A new lottery has launched to support artists and live music venues

To make it big in showbiz, you need a lot of luck. But those behind a new lottery hope that they can help even the odds by giving a portion of their profits to venues and artists. 

The Music Lotto is the UK’s first arts and culture-focused lottery. Besides offering a weekly top prize of £25,000, it pledges to plough at least 50 per cent of ticket sales into a fundraising pool, with the remainder going towards prize money and operating costs. The lottery was established as a community-interest business. 

Organised by artist management company Orean – and run by lottery management outfit Gatherwell – it will support up-and-coming musicians, ‘grassroots’ venues and music-based charities through grants, distributed monthly to up to seven awardees. 

Tickets – at £1 a go – are available at music-lotto.co.ukGrant applications and grants are now open. Orean CEO Adrian Norman described it as a project “born out of passion”. 

“Grants can be applied for if an artist needs a new instrument, some studio time or budget for a music video,” he said. “Our team of experts will review applications and give grants away after each draw. The more tickets bought, the more we can support talent.”

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