It’s a bleak time for the music and events industry – what with limited capacities, the rule of six, mandatory masks, and not to mention the ludicrous 10pm curfew.
An entire culture is being crippled – with livelihoods at risk.
Hospitality and music venues argue they’re not the problem, yet these sectors have been shackled more than most. Now, with a second hospitality closure on the horizon, it’s difficult to see how much good could come from it all. But in what’s been extremely hard period for the music scene, there is still a light that will never go out (cue a poor The Smiths reference).
As we were locked down at home, music became our lifeline. Not a day went by where we didn’t shove a Spotify playlist on and reminisce over bygone festivals and Covid-cancelled gigs. It kept us sane. But for many producers and DJs, lockdown became a sanctuary where they could solely focus on their craft. The result? Heaps of new music born.
We spoke to some independent Manchester-based music label owners about their experiences of Covid-19. And it seems they’ve had something of a creative epiphany. Demo submissions are flooding in. Sales are up. Creativity is high. And consumption is even higher.
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Here’s what they had to say.
ANIMA
Jini Cowan. Image: Miriam Vaughan
DJ and producer Jini Cowan owns ANIMA, a Manchester house and minimal label which launched in 2016. Its releases have been featured in the likes of Mixmag and the Beatport Top 10. And it’s made a name for itself with a string of successful events around the UK.
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But with all three of the planned ANIMA events this year inevitably getting cancelled, Jini has experienced disappointment like most in the music scene. But given everything, this year has proven an interesting time for her and the label, especially in terms of productivity.
“My workflow over lockdown has increased significantly,” she told The Manc. “My [mastering] business had the busiest two months since I started trading and I’d say that’s because producers have had spare time to focus on making music, which is great.”
Jini believes producers are feeling inspired at the minute, and rightly so. Emotions are running high and anger is accumulating. So, people are finding comfort and expression in their music. In her own work, Jini has tried to vent her own feelings into her music.
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“I’ve tried channelling my anger and frustration into making music,” she said.
“I managed to get seven new tracks done over the lockdown period. If I can do it, then anyone can,”
So, like Jini, producers everywhere have been beavering away with all their extra spare time. This means plenty of tracks are getting dished out to prospective labels.
“I’ve had a lot of demo submissions. I’m looking forward to listening to these and scheduling some more releases.”
Jini teaching. Instagram/JC DJ Academy
Submissions have been coming in so thick and fast that Jini has taken on a new A&R (fellow DJ, Holly Why) to take care of them.
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As well as the label, Jini owns JC DJ Academy which offers DJing and production courses, studio space hire and livestream equipment.
The academy has recently moved from inside Kable Club to expand to its own purpose-built studio in the Northern Quarter, so it now has more space to grow and be itself. And with a fully-booked diary every week, it’s encouraging to learn that business behind the music is booming – even after Covid.
If that isn’t motivation, I don’t know what is.
Do As You Please
Joe Roche (aka Niall)
Elsewhere in Manchester, online record store and independent record label Do As You Please (DAYP), tells a similar story.
DAYP boss, Niall Roche (who DJs under the name Joe Roche), thinks the music industry has been left to rot by the government in recent months. Sadly, Niall’s experience has been a predictable one.
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“Due to Covid, I lost all of my DJ income, meaning all the money made from DAYP went onto my personal living costs and food rather than being reinvested back into the business,” he said.
“The knock-on effect of that really put the business in a difficult position. I couldn’t restock the record store, pay my freelance colleagues for their services, buy merchandise for the label releases and the list goes on.”
In the end, Niall had to take a DIY approach for DAYP to cut costs. He taught himself the technical skills needed in order to get his second release out. In particular, tasks he’d usually outsource to freelance creatives, like the graphics and visuals.
Now, he’s in a much better position. He has a solid group of people working with his brand, with some even offering their services for free. It’s inspiring to see how the music community is coming together to help one another.
Once upon a pre-covid time, DJing was Niall’s main source of income. Without that, he’s experienced personal challenges. However, DAYP is cracking on resiliently. “I’ve been really pleased to see DAYP have a steady stream of demos coming in, from the UK and even some from abroad,” he said.
