The music industry and the wider world just feels a lot less daunting because of The Music Works.
Music has always been a part of Flora’s life.
She started out performing in school recitals, playing piano and singing, then moved into musical theatre, which she loved for years. During lockdown, she picked up the guitar and never really stopped playing after that.
When a friend invited her to The Music Works for a rehearsal session, things began to shift.
That first visit introduced her The Drop and to Upsurge, our artist development programme. Her friend also encouraged her to come along to one of the Upsurge Live evenings, showcasing live music from emerging artists.
I think that was the first time I’d ever been in a room with people my age doing music. That was so nice to finally realise, oh, there are people my age doing my thing.
That feeling made a big difference. Suddenly, music didn’t feel like something she was doing on her own anymore, it felt like a shared thing.
When Flora turned 18, she applied for and was accepted onto our Upsurge artist development programme.
I loved Upsurge because there were people with my mindset and that was very reassuring to be surrounded by such creative and driven human beings.
Alongside that, Upsurge helped her understand more about the music industry too. Through masterclasses, mentoring and one-to-one sessions, she started to get a clearer idea of how things work behind the scenes — not just the creative side, but the business side as well.
“I like that The Music Works values the creative side of the music industry, but they also understand the importance of everything business-y… they care about your foundational knowledge to keep you safe in this crazy world.”
As Flora started progressing in her career, she reached a big milestone of signing with a record label.
Going from working completely independently to suddenly having a team around her was a huge step, but the support and knowledge she’d picked up through The Music Works made it feel a lot more manageable.
I found that the one-to-one sessions were a massive help with a pretty big step in my career recently, which was being signed.
Growing up in a smaller place, the music industry can feel pretty out of reach. For Flora, The Music Works helped bridge that gap — giving her access to people, spaces and experiences that made it all feel a lot more real and achievable.
We believe that talent is everywhere, however, opportunity isn’t.
In Gloucestershire, young people with creative passions often face limited pathways into creative careers. We’re changing that.
We’re a friendly team and always happy to answer any questions you have.
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