The Welcome to Leeds Stage at Leeds Jazz Festival brings together Launchpad / Music:Leeds, Jazz Leeds and Jazz North to curate a selection of emerging and diverse talent to entertain in our family friendly, open air free stage on Cookridge Street across the extended Bank Holiday weekend, Thursday 2nd to Sunday 5th June.

Situated between The Light and Henry Moore Institute, the stage has its own seating area, and will have live performances from 11am to 6pm each day, with an early 3pm finish on Sunday. Food and drink will be on hand throughout the weekend, supplied by Radisson Blu and Browns.

On Thursday 2 June for a showcase of Launchpad supported artists, with exact timings to be announced shortly.

The Welcome to Leeds Stage is produced by Leeds BID in partnership with New Citizens.

Additional support for the stage comes from Eiger Studios who are providing the musical backline. Eiger Studios is a recording studio, rehearsal studio and event space just outside Leeds city-centre. Over the last decade they’ve been making records, throwing parties and providing rehearsal spaces and gear hire for the thriving community of bands within Leeds.

What: All-dayer
Who: ft the likes of Dialect, Rumbi Tauro, Sister Wives, Team Picture and loads more!
Location: Belgrave Music Hall, Headrow House & Howard Assembly Room

Launchpad Festival is a new live music event featuring over 30 new and emerging artists from across Yorkshire, performing across 3 venues in Leeds City Centre, with a single ticket gaining entry to all the acts.

Artists include:

Akin Amusan / Blackson / Chante Amour / Chiedu Oraka / Curtis Charles / Dialect / Dilettante / Dreuw / Fran Minney / Galaxians / Hang Linton / James Adrian Brown (DJ) / Jessie Marcela (DJ) / Harris Hameed / joegarratt / Josephine Sillars / La Rissa / Lucky Iris / Luxury Goods / Mollie Coddled / Ntantu / Pile of Clothes / Pleasure Centre / Rosie Miles / Rumbi Tauro / Shauna (DJ) / Simeon Walker / Sister Wives / Skinner / Sunday Lendis / Team Picture / Tsarzi / VERA SACRA / Wandering Monster / wax works / Wildest / Yaatri

Find out more about the artists here.

Tickets: £10 advance / more on the door
Age limits: 18+ or 14+ if accompanied by an adult

All the artists performing at the festival have been supported by Launchpad - a talent development program that supports artists and emerging professionals throughout Yorkshire in the music industry. Launchpad offers ongoing support through its advice portal, including regular advice sessions, and biannual open calls for new artists to apply for support. 

Launchpad Festival is paired with Launchpad Conference, a free day of panels, workshops, presentations and networking for those working in, or aspiring to work in the music industry, with speakers from the local music scene, and those working on a national and international level taking place the day before, on Thursday 14th April.

More info here. 

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Covid guidance

We want everyone attending our events to feel comfortable and safe as possible so we ask that you:
* Stay at home if you’re feeling unwell

* Wear a mask when inside, unless you are exempt
* Do a lateral flow test before coming, if it’s positive please stay at home (you can order LFTs for free here)
* Regularly wash your hands with soap or hand sanitiser

For more information you can visit the venues’ websites:

Belgrave Music Hall
Headrow House
Howard Assembly Room

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Access

All three venues have lots of accessibility information on their websites, click here for Belgrave (under the Accessibility tab), here for Headrow House and here for Howard Assembly Room. If you have any access requirements or questions, please free to drop us an email at emily@musiclocal.co.uk or get in touch with Belgrave on meg@belgravemusichall.com / 0113 2346160, Headrow House on alice@superfriendz.com / 0113 245 9370 and Howard Assembly Room on boxoffice@operanorth.co.uk / 0113 223 3600. 