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“I’ve received a few from some younger artists which has been great to see. It’s been great to listen to what they’re up to and help, advise and feedback on their projects.
“The current signings on the label have been sending some really amazing stuff over, and we have some fantastic newcomers which I can’t wait to get releases sorted for. Overall, I’d say it’s been more positive than negative.”
Niall Roche
It’s determination that will ensure the industry gets through this dark time, though.
“I honestly think personal perseverance is going to be key for survival through this. Planning, networking and patience,” Niall said.
Last month, we reported that one-third of musicians are considering giving up their careers thanks to Covid-19’s impacts. And that may be so for indie and rock type music genres. But the underground music scene has flourished with creativity and resourcefulness. The influx of submissions coming into the DAYP inbox is a sure sign that nothing will stop this industry from dancing. And DJs and producers will not give up on their passions – despite what Rishi tells them.
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When we asked Niall if he had anything else to add, his reply was simple: Support creatives.
“Buy an art print, download a track, unapologetically share everything you can and big up your friends work regardless of how many followers they have,” he said.
“Limit your screen time, talk to each other and stop throwing shit in the river Irwell!”
Don’t forget to follow The Manc Audio on Instagram to stay up to date on all things music in Manchester.
Audio
Five Greater Manchester-based artists we’ve been listening to this month | December 2025
Danny Jones
This is it: the last Greater Manchester music round-up of the year, only a couple of days late due to a mix of the post-NYE 48-hour hangover and quite possibly still being in a largely mince pie-induced food coma.
In all seriousness, 2025 has been an absolute belter not just for music but the North, in particular, and especially here in Manchester.
We know we say it all the time, but we really are blessed and well beyond lucky to live in one of the creative and audio capitals on planet Earth.
So, for one last time (an Audio North encore, if you will), please give it up for the amazing musicians based in and around Greater Manchester that we were listening to in December.
Five local artists we’ve been listening to this past month
1. Concrete Club
First off is some deeply satisfying British indie in the shape of Concrete Club – a fitting name for a band based in an ever-growing metropolis, swept up in a sea of cranes and never-ending construction. Intentional? Unsure, but given they formed in 2022, it makes sense and sounds as good as they do.
Vocally, it can take a minute to get used to frontman and bassist Jonny Brewster’s approach, as it swings between everything from Fran from Red Rum Club, Brandon Flowers and White Lies’ Harry McVeigh. There’s some serious range on show, and it makes seeing where each track goes next exciting in itself.
Not only is it extremely impressive, but once you get used to the minor whiplash, it can often feel like you’re getting an ever-so-slightly different singing style each time. In terms of tracks to start with, we’d recommend ‘Relentless’, ‘Jackie Don’t Mind’ and ‘Electric Sunrise’, but there’s plenty of breadth to enjoy in their easily-digestible discography. They even got the nod from the late, great Mani. RIP to a legend.
This one's for Mani. Our mentor, our champion and our friend. We can't describe how much we'll miss him – and we'll leave it at that.
Next up is some unapologetic girl rock, which may have been born in the West Midlands, but solo artist Lissy Taylor is fast taking her music all over, with the ride so far taking her across the UK, Europe and even the United States, before posting up here in Manchester.
We’ll admit that seeing any musician donning a Stoke City shirt whilst performing live on BBC coverage was always going to catch our eye, but after we learned she had also become the first woman from the area to ever be signed by Universal, she held our attention. She might not be the finished article just yet, but you can tell she’s a woman on a mission.
More than a decade into her career, and now based in our fair city, you can tell that Taylor has more confidence and conviction than ever: you can hear it in her music. It started in 2023 with our fave, ‘Feel For Me’, and has spread into tunes like ‘Life Changing’ and her latest single ‘Jealous’. Give them a go.
