Christopher BarrettVenue operators Academy Music Group (AMG) and London Venue Group (LVG) are among eight English arts and cultural organisations to benefit from the second round of Culture Recovery Fund grants between £1 million and £3m.
Arts Council England, on behalf of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), said £18 million in funding will be distributed between the eight organisations.
Live Nation-owned AMG has been awarded £2,981,431 to help meet the core operating costs of its 20 live music venues across the country, which include London’s O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire (cap, 2,000) and O2 Forum Kentish Town, and O2 Academy venues in Birmingham (3,009), Bristol (1,600), Bournemouth (1,875) and Leicester (1,600).
Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club owner Palmglen will receive £1,272,631, which Arts Council England said would be used to explore streamed performance opportunities for emerging and established British musicians.
The London Venue Group will receive £2,358,902 to maintain venues in the capital during closure and enable them to explore streaming options in the future. Among the venues it operates are the 320-capacity Omeara, The Social (250) and Lafayette (600).
Sheffield City Trust, which operates venues including the FlyDSA Arena (13,600) and City Hall (2,271), will receive £2.24m.
Culture secretary Oliver Dowden said, “These grants will help the places that have shaped our skylines for hundreds of years and that continue to define culture in our towns and cities.”
The first round of grants between £1m and £3m was announced last month.