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Launchpad Festival is part is delivered by Music Local, partnering with Super Friendz & Howard Assembly Rooms and is supported by Youth Music, with public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England, as well as Leeds 2023, arts@leeds, Leeds City Council, Awesome Merchandise, PPL, PRS For Music and PRS Foundation's Talent Development Partnership supported by PPL.

What: Industry talks, keynote and speed advice sessions
Location: Leeds Conservatoire & The Wardrobe

The conference is a free day of panels, workshops, presentations and networking for those working in, or aspiring to work in the music industry, with speakers from the local music scene, and those working on a national and international level.

If you are involved in music at any level and hope to gain a better understanding of the music industries – as an artist, producer, manager, promoter, student, enthusiast or otherwise, you can come to our event to find out more from leading experts and professionals.

This year’s event includes:

*Keynote talk from YolanDa Brown

*Music Declares Emergency In Conversation With You

*PPL / PRS For Music Workshop 

*Good Songs vs Great Songs with Tom Robinson (Panel)

*How to Foster Resilience Whilst Building a Career in Music (Panel)

*Using Opportunities to Build Your Audience (Panel)

*Have a Word: A Musician’s Guide To Writing Brilliant Biographies (Workshop and One-to-ones)

*Come Play With Me Selection Panel

*Speed Advice Sessions

Tickets for the conference are free / pay as you feel, but you need to register in advance to attend, here. You can see the latest information on speakers, sessions and event information on our website, here. 

Tickets can be secured for free so that the event is accessible to people just starting out in music and/or on a lower income, but if you have the means to, please think about making a donation when you book your ticket. By making a donation you will be contributing to our ongoing work to support the music sector in Yorkshire.

Launchpad Conference is paired with Launchpad Festival, a new live music event featuring over 30 new and emerging artists from across Yorkshire, performing across 3 venues in Leeds City Centre with a single ticket gaining entry to all the acts, taking place on Friday 15th April.

More info here. 

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Covid guidance

We want everyone attending our events to feel comfortable and safe as possible so we ask that you:
* Stay at home if you’re feeling unwell

* Wear a mask when inside, unless you are exempt
* Do a lateral flow test before coming, if it’s positive please stay at home (you can order LFTs for free here)
* Regularly wash your hands with soap or hand sanitiser

For more information you can visit the venues’ websites:
Leeds Conservatoire
The Wardrobe 

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Access

Leeds Conservatoire operates a step-free site and is flat surfaced throughout all buildings. They have a passenger lift which can be accessed from the single door adjacent to the BBC Yorkshire entrance, which is accessible to all floors, as well as wheelchair accessible toilet facilities, making it wheelchair friendly and a welcoming and inclusive venue.

In The Wardrobe there is level access into the bar from the public pavement on St Peters Square via the venue entrance. Access to the basement venue is via a lift located in the box office area and most of the basement venue is wheelchair accessible.

Hearing loop - Leeds Conservatoire Venue is fitted with an infrared audio system. Patrons can independently control the level of volume required from their seat by using a headset.

Guide dogs are admitted to both venues.

More on the venue’s accessibility can be found here for The Wardrobe. If you have any access requirements or questions, please free to drop us an email at emily@musiclocal.co.uk or get in touch with Leeds Conservatoire on 0113 222 3400 / hello@lcm.ac.uk and The Wardrobe on 0113 3838800 / bar@thewardrobe.co.uk. 

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Launchpad Conference is part is delivered by Music Local, partnering with Leeds Conservatoire & Leeds Beckett University and is supported by Youth Music, with public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England, as well as Leeds 2023, arts@leeds, Leeds City Council, Awesome Merchandise, PPL, PRS For Music and PRS Foundation's Talent Development Partnership supported by PPL.

What: Industry talks and networking
Location: The New Adelphi Club, 89 De Grey St, Hull HU5 2RU

A chance to get to know more of the people in Hull's music community.

Hull Music Social 2 aims to bring together Hull's music community, to give you the opportunity to talk to other like-minded people and to form more cohesive links within the city, this time hosted at The Adelphi.

