In an effort to to encourage the British government to allocate more on music education, Harry Styles and Elton John are among the stars who have backed Ed Sheeran‘s new initiative.
Subsequent to his establishing the Ed Sheeran Foundation music charity, the superstar singer/songwriter penned an open letter to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer requesting that the UK government commit the British currency equivalent to $323,000,000 to support the “next generation” of musicians.
In his written plea, Sheeran wrote “As an industry, we bring in £7.6bn into the UK economy, yet the next generation is not there to take the reins. Last year was the first in over 20 years without a UK global top 10 single or album in the charts.”
Harry, Elton, Coldplay, Stormzy, Eric Clapton, Robert Plant, Annie Lennox, Fred Again, and James Bay were among the supporters of Ed’s letter published on his Foundation’s website, and concerned about the decrease in music provision in state schools, Sheeran and his co-signatories added:
“Artists and industry can’t deliver on the world stage for the UK without schools, youth clubs and stages at home.” “We collectively ask for a £250m UK music education package this spring to repair decades of dismantling music … Music in and out of school should be for all, not a few.”
Including demands to train 1,000 more music teachers, back grassroots music spaces, fund music provision in schools in a similar way to sports, to provide 500 music industry apprenticeships, and to diversify the curriculum, the letter (which also backed the pleas for help for live music that Myles Smith and Ezra Collective issued at the BRIT Awards,) also set out a five point plan to “repair decades of dismantling music”.
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Author: Saul Goode
Photo: erintheredmc