The full lineup of acts has been announced for the #SummerProm2020 festival which will be streamed live for students nationwide on the eve of exam results day.
British singer-songwriter James Bay is set to headline the special one-off celebration event which will look to unite thousands of young people across the UK ahead of A Level and GCSE results after an unprecedented and challenging school year.
This unique and free-to-access event will take place on Wednesday 12th August.
Hosted by Hits Radio presenter, Jordan Lee, the Summer Prom will also feature music from Australian musician Sam Fischer, pop sensation Becky Hill and DJ & producer, Joel Corry, who is currently #1 in the UK singles chart. The event – which will be broadcast from The Met live music and theatre venue in Bury – will also feature comedy from Bec Hill, Aurie Styla and Lauren Pattison, plus a number of surprise guest appearances.
The virtual prom has been created to raise awareness of mental health support available via One Space – a new partnership between Shout 85258, The Mix and Young Minds – for young people struggling with the legacy impact of lockdown.
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#SummerProm2020 – in partnership with Manchester’s Hits Radio – has also been brought together by acclaimed Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) broadcasting platform United We Stream GM, and music & mental wellbeing festival, Headstock.
Wikipedia
Taking into account the recently introduced Greater Manchester restriction of no mixing of households, Summer Prom 2020 can be enjoyed by young people in their own homes through live stream via United We Stream GM across multiple social media channels.
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Music performances and artist interviews will also be broadcast simultaneously across the Hits Radio network.
With the focus of providing mental health support to young people post-lockdown, earlier in the same day, GP and broadcaster, Dr Radha, will host a special mental health-themed Instagram Live ‘surgery’ on the @onespaceto Instagram page to help those who may be struggling, answer questions and offer tips and advice to anyone experiencing worry or anxiety.
Waiting for exam results is always a stressful time for young people, but this year many have also been dealing with anxiety and crisis in isolation.
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Half (56%) of young people who mentioned coronavirus when contacting One Space partners for help listed anxiety as their main concern, a further 80% of young people surveyed said that coronavirus had made their mental health worse, with 87% reporting feeling lonely and isolated.
Victoria Hornby, Chief Executive of Shout 85258 – on behalf of One Space – said: “We are excited to be working with United We Stream GM and Headstock on the Summer Prom. The build up to exam results is always an incredibly stressful time for young people and this year especially so. The uncertainty is overwhelming for a lot of young people, and the summer ahead will see more challenges with exam results, a tough jobs market, and decisions to be made about university.”
“We know that a lot of young people are coping in isolation without access to their usual peer and professional support networks and that is why Shout 85258, The Mix and Young Minds are working together to deliver One Space – a space where under 25s can easily find the information they need and get the support they deserve.”
Headstock Founder, Atheer Al-Salim, added: “At a time when a lot of young people are struggling with the impact of the global pandemic on both their academic and social lives, we have the opportunity through music and shared experience to create an event that will help lift people’s moods.”
“We want people to celebrate their achievements of the past year, but also use the power of music to positively impact young people’s mental and emotional wellbeing.”
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“The Summer Prom will bring young people together – albeit online – and we’re delighted that Headstock is able to play its part in this extremely special event. We’re very much looking forward to creating a summer celebration that young people from Greater Manchester and across the UK will remember for many years to come.”
United We Stream GM
United We Stream GM founder and Greater Manchester’s Night Time Economy Adviser, Sacha Lord, said: “Getting exam results and entering university is already a stressful time, but the pandemic has added to the uncertainty and worry that young people across the UK are facing this year as they make big decisions about career choices, university places, moving out of the family home or getting a job.”
“The most important thing about results day is not to panic.”
“I struggled at school and left with two Us and an E at A Level, but I’ve worked hard to build a career I love. If you feel you haven’t done well in your exams, there are many alternative routes you can go down, so please remember it’s not the end of the world.”
