YouTube & Youth Music partner to provide funding & expertise to emerging creative organisations
Melanie May | 23 December 2020 | News
National charity Youth Music and YouTube have announced a partnership that will see the two working together to deliver industry expertise and investment to emerging creative organisations.
The move represents a step forward following the charity’s report A Blueprint for the Future, which aimed to address inequalities and lack of diversity in the music industries.
The collaboration adds to Youth Music’s Incubator Fund, which opened its second round of applications on Thursday 17 December, and helps music organisations create sustainable career opportunities for 18-25 year olds.
With Covid-19 continuing to impact many aspects of the music sector, YouTube will provide successful applicants with coaching and additional funding to increase their digital capabilities and innovate for the future.
More than sixty organisations will benefit from YouTube Masterclasses and one-to-one mentoring over the next 12-months, including the thirty-one organisations which successfully secured investment in round one of the Youth Music Incubator Fund in November.
Matt Griffiths, CEO of Youth Music, said:
“We see again and again at Youth Music how young people are finding ingenious ways to navigate their way into the music industries. Nevertheless, their progress is all too often blocked due to entrenched inequalities in the music industries. We are addressing this with our Incubator Fund, and it’s great to be collaborating with YouTube to increase the impact and support to a range of diverse organisations and young people.”
Ben McOwen Wilson, Managing Director YouTube UK, added:
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“The current challenges facing the creative industries are why organisations like Youth Music are more important than ever before, and we are proud to be partnering with them to support creatives in the UK, particularly those from marginalised and underrepresented groups. In helping to establish a platform for the next generation of creative talent to shine through, our goal is to create a lasting legacy that ensures the UK remains at the epicentre of culture and creativity globally.”
The application deadline for this second round of funding is 5 February 2021.
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.