Cutting-edge music festival dedicated to championing North East talent returns

The festival, which relaunched with a bang in 2022 after a number of years as Evolution Emerging and Tipping Point Live is talent development agency Generator’s flagship showcase, providing a major platform for North East artists who are at the tipping point of their music career, offering an unparalleled opportunity to headline a massive stage in an iconic venue. The festival has become renowned as the place to discover the next big thing. 

The first wave line up features some of the region’s brightest emerging talents including rapper and instrumentalist Dylan Cartlidge, indie showstopper Lizzie Esau, experimental folk artist Me Lost Me, garage punk rock band Avalanche Party, hotly tipped Teesside songwriter Sisi and teen TikTok sensation Merczz.  

Aligning with its mission to create a sustainable music industry in the North East that ensures access for all, the Generator Live line up has been carefully crafted to address the imbalance on festival line ups which are often lacking in diversity and gender representation. Through its commitment to the Keychange pledge, Generator Live will feature a balanced and diverse line up of talent drawn from all corners of the region as the only festival to exclusively showcase North East artists. 

In its previous guises, the festival has provided the first festival performance slots for megastars like Sam Fender, who in 2014 played Evolution Emerging as a relative unknown. It is this commitment to nurturing the next generation of North East talent that sets Generator Live apart. This first wave line up features artists who are on the cusp of big things like Sam was in 2014 and they’ll soon be joined by further waves of trailblazing artists including renowned headliners in the coming month.  

Following the success of last year, the festival will once again include a ground-breaking electronic stage in partnership with the legendary WHQ to cap off an unforgettable day of performances. The main festival is complemented by an insightful daytime conference the day beforehand which gives artists and music industry creatives access to industry titans and movers and shakers through a series of hands on workshops, masterclasses and seminars. The festival will also feature for the first time, three free fringe gigs taking place across the region in Sunderland, Stockton and a gig in the festival’s roots in Newcastle’s Ouseburn.  

Tickets are on sale now from just £15 plus fees, and include access to the main day festival at Boiler Shop on 16th September as well as all three fringe gigs taking place the month prior. Generator will also be partnering with Tickets For Good to provide free tickets to NHS workers and charitable organisations who are registered on the platform.  

Commenting on the line up, the festival’s lead producer and Generator’s Head of Creative Development Helen Walkinshaw said: 

“Generator Live will return this year to celebrate the North East industry and showcase a cross genre programme of rising talent. Our aims remain the same; Generator Live Festival and Conference will support and connect the region’s music community with the wider industry to create more career pathways and fill the void of showcases for exclusively North East emerging talent through our platforms.” 

The agency is proud to be partnering with Tickets For Good to ensure everyone has access to music and creativity during a particularly difficult time for many. Tickets For Good’s CEO Steve Rimmer is equally as excited to have Generator Live join its roster: 

“I’m delighted that Generator Live has partnered with Tickets for Good to provide community access to this fantastic event for some deserving people. It’s paramount for us that we are enabling our users to get out and see new local music and I hope that the acts performing will find new fans and supporters at this event. The North East has a huge wealth of creative talent and we’re honoured to work with a festival that showcases the region’s best.”