YouTube and Youth Music – a national charity investing in music-making projects for young people – are set to collaborate in support of the next generation of music creators.
The partnership will see industry expertise and investment offered to rising creative organisations as Youth Music prepares to open applications today (December 17) for its second round of the Incubator Fund. The £2m fund which is supported by the People’s Postcode Lottery offers grants of up to £30,000 to “forward-thinking” music industry employers to help invest in the careers of young people from 18-25 and thus diversify its talent.
“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,” said Managing director, YouTube UK, Ben McOwen Wilson. “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.”
Over 60 organisations will be offered help from YouTube Masterclasses in addition to one-on-one mentorship across the next year. 31 organisations have already successfully secured an investment in the first round of the fund in November.
CEO of Youth Music, Matt Griffiths, 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.”
FOLLOW 
