Tonic Music @ MVT’s Venues Day
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
We attended the Music Venue Trust’s Venues Day on Tuesday 17th March, here’s how it went…
Team Tonic returned to this years’ Music Venue Trust’s Venues Day held at Shoreditch Town Hall as charity partners, where we provided an exhibition stand and information on our services to those who were interested.
Music Venue Trust (MVT) is a registered charity that aims to protect, secure, and improve Grassroots Music Venues (GMV) in order to keep them open.
Venues Day is a must-attend annual event for GMV operators as it allows them to come together and support one another during this challenging time in the music industry.
The sold-out event was packed with panels, workshops, networking opportunities, and exhibition stands across the entirety of the day, focussing on supporting GMVs.
Centering this year’s event was the MVT’s Annual Report 2025, where the MVT team presented last year’s findings during the first talk of the day. Last year’s findings, however, were eye-opening to say the least.
According to MVT 2025 annual report, more than half (53%) of GMVs showed no profit in last year alone, as well as the average profit margin remained at just 2.5% across the whole GMV sector.
Despite the alarming statistics, Team Tonic spoke to many GMV operators on how their venue supports staff and audience’s mental wellbeing.
“I get quite anxious in social situations, and I often play music to calm down,” explained Voodoo Daddys Manager Ben Street, “when I go into a music venue and the whole idea is to appreciate the live performance on stage, I think it’s the calmest that I feel.”
“We have a quiet space at the back of the venue for anyone who is feeling anxious or panicked, and we also work with Tonic Music– we have posters up where someone can scan the QR code and access free mental health resources.”
“Gigs can impact my mental health based on the gig I am going to and how safe the space feels,” said Cassie Medly from Bristol-based venue Trinity, “if the venue is inclusive in different ways it’s a positive experience.”
“Music is my lifeline,” said Jayne Hardcastle from Artist Promotion and Management Move To The Groove, “I have been known to attend 6 gigs in a week– and by Sunday I’m falling over– but music is what keeps me going.”
“Because Little Buildings is a small space, and I started to attend bigger events, it started to give me anxiety, due to the big open space which I wasn’t used to,” Allan Scorer from Little Buildings explained, “because of Tonic Music, I managed to get over that!”
Tallulah Sim-Savage of Hot Wax with our Events Coordinator Dave Clark
"Being on stage is when I feel most like myself,” said singer and guitarist Tallulah Sim-Savage of Hot Wax, “and it’s where I have gained my confidence as a person.”
The singer and guitarist shared to us her experience of how crucial gigs are to music fans. “I see from being at gigs how much they mean to the audience and how important they are.”
“The first gig I went to this year was at The Green Door Store, one of my favourite venues in Brighton, and I was so emotional,” she admitted, “because everyone was coming together, you can connect with other humans.”
“The atmosphere has been great today,” said MVT’s Financial Controller Adrian Norman, “even when there has been figures that are a bit depressing, there still feels like a positivity and a sense of community.”
“I love the fact that mental health is part of the conversation now, it should have always been there, but now people are getting together to talk about it.”
A big thank you to the Music Venue Trust for inviting us back for yet another fantastic year, we look forward to attending next year’s event!
Don't forget to check out all our Courses, Groups and Workshops currently open for registration for working musicians and those working within the music.
