Young musicians from Thanet are set to host a gig on Friday 19th April in a bid to raise funds for isle charity Pie Factory Music, which recently had its funding cut by Kent County Council.
Pie’s Emerging Artists – Char.B, Harmony Bo, Janmakesnoise and Quinn Bailey – are on a mission to showcase why supporting young musical talent is so vital to East Kent’s cultural development. Without creative programmes offered by organisations like Pie, it would be hard, if not impossible, for them to access opportunities within the music industry.
The year-long Emerging Artists programme gives 16-25-year-olds in-depth guidance and advice about music rights, promotion, recording and performing, as well as the opportunity to perform live at local music venues.
They get access to a network of like-minded young musicians, and 1-2-1 mentoring with industry experts, at no cost. So far, Pie has helped 23 young people progress and develop their skills since the programme began in 2018 and launched a youth record label, Wantsum Music? in 2021.
Emerging Artist alumni Elijah Femi has gone on to become a successful musician and said: “I didn’t just gain confidence and make music at Pie Factory Music, they taught me life skills, like how to collaborate with people, networking skills, how to set up my own gigs and how to approach others in the industry. I’ve since recorded my first album and performed at gigs in Kent and London.”
The gig at Olby’s in Margate on Friday 19th April from 7pm will have solo performances from each Emerging Artist, covering punk-political-folk to jazz, rap and electro-pop, to raise funds to support the career development programme.
Last November Kent County Council made the decision to end KCC subsidies for youth clubs and activities commissioned by the council but run by outside organisations. The decision, which came into effect in March, was made to save the county council around £900,000.
In Thanet it meant a loss of 45% of Pie Factory’s income and 50% loss of income for The Pavilion Youth & Community Café in Broadstairs.
The funding cut has already resulted in Pie having to cease their youth service in Dover, after seven years of providing activities for the district’s young people.
Pie CEO Zoë Carassik said: “These are the biggest cuts to youth services in the county for a generation. Our open-access sessions catch young people at the early stages of something going wrong in their lives, where you might have the opportunity to help or protect them.
“This gig represents the beating heart of our charity – providing a platform for young people in East Kent to be creative, express themselves, and access transformative opportunities. We’d love to see our local community fill Olby’s, give these young musicians hope, and help us to rebuild our funds.”
Find out more at www.piefactorymusic.com/services-pie/emerging-artists
If you would like to support Pie’s work, you can donate here.
Emerging Artists Live
Friday 19 April from 7pm at Olby’s Margate, 3-5 King Street, Margate
Tickets: £3 under 18s, £5 over 18s – pay on the door.
All proceeds go to supporting Pie’s Emerging Artists programme
