Does your rehearsal space give you full mentor support?
PROPELLER sits at the heart of the artist empowerment revolution. The old music industry is dead. Today, well-connected independent artists who understand the modern music industry are flourishing and building successful careers. Don’t wait. Take control and make the new music industry work for you.
Firstly, PROPELLER membership takes care of the basics; with access to high-quality rehearsal studio SPACE available 24 hours, with secure storage. But you need more than great facilities. At Future Yard, every PROPELLER artist is partnered with an experienced professional mentor to provide SUPPORT and a dedicated development plan. You’ll also gain access to a rolling programme of workshops and masterclasses from leading music minds, building your KNOWLEDGE. All this is based within a vibrant artist COMMUNITY, housed at Future Yard, one of the UK’s most exciting new music venues.
Space
The PROPELLER programme gives artists access to high-quality rehearsal studios, available 24 hours, with multi-channel Yamaha PA systems, Sennheiser microphones and Focusrite interfaces. Secure storage is available, plus use of hot-desk and social spaces. Coupled with access to Future Yard’s live stage for showcasing, promoting and development, PROPELLER provides your creative home, as well as a base for your project and emerging music business.
Support
All PROPELLER artists can book on to mentor sessions that take place at FUTURE YARD or online. The drop in sessions are 30 mins each, but if you’ve got lots to talk about, then you can book a double session. Our aim is to help you grow your music project and become the best possible version of yourself. Focussing on all aspects of your music and development, our mentors will work with you to shape your goals and work together to achieve them. This will be done through regular communication and support, specifically focussed development sessions and a plan that will put in place a robust music career bedrock.
Cath Head of Skills and Development at Future Yard leading on PROPELLER. In 2018 she launched artist management company, mostdeffo, working with Eyesore & The Jinx, Natalie McCool and Beija Flo. Cath has worked in online PR, digital marketing and social media management for an extremely varied roster of brand new acts through to established artists, and worked as a product manager at Rough Trade Records for several years.
Grace studied BA Hons Popular Music at the Liverpool Institute For Performing Arts where she graduated with 1st Class Honours. She has recently completed her MA at the University of Liverpool with a focus on music business and industry. She set up and is the record label manager for Both Sides Records, a pioneering label that focuses on readdressing the gender imbalance that exists within the music industry. Grace also regularly mentors emerging artists with a focus on music business and law, release strategies and career and business planning.
Grace is also a freelance session musician and percussionist. She is part of the collective of musicians who provide Ibiza style entertainment across the world for weddings, parties and corporate events. She has also been a session musician for multiple artists and her work has been featured on BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 6 and BBC Radio Merseyside.
Matt currently looks after marketing and social media at Manchester-based indie label Gondwana Records, alongside managing singer-songwriter Astles. Matt has worked as a music marketing and strategy consultant for range of major label, independent and emerging artists and bands. He was also an A&R scout for Cooking Vinyl Publishing.
Knowledge
PROPELLER artists will get access to a range of industry experts through an ongoing programme of workshops, masterclasses and one-to-ones. These seminars will be designed to build knowledge across all fundamental aspects of industry and practice, which you can utilise to turbo charge your project. All members will also have access to an extensive bank of digital resources, consisting of guidance, explainers and tips on all specific aspects of the music industry.
Our Knowledge sessions will be delivered by professionals such as…
Jen Long is an artist manager and broadcaster who will be dropping in with us for regular masterclasses and sessions. Jen has worked in various positions across the music industry, marketing and broadcasting over the past decade and a half, including as a journalist for NME and The Line Of Best Fit, hosting a BBC Introducing radio show, running her own label (Kissability), and generally helping out artists along the way.
Alan Duggan manages and tour manages Girl Band, the Dublin four-piece in which he also plays guitar. Alan has helped the group to navigate a record deal (Rough Trade Records, globally) and a publishing deal (Domino Publishing, globally) while maintaining a DIY nature (the band are self-managed, self-recorded, produced and mixed). Outside of the band, Alan is a lecturer in BIMM Dublin, with a focus on Music Business Studies and Marketing.
Ceri Dixon is Head Of UK Digital Partnerships at Red Light Management, working with the company’s London based team. She is also artist manager to emerging Liverpool-based act The Let Go. In her role with Red Light, Ceri is responsible for digital strategies, relationships and partnerships across the company’s roster of artists managed from the UK.
Hailing from Liverpool and spending quite a lot of time in the Wirral during her youth, Amy has been in PR for over 7 years, starting during her PR degree. She’s worked on some of the UK’s biggest festivals, and with artists such as Refused, The 1975, Wolf Alice, Years & Years and more. Amy started at Prescription last year and works with For Those I Love, TV Priest and Zuzu, amongst others.
Lewis is a solicitor at Russells, a top-tier music and entertainment industry specialist law firm based in London. He advises and negotiates on behalf of new and established artists/writers, producers, managers, record labels and publishers, as well as live performers, booking agents, promoters and festivals.
Community
A dynamic, collaborative and social community of artists forms the heart of PROPELLER. This is an environment which encourages creativity and growth, through formal workshops and sessions, and the more informal collaborations and connections you will build with fellow PROPELLER artists. It will be a social space where artists interact on their own terms, with likeminded people. Housed within Future Yard, you will have your home within one of the UK’s most exciting new music spaces, enjoying discounts and exclusive opportunities.
Future Yard
Future Yard is a brand new live venue and music skills hub based in Birkenhead, on the left bank of the Mersey. Music venues are the maternity wards of music cultures. They provide a context for talent to develop, infrastructure to grow and creative communities to blossom. As a community music venue, Future Yard will not only provide opportunities for young music enthusiasts to make their first steps in an exciting career in live music, it will also shape a new-music future for Birkenhead.
