, partly because of the lack of small venues to play in.

The study – conducted by One Poll – surveyed 1,500 18– to 25-year-olds and found that 54% have wanted to play music, be that in a band, solo or as a DJ.

However, 28% of those say they have given up or scaled back those ambitions because there aren’t any suitable venues near where they live. In addition, 22% said that performing live “feels unrealistic” where they are.

And of course those figures don’t take into account those who aren’t put off in the first place because of the ever more remote prospect of scraping even a half-decent living out of music.

It comes as yet more proof that the loss of small venues and pubs is impacting the wider music and cultural industries in the UK. The study reports that Britain has lost 11,000 venues since 2019 – that’s between 4 and 5 per day. It’s on course to lose another 2,000 by 2030.

However, it seems that people still want to see live music in small venues – 63% said that they would go out more if pubs hosted live music, and 59% said that they preferred discovering new artists live as opposed to online.

The survey was published ahead of the Seed Sounds Weekender, which takes place from this Friday (April 24) to Sunday (April 26) across over 2,000 pubs and small so-called ‘seed’ venues in 20 UK towns and cities.

“Seed venues are where British music begins - in pubs, bars and back rooms,” says Michael Forster, Co-Founder and CEO of the live music booking platform GigPig who are behind the Seed Sounds festival. “If millions of people are living beyond the easy reach of live music, we are narrowing the next generation before they even start. These figures also show how much appetite there is for live music at a local level. At a time when Britain’s pubs, bars and wider hospitality sector is struggling, the public sentiment is overwhelmingly clear: live music will bring people through the door.”

Matty Healy of the 1975 has issued a statement about the findings, saying: “local venues aren’t just where bands cut their teeth, they’re the foundation of any real culture. Without them, you don’t get The Smiths, Amy Winehouse or The 1975. You get silence.”

“The erosion of funding for seed and grassroots spaces is part of a wider liberal tendency to strip away the socially democratic infrastructure that actually makes art possible. What’s left is a cultural economy where only the privileged can afford to create, and where only immediately profitable art survives.”

Indeed. So… support your local venue. Use it. Or lose it.