The Youth Music NextGen Fund has now invested £1 million directly into young creatives facing barriers to progressing in music.

Since launching in 2021, the Fund has supported young creatives aged 18-25, and up to 30 for Deaf, disabled and neurodivergent applicants. The fund has given them the freedom to invest in whatever will make the greatest difference to their development, from equipment, studio time, marketing and live events. 

So far, NextGen funding has helped young creatives create:

• 882 tracks,
• 147 EPs and albums, 
• 176 music videos, 
• 254 events. 

NextGen Success Stories

Previous NextGen recipient JayaHadADream has since won Glastonbury’s Emerging Talent Competition, a DJ Mag Award and two Youth Music Awards. She says the Fund helped her take her first steps as an artist:

Jaya is one of a growing number of NextGen alumni making their mark in music. Others include MOBO Award-winning duo ALT BLK ERA, BINA., who have passed 10 million streams and toured with Little Simz, and StudioWyzz, who signed with Universal Music Publishing UK.

Backing Talent Across The UK

Opportunity in the music industry isn’t spread evenly across the country. More than 30% of UK creative industry jobs are concentrated in London, compared with a much smaller proportion of jobs across the wider UK economy.

The NextGen Fund is helping shift that balance. 79% of the funding awarded so far has gone to young people outside London, supporting creatives to develop their careers wherever they’re based.

The Fund supports more than performers, too. In 2025, one in five applications came from people working across the wider music ecosystem, including producers, songwriters, promoters, managers, journalists, videographers, technologists and people looking to start their own labels.

BINA performing at Spotify x Youth Music Open Doors Fund Day 2026. 

Reaching £1 million directly invested into young people is a moment worth celebrating. But with almost one million 16-24-year-olds currently not in education, employment or training (NEETs), and continued barriers to entering the music industry, there’s still a huge amount of work to do.

The NextGen Fund isn’t stopping at £1 million.