Hull Music Social is organised in collaboration with Launchpad, Under The Influence, Sesh Events, Hinterland Creative and Social.

Free entry | 16+

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Covid guidance

We want everyone attending our events to feel comfortable and safe as possible so we ask that you:

* Stay at home if you’re feeling unwell

* Wear a mask when inside, unless you are exempt

* Do a lateral flow test before coming, if it’s positive please stay at home (you can order LFTs for free here)

* Regularly wash your hands with soap or hand sanitiser

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Accessibility:

The venue has a step free entrance and assistance dogs are allowed in. There are benches around the walls of the venue with back support. There aren't any wheelchair accessible toilets and there isn't a lowered bar.

If you have any access requirements or questions, please free to drop us an email at emily@musiclocal.co.uk or get in touch with the venue, their contact info is available here.

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Hull Music Social is produced by Launchpad, Under The Influence, Sesh Events, Hinterland Creative and Social.

Launchpad is delivered by Music Local to support the music sector throughout Yorkshire with public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England and PRS Foundation’s Talent Development Partnership supported by PPL as well as additional regional partners.

Under The Influence is a live music promoter working across North and East Yorkshire. Established in 2002, Under The Influence have promoted live shows for artists including, Franz Ferdinand, The Courteeners, Lightspeed Champion, The Fall, Shaun Ryder, Courtney Barnett, Martha Reeves, Craig Charles, Mr Scruff, plus a load before and still to come...

Sesh Events is the operator of the venue Social (Humber St, Hull). Organisers of the annual Humber Street Sesh grassroots music festival, as well as The Sesh, Made in Hull, Trinity Live and Hull City Sesh live music events.

Hinterland Creative is music and arts design, delivery and development, managed by Stew Baxter.

Social is the destination venue in the city for those wanting their cultural fix. We're located on Humber Street, as part of Hull's thriving and independent Fruit Market area. Social combines a 300 capacity venue space, bars, and pizzeria, hosting the best in Live Music, Stand-up Comedy, DJ nights, Film, Theatre, Festivals, Markets, and much more.

What: Live music
Who: Emma Johnson’s Gravy Boat, The Mabgate Organ Trio and Greg Surmacz
Location: Howard Assembly Room, 46 New Briggate, Leeds LS1 6NU

Join us for a showcase of emerging talent from the thriving Leeds jazz scene, hosted by Launchpad.

Headlining the evening, Emma Johnson’s Gravy Boat is a contemporary, cinematic jazz quintet led by Leeds-based saxophonist and composer Emma Johnson. Emma’s writing displays a contemporary sound rooted by infectious melodies and the group have been described as demonstrating a “strong and joyful bond, immediately apparent in their sound”.

Support comes from The Mabgate Organ Trio, who blend jazz, blues and instrumental funk in an ode to the material played in their weekly residencies in the jazz bars and basements of Leeds. Having learned a vast array of music, spanning many genres, the band began writing original material and blending it seamlessly with their sets.

We’re very pleased Yorkshire-based musician Greg Surmacz will also be joining us for a solo electronic/woodwind performance. Graduating from Leeds College of Music with a BA in Jazz Studies, Greg’s tastes and interests take in everything from jazz and funk to hip-hop and electronic music. His music has been played on stations including BBC Radio 1, 1xtra, Radio 3, 6 Music, and through various projects he’s shared stages with acts including Bonobo, Roots Manuva, Nightmares On Wax and many more.

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Face coverings and proof of a negative lateral flow test or NHS COVID Pass are currently required during your visit to the Howard Assembly Room. Read their full COVID-19 guidance here.

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Launchpad is delivered by Music Local to support the music sector throughout Yorkshire and supported by Youth Music with public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England and PRS Foundation’s Talent Development Partnership, supported by PPL as well as additional regional partners, Leeds 2023, arts@leeds and Leeds City Council.