Four Tees Valley artists win UK touring support

Four Tees Valley artists win backing to make touring more sustainable

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Amelia Coburn, Finn Forster, Smith & Liddle and Hartlepool band Marketplace are among nine northern acts receiving UK Artist Touring Fund support.

By The Tees Editorial Desk · 12 November 2026

Teesside singer-songwriter Amelia Coburn performing on stage with an acoustic guitar in June 2024. Image: Amelia Coburn by Paul Hudson / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0Image source CC BY 2.0

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Four artists from Tees Valley have secured practical and financial support designed to make touring more as costs continue to squeeze musicians.

Singer-songwriters Amelia Coburn and Finn Forster, folk duo Smith & Liddle and Hartlepool indie band Marketplace are among nine artists from Tees Valley, the North East and West Yorkshire backed through the second phase of the UK Artist Touring Fund.

The fund provides top-up support for tours where ticket and performance income does not cover the cost of taking a live show on the road. The Featured Artists , which runs the scheme with the Music Managers Forum and Musicians’ , says the current awards can contribute up to £8,000. The northern awards also include dedicated touring support through a with the Northern Music Export Office.

For working artists, the detail matters. budgets can include musicians, crew, travel and accommodation, while the programme requires fair and reasonable pay for the people involved. The wider second phase is supporting almost 400 shows scheduled between September 2026 and April 2027.

The four Tees Valley recipients make up almost half of the nine northern acts selected through the co-investment partnership. The other northern awardees are EEVAH, IRKED, THE HOWLING, Tom A. Smith and VENUS GRRRLS.

Amelia Coburn said the funding had made it possible to take session musicians, crew and a tour manager on the road, pay the team properly and cover accommodation. Her experience illustrates the gap the programme is intended to close: a tour can build an audience and career, but the cost of delivering it can still leave an emerging artist out of pocket.

The Northern Music Export Office is powered by music-development agency Generator and supported by the Tees Valley, North East and West Yorkshire . It was set up to help northern artists build careers and audiences beyond their home regions.

: Tees Valley Combined Authority, 6 November 2026; Featured Artists Coalition phase-two award announcement; Generator / Northern Music Export Office, 6 November 2026.