Music fans in Manchester can now help to save grassroots music venues when using the taxi app FREENOW. The Round Up and Donate function on the FREENOW app will raise money for Music Venue Trust (MVT), the charity that supports grassroots music venues, to help it support venues at risk of closure.

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MVT has described 2023 as the most challenging year for the sector since the Trust was founded in 2014. In total 16% of GMVs closed or ceased programming live music in 2023. The cross-party Culture, Media and Sport Committee, recently issued its report which highlights how grassroots music venues (GMVs) which are integral to the pipeline of professional, creative and technical music talent are stopping performances of live music or closing entirely at a rate more than one per week. The report also highlights how artists are facing a cost of touring crisis and are struggling to get venues for their shows.

Music Venue Trust will use funds raised through the FREENOW Round Up and Donate feature to operate the Emergency Response Service (ERS), which has saved hundreds of venues from closure since it was established in 2017. In 2023 the ERS offered specialist advice in 164 cases, the largest number it has ever dealt with in one year. The primary threats that ERS addresses are:

Threats to venues from redevelopment
Threats to venues from noise complaints/licence issues
Threats to venues from rising energy costs

Threats to venues from disputes with Landlords

Fresh off the back of their No.1 album The Libertines said: “The UK grassroots music circuit is more than just small local venues. It is absolutely crucial to emerging talent. It is the vanguard of independent expression and free speech outside the corporate and commerce-based music industry. It is a labour of love for those who run the venues and it is a rite of passage for new acts cutting their teeth. Without this community we would never have gotten our music into the wider world at large. We have played hundreds of these gigs over the last 2 decades, each one unique and intimate in a way that only these smaller venues can provide. We also run a couple of our own. We hope this new partnership with FREENOW and MVT raises loads of cash to keep them going and we’re honoured to be joining MVT as patrons to help recognise and protect the grassroots circuit. Long live the MVT, long live grassroots venues and long live new music.”

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The partnership between MVT and FREENOW follows on from previous initiatives, including underwriting 160 shows around the country (2022), donating £1 a ride (2023) and providing transport for Frank Turner during his successful MVT World Record attempt (May 2024).

Frank Turner said: “Hats off to FREENOW for their continued support for the Music Venue Trust. They backed my world record of shows in independent venues, and have helped in countless other ways. It’s so encouraging to see a company like them getting involved to help the vital grassroots ecosystem. I hope FREENOW raise loads more money for MVT with their new round up to donate feature.”

Steve Lamacq, radio presenter and Music Venue Trust Patron added “It’s terrific to see a company like FREENOW investing so heavily into grassroots music venues for a third time. Their continued support makes a real difference.”

Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester said of the campaign “Music Venue Trust has been instrumental in supporting UK grassroots venues. I’ve seen many of my favourite bands in some of these spaces, and they play a key role in the nighttime economy and music scene of Greater Manchester and the wider UK. I fully support the recommendations published by the Culture, Media & Sport Select Committee including the introduction of a levy and a targeted VAT cut to halt the rising tide of closures. However, it’s clear that urgent action is needed to support venues and the talented artists playing them. I’m delighted to see MVT joining efforts with FREENOW to continue raising awareness for this matter and collect vital funds to keep grassroots venues open and support all those who depend on them.”