He continued: “United We Stream brought people together throughout the lockdown, and I received countless messages from the public who said that it helped ease anxiety and bring a sense of community to the region. Because of this and acknowledging this stressful time, we wanted to do something for students who are about to get their A level results to give them something fun to look forward to and to take their minds off their looming results – a great party to enjoy safely with their own household.”
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“This Class of 2020 Summer Prom event has been tailor made for them and I’m grateful to the artists who have given up their time to be involved.”
“It’s going to be an absolutely fantastic show.”
United We Stream GM / Headstock Festival
Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, added: “The United We Stream Summer Prom will be a positive and celebratory broadcast for all young people to enjoy safely in their homes, and is another example of the caring spirit of people in Greater Manchester.”
“This is a fantastic idea, to give our young people in the city-region and beyond who are about to get their exam results, something really special to look forward to. This can be a pivotal point in a young person’s life, and this particular age group, have missed out on so much because the pandemic forced thousands of children and young people to remain isolated at home, with their schools and colleges staying closed for months.”
“Thanks to the innovative team of public sector and private business who are behind the Summer Prom concept, the Class of 2020 will have a unique celebration to remember.”
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#SummerProm2020 will be streamed live on United We Stream GM via website, Facebook, Twitter, and Twitch, and will be simultaneously broadcast on Hits Radio.
Tune it at 8pm on Wednesday 12th August.
Audio
Review | Villanelle debut: Liam Gallagher’s son’s band release their first track – here’s our review
Danny Jones
Liam Gallagher’s son, Gene, and his band Villanelle, have officially released their debut single to the masses, and since we’re still very much immersing ourselves in everything even remotely to do with Oasis, we thought we’d give this first track a review.
Now, if you’re expecting a familiar Britpop vibe like his dad and uncle used to bash out back in the day, you’d be very wrong…
It’s one thing to settle into something similar to what you’ve grown up around and try to continue a lineage if you’re from a successful family – especially with a legacy as important and influential as the one left by Liam and Noel – but we’re glad to report they’ve done something pretty different.
24-year-old Gene Gallagher and his bandmates Ben Taylor (guitar), Jack Schiavo (bass), and Andrew Richmond (drums) haven’t just tried to do an impression of Oasis; instead, they’ve found their own sound, and while it does give somewhat of an old-school flavour, it’s not what we expected.
It takes literally milliseconds for you to click into realising the vibe they’re going for.
‘Hinge’ is a simplistic but hard-hitting, grungey and dark debut from Villanelle, who, despite having played a number of in-progress songs live over the last year or so, have only just dropped their first studio single.
In fact, they’ve actually taken the admittedly bizarre and unorthodox first steps of having already played live with Liam Gallagher on the Definitely Maybe 30th anniversary tour before they actually released anything people can easily listen to outside of their live performances.
Nevertheless, the young four-piece introduces Villanelle as the latest post-punk outfit amidst the ongoing revival of the classic rock genre.
That is to say that punk is a tried and true classic style of music, not that these lads are trying to sound like The Rolling Stones…
Anyway, we’re getting sidetracked: Villanelle draw plenty of influences from both original and contemporary examples of this sonic subculture, and while it isn’t explosive per se, ‘Hinge’ is short, direct and hits the same formulaic notes.
It’s also fair to say you can hear a bit of the recognisable LG whine in Gene’s vocals at times, too. Listen to it in full down below and see if you agree.
Even the basic found-footage style video fits into the same category.
To call it straightforward isn’t intended as any kind of a diss, by the way – some of our favourite tunes and best artists spearheading the renaissance of the punk scene write like this.
What we will say is that it looks like bloody good fun to both play and listen to in a small, sweaty room, with plenty of pits and people bouncing off the walls.
Gallagher Sr. might be surprised to see his son going for a slightly heavier, more hardcore route with his sound, but he can’t accuse him of forgetting his roots as the child of a ‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Star.’
The boys are actually hitting the road this winter, including a date at The Castle Hotel in the Northern Quarter, if you fancy grabbing a ticket.
You can grab your tickets to see Villanelle on tour HERE, and in the meantime, let us know what you think of their debut track down in the comments.
