Our Story
Who are iluvlive?
iluvlive is a not-for-profit platform dedicated to live music and artist development, particularly within Black music genres. Since 2004, we have supported thousands of Black musicians and artists through our artist development platform and live events across the UK. Renowned artists such as Ed Sheeran, Wretch 32, Ghetts, Kano, Little Simz, Kojey Radical, Ella Mai, Tom Grennan, and Mahalia have all performed on our platform before securing record deals.
Originally established as a London-based showcase hosted by Ras Kwame and Twin B, iluvlive provided new acts with their first experience of performing with a live band. Over the years, we expanded to deliver over 70 events annually across six UK cities, supporting more than 350 acts and reaching audiences of over 7,000 in person and more than two million online each year. Notable alumni who emerged from our platform include Emeli Sandé, Jessie J, Tinie Tempah, Chip, Krept and Konan, Ms Banks, and many others, all of whom performed with us prior to achieving commercial success.
In 2014, with funding from Arts Council England, we officially launched our artist development programme, which supports up to three acts each year. Alumni of this programme include Nao (as part of the Boxettes), Laura White, Lylo Gold, Jords, and Emmavie, all of whom went on to secure recording and/or publishing deals. Additionally, we managed Izzy Bizu for seven years, during which time she earned a BRITs Critics' Choice nomination, the BBC Introducing Artist of the Year Award, and supported Coldplay on a stadium tour in the US. In 2023, we partnered with Stellar Songs, bringing additional expertise and opportunities to the programme.
As a not-for-profit company, we have been supported by Arts Council England, receiving four Grants for The Arts Awards before becoming a National Portfolio Organisation (NPO) in April 2015. We are recognised as a crucial link between the subsidised and commercial music sectors, providing genre-specific professional development and bringing much-needed visibility to genuine artistic talent.
Our continued efforts have greatly influenced the evolution of British Black music.
Here’s what our alumni have to say…
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“iluvlive is one of the first music nights where I performed my songs, so it holds a special place in my heart. It's an amazing night for the UK music scene the vibe, the atmosphere was always on so creative. Lovely.”
Jessie J
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“iluvlive provides a great opportunity for young, up and coming artists to get their music heard by industry insiders and music lovers. It's a great and necessary platform.”
Tinie Tempah
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“iluvlive was a great platform for me. One of the first times performing alongside a live band, it really opened my eyes to it all as I always wanted to use a live band. I can remember I was really excited when they asked me to perform I nearly brought my whole estate along to watch lol.”
Wretch 32
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“iluvlive put me on really early in my career but as soon as I had been on, I really took off! It's a great opportunity to give UK artists exposure.”
Chip
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“I’ve supported iluvlive a number of times over the years because I think it's important that credible nights that support new talent are given support by more established acts too. I even curated an event for them in January 2012, which was crazy. It's always a great crowd at iluvlive.”
Kano
