The past five years have not been an easy time for independent music venues in London. The triple whammy of Covid-19, the cost of living crisis, and licensing issues due to noise complaints have caused operating costs to soar and led to clubs and gig venues across London shuttering for good. But things are a-changing. Now, two of London’s most legendary late-night music venues are now under new ownership, and they are returning to their independent roots.
XOYO and Camden Assembly have been acquired by the newly formed Propaganda Independent Venues. The new group is formed by the creators of the popular club night Propaganda, an indie music night that takes place all over the UK. At the helm of the company are Propaganda’s founder Dan Ickowitz-Seidler, along with Richard Buck, the founder and former chief executive of TEG, a global live entertainment company that was acquired by Australian firm The MJR Group in 2019.
Now Ickowitz-Seidler and Buck have reclaimed ownership of XOYO and Camden Assembly six years after they were taken on by the international MJR Group, bringing the control of the venues back onto UK soil. Their acquisition also includes XOYO Birmingham, and Tramshed and The Globe in Cardiff.
In a press release, the new nightlife group said they wanted to help XOYO (which has hosted shows from Skepta, Fatboy Slim and Jamie XX in the past) ‘thrive under independent ownership and become a cultural hub for the area, offering opportunities and support to local artists and businesses’.
Propaganda has also announced that all venue ticket sales will now include an optional customer donation to the Music Venue Trust, which supports grassroots music venues.
Dan Ickowitz-Seidler said: ‘I am really excited to have acquired XOYO and Camden Assembly, venues with reputations as two of London’s best venues. It is a challenging time for grassroots venues, and we want to support the touring ecosystem as much as possible. We also want to engage with the local community to bring the events they want to see to XOYO and Camden Assembly. We are committed to bringing more artists to Shoreditch and Camden as well as larger acts whenever we can.’
Legendary south London venue Peckham Palais is becoming a nightclub again.
Odeon Covent Garden is being transformed into a new cinema and nightlife venue.
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