£63,000 has been awarded to 49 Welsh music artists via the Horizons Launchpad fund, a partnership between BBC Wales and the Arts Council to support new talent.
More than £63,000 has been shared between 49 emerging Welsh music artists to support their work and develop their careers. The money has been awarded via the Horizons Launchpad fund, and is the highest amount allocated since the fund’s establishment in 2014.
The Horizons scheme invests in and gives a platform to new music talent in Wales. Since being founded eight years ago, the Launchpad fund has awarded more than a quarter of a million pounds to in excess of 250 artists from towns and cities across Wales.
A collaboration between BBC Cymru Wales and Arts Council Wales, Horizons puts a spotlight on artists from all across the music spectrum in Wales. The Launchpad fund is supported by National Lottery, and recipients of this year’s funding include artists from the MOBO community and Welsh language musicians. Previous awardees have used the funding to cover the cost of equipment and touring, pay for studio space, and promote their releases.
Among this year’s winners are Green Man Rising winner Teddy Hunter, trans auteur Alice Low who won the Triskel Award at the Welsh Music Awards 2021, viral TikTok sensation K(E)NZ, award-winning songwriter Rebecca Hurn; and emerging pop artist Hana Lili who was recently featured on Spotify’s New Music Friday. Details of all funding recipients can be found on the Horizons website.
Lisa Matthew-Jones, Portfolio Manager with Arts Council Wales said: “We were bowled over by the number and richness of the applications that came in. There is a tremendous amount of music talent in Wales across all genres and corners and Launchpad is a vital opportunity to elevate these artists.”
Bethan Elfyn, Project Manager with Horizons said, “We’re very grateful to Arts Council of Wales and BBC Wales for supporting this project into its 8th year, providing crucial first steps for artists in Wales. It’s more important than ever to connect a community, to believe in the artists and their journey and to inject the Welsh music industry with investment in the whole ecosystem around the artists – from the studios, to producers, labels, promotion companies and more. We’re really excited to see how these music projects develop.”
Read more about the Horizons Launchpad fund and recipients here.
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