Arts Council England investment secured to sustain Generator’s work for the next three years

Generator is today celebrating the announcement from Arts Council England and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport that it will form part of the National Portfolio for the next three years, representing a six figure investment into the region’s music, arts and culture sector.

Alongside a number of partners including Sage Gateshead, Northern Stage and Live Theatre, Generator will be one of a handful of organisations tasked with carrying out the aims of the Arts Council’s #LetsCreate programme, to unlock access to the arts in the North East and beyond. Generator has previously been part of the NPO group and the team are delighted that its tenure as an NPO will continue until at least 2026.

Based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Generator was founded over 30 years ago as a talent development agency to help emerging musicians and creatives break into the industry and form life-long creative careers. Fast forward to 2022 and the organisation continues on its mission to develop a sustainable music industry here in the North, under new CEO Mick Ross and its dedicated and largely new team of music and creative aficionados.

Generator has supported Ivor Novello award winning artist Sam Fender throughout his music career, providing some of the very first festival slots Fender played as an emerging musician, alongside developing other industry heavyweights like DuBlonde, Nadine Shah and Lanterns on the Lake. It provides a number of fully funded talent development programmes throughout the year, from its popular First Notes course to producing one of the North’s biggest new music festivals; Generator Live, which artists are able to apply to play through an open call application process.

The organisation also operates the Generator Union creative industries networking group and will soon launch its Music Industry Advisory Group formed of industry titans who will be available to artists and creatives for exclusive 1:1 advice and support.

The agency has also recently announced a partnership with The Ivors Academy, providing scholarships to a groundbreaking new diploma qualification #TheWRD, which uses innovative augmented reality tech to fully immerse learners in the music industry. The partnership is set to be officially launched in December at a Mini Music Conference at the beautfully restored Common Room of the North near Newcastle’s Central Station – free sign up is open now.

Generator’s CEO Mick Ross is delighted that Generator forms part of the National Portfolio for another three years:

“All of us here at Generator are delighted to remain as one of Arts Council England’s National Portfolio Organisations which will allow us to continue our mission to establish a sustainable music industry in the North East that ensures access for all. We couldn’t be prouder to be part of the portfolio alongside some incredible organisations here in the region and beyond and I’m over the moon for my team who have worked tirelessly to deliver our groundbreaking programme of music and creative activity under such challenging circumstances. The Arts Council’s support and investment is recognition of the vibrant and burgeoning sector in the region and we’re honoured to be able to take forward their Let’s Create vision and provide access to the arts, culture and creativity for the next three years.”