POWER UP Year 3 – Open for applications
POWER UP has announced the opening of its Year 3 Participant Programme application process.
The initiative – designed to elevate exciting Black music creators and industry professionals – addresses barriers for those at crucial career stages and has already transformed the careers of 80 Participants since 2021.
Black music creators and industry professionals ready for this holistic support can now apply to be considered for the Year 3 Programme, with the application deadline set for Monday 20th February 2023 at 6pm. Successful applicants will be announced in May 2023.
POWER UP aims to break down barriers to create a fairer, more equitable music industry, to achieve better representation in all sectors of the UK music industry, and to amplify the work of Black creators and industry professionals, through the POWER UP Participant Programme.
Each year the Participant Programme supports:
- 20 Black music creators (artists, songwriters, composers and producers who are involved in the creative process and may be working in any genre, based anywhere in the UK), and
- 20 Black executives and industry professionals (professionals working in any sector of the music industry, anywhere in the UK – including employees and entrepreneurs, freelancers and self-employed professionals).
Successful applicants will power up through:
- Grant support of up to £15,000
- Taking part in the long-term Power Up network
- Professional Development Masterclasses
- Mentoring and Coaching
- Collaborative opportunities
- In person and digital meet ups
- Access to partners
- Marketing support
Support is designed to enable Black talent to take a vital next step in their career, break through glass ceilings and fundamentally start to move the dial on equality and equity in the UK music industry.
The last two years of POWER UP Participants have built a strong network and are shaping the future of music with successes including; Multiple award nominations, wins and recognition such as Nova Twins receiving a Mercury Music Prize nomination for their POWER UP-supported album, plus 2 x BRITS nominations; Jennifer John received the Local Hero Award at the AIM Awards; Abel Selaocoe’s BBC Proms performance of “Africa Meets Europe” received a 4**** review from The Times; Daniel Kidane received a 4**** review in The Guardian for his BBC Proms piece “Revel”; New record, publishing and agent deals for Participants; TAALIAH signed to Primary Talent; KG signed to Paradigm Talent Agency (EU, Worldwide) & Awesome Agency (North, South America) and Marshall announced that they have signed Bemz and CHERYM; New roles and promotions for Participants: Christine Osazuwa was appointed as Chief Strategy Officer at Shoob; Adem Holness is now Head of Contemporary Music at the Southbank Centre and Selina Wedderburn joined Rehegoo Music Group then was promoted to Director of Operations; New ventures including Loretta Andrews launched the “I Am Independent Bootcamp Video course” as a resource for independent artists; Keturah Cummings was selected for the 2022 Barclays Black Founder Accelerator programme and launched new podcast Jack of All Trades; Kwame Daniels started his own BBC Radio Ulster show and Des Agyekumhene’s company Soga were behind the Close To Home NFT campaign for Aitch– the first artist to claim an NFT entering the UK’s official album charts. You can see more successes for Year 1 and Year 2 Participants.
Co-founded by PRS Foundation and Ben Wynter and managed by PRS Foundation in partnership with YouTube Music, Beggars Group, Spotify and the Black Music Coalition, the initiative brings several music industry partners and goes beyond solidarity, with new approaches which foster meaningful change. Other supporters include Creative Scotland, Believe, Simkins, Arts Council of Wales, Creative Wales, Paul Hamlyn Foundation, plus AIM, the BPI, the FAC, The Ivors Academy, the MMF, the MPA, MPG, The Musicians’ Union, PPL, PRS for Music and the PRS Members’ Fund, as well as Associate Partner, Daft Springer, who each bring added-value support to POWER UP Participants.
Find out more information plus details how to apply and FAQs
For anyone interested in applying, the “How to Apply” video recorded last year is still available to watch (see below) nd a number of outreach and advice sessions will be announced via the POWER UP social media channels (@TimeToPowerUp_) soon.
