Nottingham's legendary Rock City and the Royal Albert Hall are poles apart but they're both contenders for Venue of the Year in the first ever LIVE awards, held by the music industry organisation to celebrate the endurance of the UK’s live music sector. The club in Talbot Street is also facing stiff competition from other top London venues the O2 Arena, Alexandra Palace and the London Palladium making the shortlist, along with The Leadmill in Sheffield.
The LIVE Awards recognises the leading companies and individuals from right across the £4.5bn UK live music business. From classical to grime, baroque to rock, the UK live music sector is recognised as one of the world’s greatest markets and these awards are designed to recognise this excellence.
Across the 14 categories, more than 80 finalists have been announced including DHP Family in the National Promoter category and its flagship venue Rock City making the eight-strong shortlist of venues. Looking for evidence of innovation, the award submission detailed how the team at the 1,900 capacity club venue with its 235 capacity Beta second room kept the flame burning throughout the challenges of the last year.
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Anton Lockwood, Head of Live, DHP Family, said: “Throughout the Covid period we creatively kept as many people as possible busy and in paid work – turning the car park for tour buses into an outdoor bar, while the dancefloor became a sit down club. Fortunately, into 2022 we were able to go back to fully opening, after a revamp of the second room and doing what we do best with packed-out gigs and club nights.
“Now back up to speed we’ve continued to provide the best venue in the country, holding up the spirit of creativity and independence in the music industry, with no corporate sponsors telling us what to do, and an artist and audience focussed attitude.”
Established over 40 years ago, Rock City is still the leading independent venue of its size in the country and is seen as a “must play” on any national club tour, as demonstrated by the extensive and diverse calendar of shows spanning all genres.
Bands that echo the "rock” name like Enter Shikari, Turnstile and Anthrax, through venue favourites like Frank Turner and The Charlatans to virtually every new hot artist around such as Wet Leg, Aitch and Holly Humberstone, demonstrate that Rock City really is for everyone.
LIVE CEO Jon Collins said, “We have been delighted with the depth and breadth of the nominations sent in for this, the first LIVE Awards. They reflect the fact that, despite all the challenges we face, our sector truly is world-class.”
Judged by a panel of industry professionals, the awards will be presented in front of an invited industry audience, with hundreds expected to attend the ceremony in London on December 13.
Continuing the good news, Splendour and Dot To Dot have been nominated in this year's UK Festival Awards with the public able to get involved and vote for their favourite festival. Cast a vote for Dot to Dot as Best Metropolitan and Best Small Festival and Splendour as Best Medium Festival here
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