Three UK Music Organizations Launch New Grassroots Touring Fund

In the wake of skyrocketing touring costs, three prominent UK music organizations have launched The UK Artists Touring Fund. The fund is a collaboration between The Featured Artists Coalition, Musicians’ Union, and Music Managers Forum. With this new resource, DJs and other artists looking to take their music on the road will be able to apply for financial assistance for performing in the UK and throughout the world.

"The past five years have been extremely difficult for musicians due to COVID and the rising cost of touring, both within the UK and overseas," Naomi Pohl, the Musicians' Union's general secretary, said in a press release. "We want to make sure there is clear and transparent access to support, not only for those who book and platform artists, but for artists themselves and the huge teams they employ."

The rising costs of touring have been well-documented in recent years. Bonobo, a UK artist who has toured extensively as a DJ and with a full band, shared that his 2022 live band tour of the US would be his last due to financial realities.

“I think realistically this will be the last live band tour in the US. I touched on this elsewhere already but post pandemic the landscape of live touring with a large production with lots of moving parts and people has become financially unsustainable,” Bonobo wrote on Instagram.

The UK Artists Touring Fund seeks to address these rising costs by drawing money from LIVE Trust, a government-supported UK charity that collects £1 from tickets sold for venues and festivals with capacities over 5,000. The fund will accept individual public donations as well.