3. Plastic Heart
They say three is the magic number, and judging by what we’ve heard so far from Manc alternative rock outfit Plastic Heart, they just might be on to something. Even with just a few properly studio-produced and finished tunes on the internet, they already have a very well-defined sound, and it’s got us hyped.
A five-piece from in and around Greater Manchester, these lot look like they’re off on the right foot, as they’re not just getting themselves about on social media but, most importantly, they’re clearly busy at work writing, rehearsing and recording a solid first batch of material.
In terms of what is out there so far, you’ll get hints of Vukovi/PVRIS in ‘Hear My Call’ and ‘Tension’; plus, based on their little teaser on Instagram, we’re looking forward to the fully-fledged version of another as-yet-unreleased song, ‘Ashes’. Get on board from the start and thank us later when that first EP drops.
From yet another female-led group to another fun, albeit very kind of vocalist, but one that we have been left very intrigued by, to say the least. We’ll begin by assuring that, yes, this is their name, and no, there are no typos in the spelling; this Manchester-based project isn’t like much you’ll have heard before.
We came across them via their show alongside equally unique poet and musician Edward Barton, as they joined up with the veteran artist and all-round eccentric at The Yard, as well as having written with each other earlier in the year. At first glance, they seem just as idiosyncrantic, charmingly unserious and entirely singular as he is, but we suspect there’s more to come.
The lyrics are arguably even more anecdotal and amusing, and rather conveniently, we can only find two tracks on Spotify, so you can similarly get up to speed on this very intriguing concept before falling into what we can only imagine will go on to be a pretty wild Bandcamp wormhole.
5. Chloe Slater
One more fantastic artist doing wonders for women in music, for good measure, shall we? Plenty of you will have no doubt heard of Bournemouth-born singer-songwriter and 0161 adoptee, Chloe Slater, but we’ll confess it’s taken us far too long to dive deep into her full catalogue.
It was probably one of the biggest musical mistakes we made this past 12 months, but we will be rectifying it as one of our first New Year’s Resolutions. Going from a somewhat disaffected uni dropout to an opinionated, outspoken and politically charged lyricist – she’s been a Northerner in spirit, alright.
Touching everything from regional and generational challenges, we struggle to play favourites, but sod it: ‘Price On Fun’, ‘Harriet’, ‘Nothing Shines On This Island’, ‘Death Trap’, ‘Tiny Screens’. Just trust us and listen to every second of this up-and-comer who’s already supported fellow rising alt-pop star Role Model and, coincidentally, is a dead ringer for actor Daisy Edgar-Jones…
So that’s it for another year, only the best part is we’ll be keeping this show on the road all throughout 2026 as we hunt for more local music legends in the making.
With that in mind, if you’ve got suggestions for Manchester-based bands we should listen to next or know a native who you believe is the next best thing, please do drop them in the comments.
Oh, and if you want even more of our favourite artists over the past year, why not check out the list of what The Manc, HootandThe Sheff team named as the top albums of 2025?
Sankeys shares sneak peek at new venue as legendary Manchester nightclub gears up for return
Daisy Jackson
Sankeys has given Mancs a glimpse inside its new venue as the legendary nightclub gears up for its return.
The club was one of Manchester’s top nightlife spots for years, before shutting down seemingly for good almost a decade ago.
Set within Beehive Mill in Ancoats, Sankeys was a true icon of Manchester’s global nightlife scene.
And while the old Sankeys Soap nightlife space is now full of co-working spaces, the spirit of Sankeys is about to be reborn.
The exact location of the new club is still being kept under wraps ahead of its reopening at the end of January, but new renderings have been released to give us a glimpse of how it will look.
Sankeys is promising ‘A reimagined space. New energy. Same legendary nights’.
The new Sankeys Manchester will be a 500-capacity venue, designed to ‘capture the raw underground energy that made Sankeys one of the most iconic club brands in the world’.
It will feature an LED matrix grid installation that will immerse clubbers in ‘light, sound and atmosphere’.
Sankeys Manchester officially opens on 30 January – you can see a glimpse of how it will look below and grab tickets HERE.
Hannah Starkie -
12th October 2020 
