Tonight, Manchester’s audiophile bar NAM will present a night dedicated to womxn from Manchester’s music scene and beyond, bringing the likes of Pip Millett, The KTNA and Katbrownsugar together for the evening.
Thursday night sees the second of its Lotus events, held in collaboration with size?, take over the Ancoat’s basement with free entry and a free welcome drink courtesy of Japanese whiskey brand The House of Suntory.
Bartenders will be on hand to shake up Toki High Ball cocktails, a mixture of Whisky Toki, grapefruit, soda and Suntory Essence Drops, from 7-11pm.
Taking place in Ancoats, Manchester, the night will deliver a panel of Womxn in R&B – commencing at 7:15pm – hosted by BBC Radio 1’s Future Soul presenter and singer-songwriter, Victoria Jane.
Then, from 8pm the NAM basement will welcome a host of female selectors to take over the decks and bring the party vibes.
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As part of the panel event, Victoria Jane will be quizzing four of Manchester’s finest female talents in the R&B realm and shining a light on their incredible journeys.
A woman of many talents, singer-songwriter superstar, Pip Millett will be joining the panel.
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Beloved for her timeless sound – an ethereal amalgamation of R&B and jazz – coupled with her natural ability to harness the power of music, to make the listener feel in all the senses. Pip will share an exclusive insight into her whirlwind of a career that’s seen her rise to the top of the UK R&B game in just four years.
Hope and Millie Katana, who form the soulful duo The KTNA, have long championed the northern spirit, and are true symbols of what can be accomplished when talent is combined with determination. They’ll be sharing their stories from their debut tour and experiences of navigating the complex industry.
Also sharing her voice, Robin Knightz. A big character blessed with a unique pen game, Robin will discuss how she made her genre-bending sound stand out, her mission to break out of the Manchester scene and her ascent to becoming a beacon for her city.
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After the panel, those heading down can expect a legendary line-up of womxn selectors getting behind the decks to take-over the basement’s elite audiophile sound system.
First up, Zèyla, who prides herself on her genre-crossing crate. Attributing her enriched mixing style and individual artistry to being raised on a range of sounds spanning across jazz, soul, hip-hop, electronica, Latin, reggae and funk. Bringing a fresh approach to every set, no show is ever the same.
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Next up, producer, singer-songwriter and DJ in her own right, Katbrownsugar. The NTS resident has amassed a global following with her distinctive style, that encompasses neo-soul with lo-fi hip-hop and jazzy feels for the mind, body and soul.
With two Mixcloud awards under her belt for Rising Star Best Online Hip-Hop, R&B, Afrobeats Show, we’re highly anticipating her debut set at NAM.
Closing the night, selector, producer, curator of arts collective RebeccaNeverBecky, and one half of Queer Latifah collective, Mix-Stress, will be bringing a scorching soulful set.
Always one to relocate everyone to the dancefloor, her central ambition behind the booth is to celebrate the music of her culture, exposing it to fresh and seasoned ears alike.
Feature image – Supplied
News
Oasis finally confirm ‘private ballot’ ticket information for reunion tour
Daisy Jackson
Oasis have just announced more information about how tickets will be sold through a ‘private ballot’ for their extra reunion tour dates.
The group added two additional shows at Wembley Stadium after their initial 17 gigs across London, Manchester, Dublin, Edinburgh and Cardiff generated huge demand and sold out in a day.
Oasis and Ticketmaster came under fire though for the use of dynamic pricing, which saw ticket prices shoot up by hundreds of pounds by the time people made it through the online queues.
For these additional reunion tour dates at Wembley, ticket sales will look a little different.
They’ll be using a ‘private ballot’, which will give first dibs to those who missed out on the first ticket sale.
You’ll only be invited to register for the sale if you signed into your Ticketmaster account on Saturday 31 August, and joined a queue for a specific show.
And you’ll only receive an invitation if you DIDN’T manage to bag tickets the first time round.
