
Youth spaces are crucial for the well-being of children and young people, as they instill a deep sense of belonging and ignite creativity. But in the U.K., these spaces have been in rapid decline due to decades of funding cuts, leaving young people with fewer places to be creative and engage with their communities in positive ways.
To underscore the importance of youth spaces in the U.K., Spotify has teamed up with the London-based youth mentoring organization Mentivity to release our new short film The Centre. Filmed and directed by Adeyemi Michael, The Centre showcases the transformative impact youth spaces can have on burgeoning local artists and U.K. music culture at large, which has birthed influential genres like grime and U.K. drill.
Featuring hip-hop duo Young T & Bugsey, rapper Ms Banks, drummer Femi Koleoso from the Mercury Prize-winning jazz quintet Ezra Collective, and MC and producer Novelist, The Centre chronicles the ways each artist's youth club experiences helped inspire their creative journeys and the music they produce to this day.
Keeping youth spaces alive While 750 youth spaces across the U.K. have closed since 2010, they still play a vital role in fostering the creative development of young people across the country. In fact, these spaces have helped shape the careers of some of today's leading artists and musicians. Take Young T & Bugsey, who met at age 15 and spent the following years honing their craft at youth spaces in their hometown of Nottingham. To date, they've racked up more than 850 million streams on Spotify.
According to a recent survey commissioned by Spotify, 70% of young people in the U.K. feel that youth clubs help nurture creative talent, and 74% want to learn more about creative industries. More than three quarters (77%) believe youth spaces create a safe environment for young people.
In addition to highlighting the ways youth spaces have meaningfully impacted U.K artists, The Centre celebrates the opening of Mentivity House, a newly developed youth space in the southeast London neighborhood of Peckham.
Mentivity House is an example of how we reclaim our block, said Mentivity founder Sayce Holmes-Lewis. Over a decade in the making, this is a full-circle moment for me. Growing up and working here for 25 years, I've seen regeneration change the area. We're committed to strengthening our roots and creating a lasting legacy for our community, helping young people become the best versions of themselves.
Our partnership with Mentivity follows our global partnership with UNICEF to help ensure that young people around the world can access trusted and engaging mental health audio content. We teamed up with UNICEF to create the Our Minds Matter hub on Spotify, where listeners can find music and talk playlists that support mental health and well-being.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
20/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/02/2026
The Canadian rightsholder deploys its most complex' Olympics setup an ever,...
19/02/2026
Suite Studios, a cloud-native platform that connects creative teams to their med...
19/02/2026
Guitar Center and the Tennessee Titans announce a first-of-its-kind partnership ...
19/02/2026
DAZN is reinforcing its leadership in global boxing through a new five-year deal with Matchroom Boxing in the United States and the United Kingdom. The deal ext...
19/02/2026
PTZOptics announces the launch of its visual reasoning initiative that makes vid...
19/02/2026
Influencer Positions, AI-driven vertical video, and platform-native creators res...
19/02/2026
Host broadcaster evolves from world-feed producer to global content orchestrator, unlocking hidden moments for every platform...
19/02/2026
Custom drones raise expectations for bringing viewers closer to the action in new ways
2026 is not the first time OBS has used drones or event First Person Vie...
19/02/2026
Comcast's Xfinity announces record-setting performance from its new RealTime4K technology during Super Bowl LX, delivering the game to customers' homes ...
19/02/2026
The Women's Monobob turned out to be a historic event: Team USA's Elana Meyers Taylor captured the gold at age 41, making her the oldest Bobsleigh gold ...
19/02/2026
The senior from Georgia has found his calling as a technical director and video engineer
In the live-sports-video industry, the future is bright. Our series SV...
19/02/2026
Cosm announces the appointment of two new leaders - Jeff Hughes (President, Sports and Entertainment) and Rob Laycock (Vice President, Head of Venues Marketing)...
19/02/2026
Two main sets feature Unreal Engine environment, LED architecture, camera-tracked virtual windows; a third, in the TV Tower,' overlooks the Duomo...
19/02/2026
Last November, Spotify hosted an unforgettable night with Robyn, where top fans ...
19/02/2026
WBD edges above Polsat in only change in the top 10 content distributor rankings...
19/02/2026
Airlines and cruise operators ramp up spend as New Zealanders plan, compare and book online
Auckland, February 19, 2026 - New Nielsen Ad Intel data shows adver...
19/02/2026
The beginning of the new year brought a clear revival in front of television screens. The winter aura meant that Poles spent an average of 5% more time watching...
19/02/2026
New data also shows news content on FAST channels up 58% as streaming catalogs c...
19/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/02/2026
Berklee Awards Fenway Neighborhood Improvement Grants to Six Organizations A total of $25,000 will be distributed among the Boston-based nonprofits.
February...
19/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/02/2026
Foundry, the leading developer of creative software for the Media and Entertainment industry, today announced the completion of its acquisition of Griptape, a p...
19/02/2026
Capturing the raw energy and emotional intensity of FX's hit series The Bear is no small feat, especially when the set itself is as hectic and unpredictab...
19/02/2026
Cobalt Digital Inc., a leading designer and manufacturer of award-winning video and audio conversion, processing, and distribution solutions, and a founder of o...
19/02/2026
DHD s complete range of digital audio mixers plus the latest-generation RM1 Pro broadcast-from-anywhere unit will be promoted at the upcoming Lokalradioforbunds...
19/02/2026
Operative, the preferred advertising management solution provider for the world's leading media brands, today announced a partnership with GraySwan to bring...
19/02/2026
Witbe today announced the launch of Agentic SDK, a new test automation framework designed to help video service providers build, operate, and scale agentic auto...
19/02/2026
Grass Valley today announced that Network18 Media & Investments Ltd., one of India's largest and most influential media conglomerates, is deploying Grass Va...
19/02/2026
Clear-Com is sponsoring and presenting the USITT Stage Management Award during the United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) Annual Conference & S...
19/02/2026
Paramores Hayley Williams Praises Berklee Ensemble: Make Noise Williams acknowledged the Paramore Ensemble after their show at the Berklee Performance Center ...
19/02/2026
February 19th, 2026 TRIBECA ANNOUNCES NEW SLATE OF STAR-STUDDED MEMBERSHIP EVEN...
19/02/2026
News Corp Announces Match for U.S. Government's $1,000 Contribution to Child...