New grassroots venue to open in North Shields, Are You Affiliated

A new club is set to open in North Shields, Tyneside, Are You Affiliated (AYA).

Founder Geoff Kirkwood AKA Man Power has secured investment to open a space on the upper floor of Phoenix House, following two years of pop-up shows at King Street Social Club in the building.

Following the success of these shows, the organisers were able to secure significant investment, allowing them to invest in a high-performance soundsystem and open the new venue.

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The club will be open for promoters to book for gigs and events, as well as continuing to host Me Me Me parties hosted in the building since 2022 – which has welcomed the likes of Skream, Ewan McVicar, Daniel Avery, Optimo, Special Request, Artwork, Prosumer and more.

A key focus of the new venue will be creating a platform for established and grassroots acts, providing “a genuinely affordable option for local grassroots promoters to be able to continue and grow what is already a startlingly vibrant regional music scene.”

This emphasis on community is noted by founder Geoff Kirkwood AKA Man Power, who said, “King Street Social Club is a bona fide working-class community organisation and it’s not our intention to replace them but to instead find a way of having our own community co-exist alongside theirs whilst supporting it financially, and hopefully creating something entirely new through the union of both of our cultures.”

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The opening of AYA comes amidst a host of venue closures up and down the country, in a year which has seen on average five venues closing a week, due to factors such as the cost of living crisis.

However, the team behind AYA has decided to “buck the trend” and “fill the gap while supporting other at-risk communities and cultures.”

For anyone interested in using the space, contact [email protected]

Jamaal Johnson is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow him on Instagram