THEN you’ll be able to register for the actual ballot, which still doesn’t guarantee you a ticket but does at least get you into a (hopefully less lengthy) queue.
“Invitations to enter the private ballot will be sent overnight tonight (Saturday) to eligible fans we have been able to identify.
“If you signed into your Ticketmaster UK account on Saturday, 31st August, and were able to join a queue for a specific show, but didn’t get a ticket-then you may be eligible to take part and will receive an email on how to register for the ballot.
“Keep an eye on the inbox associated with your Ticketmaster account, and don’t forget to check your junkmail.
“Once successfully registered, you will be entered into the ballot for a code for access to the final Wembley on sale.
“Due to the demand for the shows and to avoid last week’s long queues, codes will be strictly limited. Entry to the ballot does not guarantee you will receive a code.
“The ballot is only open to invited fans. You must register with the email to which your invitation was sent and which is registered with your Ticketmaster account.
“All other entries will be discounted. If you do not receive an email then unfortunately you will not be eligible for the ballot.
“You will be automatically discounted from the ballot, even if you go through the registration process.”
Featured image: Simon Emmett
News
Manchester Airport named UK’s worst in annual Which? survey for third year running
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Airport has officially been declared the worst airport in the UK, according to a new survey by Which?… yet again.
The summer travel season may be drawing to a close now, with hundreds of flights having taken off and landed in our region over the last couple of months, but for any Greater Manchester holidaymakers who are still yet to jet off, an annual ranking by consumer choice group Which? has proved to be pretty grim reading.
That’s because several terminals at the UK’s third largest airport have found themselves at the bottom of the list in Which? latest findings.
Manchester Airport has hit back at the survey and defended itself, saying its own passenger surveys suggest people are “much more positive” about the airport, adding that it was “proud to give people in all parts of the North easy and affordable access to nearly 200 different destinations across the world”.
For its annual survey, Which? spoke to nearly 7,000 passengers to gather feedback about their experiences of flying from UK airports over the last 12 months, and asked them to score the airports across 11 categories.
Manchester Airport has been named the worst in the UK for the third year running / Credit: The Manc Group
Some of these categories including seating, staff, toilets, and of course, the queues we all dread at check in, bag drop, passport control, and security.
And just like in both 2022 and again in 2023, it was Manchester Airport Terminal 3 that ranked right at the bottom, receiving the lowest customer satisfaction score of 37%.
Manchester Terminal 1 ranked one place above that with a score of 40%, while Manchester Terminal 2 was a little further up the the list with a score of 51%, and just saw Luton Airport, London Stansted, and Belfast International Airport sandwiched in between it.
According to Which?, some of the complaints it received about Manchester Airport from passengers who responded to the survey this year was that older people struggled with long walks due to travelators being broken since 2021, difficulties with finding a seat, and “horrendous” queues with people apparently being “corralled like cattle”.
As mentioned though, Manchester Airport has slammed Which?’s findings in a formal statement.
The UK’s third largest airport has hit back at the survey results and defended itself / Credit:
Describing the survey as “disappointing to see”, Manchester Airport’s statement reads: “We understand not every experience is perfect and want all passengers to feel able to raise their concerns directly with us. That is why we speak to them on a daily basis, surveying hundreds of people a month to get in-the-moment feedback from a full range of perspectives.
“That is in stark contrast to Which?, which conducted a tiny and unrepresentative survey of its members six months ago, asking them to recollect airport experiences that could have been as far back in time as April 2023.
“Which? fully understands that its readers form a narrow group of passengers whose views cannot in any way be taken to represent those of the travelling public at large, but chooses to promote its survey findings as if they do.”
Manchester Airport says it’s disappointing see Which? “chase cheap headlines” with its “sensational and over-simplified characterisation of airports” and the different roles they play, adding: “To make matters worse, it has printed inaccurate statements about our facilities and security waiting times that paint a more negative picture than reality.