Skip to content

Teens try music industry jobs as 'mini Mercuries'

Emilia Martinez-BarnfatherBBC North East and Cumbria, Newcastle-upon-Tyne
BBC Frances has long, light brown wavy hair and is wearing a red crewneck sweatshirt featuring Adidas logo. She smiles as she stands indoors in front of a white brick wall covered with gig posters posters and Nano Kino merchandise.BBC
Frances, 15, helped the event go smoothly scanning tickets and stamping hands at the box office

A group of teenagers helped to plan and deliver a live gig as part of a programme aimed at giving them a taste of music industry careers.

Young people aged 15 to 16 worked alongside Ant Thompson, director of Newcastle-based Live Notion Events, to organise indie pop band Nano Kino's headline gig at The Cluny on Monday.

The Mini Mercury Promoters scheme is part of the Mercury Prize fringe - run by music development agency Generator - which aims to create opportunities for creatives.

Thompson said he hoped to show young people what roles exist in music beyond being a performer, and inspire them to consider careers "while living in the North".

Students learned about making profit, loss sheets and creating social media ads to sell tickets during classes the Newcastle University campus.

On show night at The Cluny, they got hands-on experience in sound mixing, stage management and box office.

Frances, 15, from Newcastle, who scanned entry tickets on the night, said it had "opened her eyes" to the different jobs available in the industry.

Lucy, 16, of Cullercoats, was shocked by "the amount of effort" that goes into putting on a show.

"Now every time I go to a concert or gig, I'll think: 'I wonder what the hospitality rider was like?'", she said.

In a dimly lit music venue, a teenager is looking down intently while adjusting controls on a large, illuminated audio mixing console.
On show night at The Cluny, the teenagers got hands-on experience in sound mixing, stage management

For James, 16, the best part of the experience was helping bands get their equipment on stage.

"It makes you feel useful - it's a lot of fun," he said.

A wide shot captures band Nano Kino performing on a dimly lit stage bathed in red spotlighting. The female lead singer and guitarist stands at the center microphone, flanked by a guitarist on the left and a bassist on the right, with a drummer visible behind them, and a part-obscured 'The Cluny' logo on the wall.
The aspiring promoters got a taste of the role planning a gig for North East-based indie pop band Nano Kino

Thompson, who started promoting during the "MySpace era" of discovering bands through the social media platform, said he had to "wing it" at the start of his career.

"There's not a lot of educating in music promoting," he said.

He now wants to share the knowledge of the "true economics of the live industry" he said he learned from peers.

"Maybe this has kind of enlightened [the students] a little bit into realising there's career prospects out there."

A medium close-up shot of James, who has long hair tied back smiling directly toward the camera in the dimly lit music venue. He is wearing a black graphic t-shirt with a small microphone clipped to the collar.
James, 16, said he was now considering a career in the music industry

However, Thompson said music venues are "really feeling the pinch" due to rising business rates, VAT, spend-per-heads and the cost of living.

"First and foremost we need [venues] to survive, we need those to exist and thrive as well.

"I hope that once that is tackled that absolutely we can see new companies appear.

"Hopefully people can actually create a bit of a London of the North up here."

Ant Thompson smiles warmly indoors. He has short moustache and stubble and is wearing a yellow Carhartt baseball cap, a dark collared shirt under a light-colored zip-up jacket, and a small lavalier microphone is attached to his collar. Part of a C. Bechstein piano is visible on the right.
Promoter Ant Thompson wants to see Newcastle become a "London of the North"

Follow BBC Newcastle on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram and listen to Radio Newcastle on BBC Sounds.

Related stories
Related internet link