BRIT Award-winning artist JADE and renowned designer Anthony Burrill have joined forces with Youth Music, the UK’s leading young people’s music charity, on two exclusive T-shirts for the Rescue the Roots campaign - a £1 million fundraising drive to safeguard grassroots music projects across the country. One is inspired by Jordan Stephens’ Rescue the Roots tattoo which was handwritten by JADE, while the other features a bold design by Burrill.

Available now via Everpress for £30, the T-shirts are already being championed by supporters including Rizzle Kicks’ Jordan Stephens and DJ Jodie Bryant. All profits will go directly to community-based projects where young people make, learn and share music.

With the festive season approaching, Youth Music hopes the T-shirts will be embraced as meaningful gifts that give back, supporting opportunities for the next generation of music makers.

Jordan Stephens said: Everyone has the right to be creative. We need to cultivate spaces for connection and that’s why I’m so passionate about this campaign. As is my wonderful girlfriend [Jade Thirlwall] whose handwriting I’ve got tattooed on me and is on the t shirt. Every T-shirt helps the future. Rescue the roots.

Anthony Burrill’s design features his signature bold, letterpress typography, while JADE’s is written in her own handwriting (which boyfriend Jordan Stephens has had immortalised in a tattoo to mark his passion for the cause). Both T-shirts capture the campaign’s rallying cry to protect the grassroots spaces that nurture emerging talent.

The T-shirts aim to raise awareness of the bleak outlook of the grassroots music sector, which is currently at breaking point. Without urgent support, access to local music projects will continue to decline, particularly for young people from marginalised backgrounds.

• 41% of grassroots youth music projects are at risk of closure - up from 24% in 2024
• 54% of Youth Music’s funded partners have waiting lists due to lack of resources - up from 50% in 2024
• Youth Music can currently support fewer than one in five (18%) funding applications, leaving 260,000+ young people without access to music-making opportunities
• The financial position of 41% of Youth Music’s funded partners is expected to worsen over the next year, with 28% uncertain about their future

Youth Music’s Rescue the Roots campaign is rallying the nation to save grassroots music, aiming to raise £1 million, which the charity will match pound-for-pound to unlock £2 million of vital support for over 18,000 young people.

Jodie Bryant said: “Grassroots music is the foundation of the entire music industry - it’s where some of the most exciting artists first discover who they want to be. Just as importantly, it’s where the original fans are born - the people who can change a musician’s career and stick with them for life. But as opportunities at this level become harder to find - discovering and nurturing new music is becoming more difficult. We need to protect the music, the fans, and the venues that make this possible. That’s why we need to Rescue the Roots!”

Other celebrities wearing the T-shirts include musician and TikTok sensation, lockdownT, BBC presenter, Jess Iszatt, and stand-up comedian, Ivo Graham. 

"I’m a big fan of emerging artists who push the barriers of what UK music sounds like. Our talent pool is wide spread in this country, which makes it a shame that grassroots music is struggling to thrive. New music from these individuals need to be heard, funded and pushed, to give young people an outlet that highlights their creativity - allowing them to build careers off the back of their hard work. Rescue The Roots is the way forward for this and I’m proud to be involved."  lockdownT

“Campaigns like this are the lifeline for so many aspiring artists and anyone wanting to step into the industry. Everything from creating early moments, like smaller gigs for artists to cut their teeth and learn their craft, to first studio sessions or early radio plays and interviews. This all counts toward the diversity of future music, and without this early support, lots of artists would struggle to build and succeed. So please support the cause and rescue the roots.” Jess Iszatt

The Rescue the Roots T-shirts are available now from Everpress for £30: Anthony Burrill edition, JADE edition

For more information about the campaign, visit www.youthmusic.org.uk/rescue-the-roots