Both will perform exclusive gigs during the much-loved nationwide event, which returns on January 27th 2025 and will see independent venues from across the UK come together to host hundreds of live events throughout the week.
YolanDa Brown OBE DL, the acclaimed saxophonist, broadcaster, philanthropist, author – and now, independent venue owner – is our overall Artist Ambassador for IVW25.
IVW aims to shine a spotlight on these culturally-important spaces, and encourage fans to start the year by going out, buying a ticket and enjoying a live show.
Since 2014, more than 1m tickets have been sold to IVW events, providing a welcome boost to the live music sector.
From a Welsh and Cornish background, Gwenno is widely recognised as one of the UK’s most daring and innovative musicians, sound artists and singers. Winning the Welsh Music Prize with her debut solo album, Y Dydd Olaf, she subsequently signed to the legendary Heavenly Recordings label for the follow-ups Le Kov and Tresor – both performed in the Cornish language. The latter album, a deeply personal exploration of motherhood, was shortlisted for the 2022 Mercury Prize and named one of BBC Radio 6 Music’s Albums of the Year.
Gwenno will perform a special one-off solo show for IVW25 at the award-winning Acapela Studio on Wednesday 29th January. Originally constructed in 1835, and based in Pentyrch, a village on the western outskirts of Cardiff, the converted chapel serves as both a recording studio and 240-capacity music venue and is renowned for both its architectural beauty and intimacy.
Gwenno’s support acts will be Dean Lligwy and Pat Morgan.
Gwenno said:
“I’m delighted to be this year’s IVW Welsh Ambassador, having spent so much of my musical life playing and going to gigs at independent venues across Wales and beyond for the past 25+ years. I’m so looking forward to performing at the beautiful Acapela in Pentyrch, a venue that I’ve heard so much about and have always wanted to play. I’ll be playing a stripped-back solo piano set of old and new material with a few surprises here and there, and make sure to get down early for the wonderfully elusive ambient solo traveller Dean Lligwy, as well as Welsh music icon Pat Morgan of the band Datblygu for a special solo set.”
Our 2025 Scottish Ambassadors, rEDOLENT, made headlines in October after winning the Scottish Album of the Year Award for their debut album, Dinny Greet. The Edinburgh-based five-piece (brothers Danny and Robin Herbert plus Andrew Turnbull, Robbie White and Alice Hancock) topped an incredibly strong shortlist, including the likes of Arab Strap and Barry Can’t Swim, winning plaudits for their left-field electronic pop.
Fiercely independent, the band have operated on a DIY basis for around ten years, performing sporadically at independent venues around Scotland and the UK. They are planning a very special show for IVW25 – with more details coming soon.
Describing one of his favourite independent venues, Andrew Turnbull from rEDOLENT said:
“One of my most memorable gigs was when I was 17 and went to see The Xcerts at Sneaky Pete’s. They had just released their second album, Scatterbrain, which remains one of my favourite albums to this day. Sneaky Pete’s, though a smaller venue, has an incredible vibe, and I felt so lucky to get a ticket – it felt like a smaller setting for a band as big as The Xcerts. The show was one of the most intense and exciting shows I’ve experienced. The crowd hung on every word during the quiet parts of the songs, and the silence in those moments felt intimate and special. It’s a night I’ll never forget.”
With more than 200 venues already confirmed to participate in IVW25, those wanting to join the celebration have until this Friday (6th December) to sign up.
Sybil Bell, CEO and founder of Independent Venue Week said:
“We’re over the moon to welcome Gwenno and rEDOLENT as our Welsh and Scottish Ambassadors. Alongside YolanDa Brown, they typify the kind of broad and innovative music culture that thrives in independent venues all across the UK.
“One of our biggest aims for IVW is to kickstart the new year with a wave of live shows that encourage fans to come out, buy a ticket, visit their local venue and have an amazing night out. It’s imperative that we support these unique spaces and the artists who appear on their stages all year round, and getting out in January is the best way to kick that support off.”
Meanwhile, details of new IVW shows and activities continue to be uploaded on a daily basis.
Artists and DJ’s already confirmed to perform include:
Ibibio Sound Machine, Kathryn Williams & Withered Hand, Heavy Lungs, Caoilfhionn Rose, OneDa, Lake Street Drive, Gilles Peterson, The Magic Numbers, Rhoda Dakar, The Cactus Blossoms, E L U C I D, The Bug Club, Ryley Walker, Kublai Khan TX, Dirty Blonde, Lizzie Esau, Red Method, Martyn Joseph, Joshua Radin, Du Blonde, Cattle Decapitation, The Hara, Do Nothing, Dodgy, Utah Saints, Ten Fé, James Walsh, Fightmilk, Home Counties, C Duncan, KEG, The Covasettes, The Clause, Home Counties, Avalanche Party, Fyfe Dangerfield, GIRLBAND!, Tom A. Smith, TTSSFU, Daudi Matsiko and many, many more.
IVW’s long-running broadcaster partners, BBC Radio 6 Music and BBC Introducing, will announce details of their activities and programming early in the new year.
