Hastings and Rother recognised for its support of a thriving music scene

Celebrating and acknowledging the many varied venues and hundreds of local musicians, and the fact Hastings has been voted first for musicality in the UK, it’s an obvious decision for Hastings and Rother to make.

“As the council’s lead member for culture, the local music scene is top of my priorities but it’s very important to me personally too; as a teenager I remember spending hours enjoying live music at venues across the area and I continue to do so as often as possible”, said Cllr Dawn Poole.

“I really believe it’s one of the most accessible art forms and with the unequalled music talent across Hastings and Rother we’re lucky enough to have quality music events spilling out of venues most weekends of the year.

“I’m really proud that together we are now a Music City and look forward to seeing what the future holds.”

The Music City idea was introduced by Andy Gunton of The Stinger magazine who made the official announcement at the UnConvention last month.

He said: “The Hastings Fat Tuesday team and I have felt for some time that the music scene in Hastings and Rother and its cultural and economic value deserved to be recognised. When I first heard about the Music Cities idea, I knew it was the right way to go. This area punches well above its weight with regard to the quality and amount of music happening every day of the week.

“We’re very lucky to have two local councils working with us to promote, nurture, support and celebrate the amazing local music scene we have. They should be congratulated for being so open to the Music City idea, and for helping us get to this stage. I’m looking forward to what the musical future holds for Hastings and Rother as a Music City - I fully expect it to be a very exciting time.”

Cllr Sally Ann Hart said: “The contribution of the music industry to our national economy is considerable. It is fantastic that Hastings and Rother will benefit both socially and economically from this initiative.”

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