Johnny Marr teases his work on upcoming Gorillaz album
Danny Jones
Legendary Manchester musician Johnny Marr has revealed he features on the new Gorillaz album, adding even more interest in the highly anticipated release.
The Mountain is the ninth studio LP from the musical collective led by Damon Albarn, which is set to drop in early 2026, more than three years on from their last album, Cracker Island.
Although the virtual band made up of several real-life creatives (though the ex-Blur frontman and artist, Jamie Hewlett, technically remain the only two consistent core members) hasn’t been away for too long, each new project brings a wave of excitement.
With that in mind, we have no shame in admitting we have even more interest in Gorillaz’s latest album now that we know Johnny Marr is attached to it.
I’m pleased to share that I appear on four tracks on the upcoming Gorillaz album The Mountain. It’s a privilege to be a part of this record along with so many great artists. #Gorillaz#JohnnyMarrpic.twitter.com/KXVZxgyGg9
In the new rundown of tunes already posted earlier this month, the former Smiths songwriter and lead guitarist features on four different songs on the new record. You can see it in full down below:
Gorrilaz – The Mountain tracklist
1. The Mountain (feat. Dennis Hopper, Ajay Prasanna, Anoushka Shankar, Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash) 2. The Moon Cave (feat. Asha Puthli, Bobby Womack, Dave Jolicoeur, Jalen Ngonda and Black Thought) 3. The Happy Dictator (feat. Sparks) 4. The Hardest Thing (feat. Tony Allen) 5. Orange County (feat. Bizarrap, Kara Jackson and Anoushka Shankar) 6. The God of Lying (feat. IDLES) 7. The Empty Dream Machine (feat. Black Thought, Johnny Marr and Anoushka Shankar) 8. The Manifesto (feat. Trueno and Proof) 9. The Plastic Guru (feat. Johnny Marr and Anoushka Shankar) 10. Delirium (feat. Mark E. Smith) 11. Damascus (feat. Omar Souleyman and Yasiin Bey) 12. The Shadowy Light (feat. Asha Bhosle, Gruff Rhys, Ajay Prasanna, Amaan Ali Bangash, and Ayaan Ali Bangash) 13. Casablanca (feat. Paul Simonon and Johnny Marr) 14. The Sweet Prince (feat. Ajay Prasanna, Johnny Marr and Anoushka Shankar) 15. The Sad God (feat. Black Thought, Ajay Prasanna and Anoushka Shankar)
As you can see, the 61-year-old appears for the first time on song seven, ‘The Empty Dream Machine’, as well as ‘The Plastic Guru’, ‘Casablanca’, and the penultimate track on the album, ‘The Sweet Prince’.
It’ll be interesting to see how he fits into the captivating soundscape already teased by the group, with Gorillaz having now shared ‘The Happy Dictator’ featuring art pop duo Sparks.
A strong and politically loaded start.
Marr – who only released his fourth batch of solo material, Fever Dream Pts 1-4, back in 2022 – has continued to craft and produce with countless other artists over the past few decades, sharing the studio with fellow icons such as Noel Gallagher, Billy Bragg, Talking Heads and many more.
He even helped create the score for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 soundtrack with legendary composer Hans Zimmer.
That being said, we can only hope to hear some of his famous guitar tones sprinkled throughout this album, though it’s still unclear as to exactly how much input he had on The Mountain overall.
What we do know about the album is that it’s the first to be released via Albarn’s new record label KONG; it’s 15 tracks, and was largely made following extended recording sessions across India, with the likes of Ajay Prasanna, Omar Souleyman and Anoushka Shankar, joining IDLES, Jalen Ngonda and other collabs.
Perhaps most excitingly, the announcement of ‘Gorillaz no.9’ came alongside a series of tour dates, including one right here in Manchester. We can’t wait to see 2D, Murdoc Niccals, Russel Hobbs and Noodle ‘live’ in 0161.
The Manc -
5th August 2020 
