Sunderland second city in UK to join music network
2025-01-22
Category: entertainment

A city has become only the second in the UK to become part of an international music network.Sunderland's bid to join the Music Cities Network has been successful, marking the start of "an amazing journey", organisers said.It will see Sunderland work alongside other members to grow its music sector and support cultural, social and economic development."I'm probably as equally as proud of this status as I was just signing my first record deal," said musician Frankie Francis, who is part of the project.
"This is the first point of what should be an amazing journey for Sunderland's identity moving forward." The network was established in 2016 and gives members access to collaborative opportunities, resources and advocacy. Members currently include Aalborg, Aarhus, Bergen, Berlin, Brussels, Düsseldorf, Gothenburg, Groningen, Hamburg, Manchester, Reykjavik, Sydney, Valencia and Vilnius.
Mr Francis, who is the lead singer of Frankie and the Heartstrings, said the status recognised Sunderland's musical heritage, but also what was currently happening in the city's music scene. "We are part of a gang now, we are part of their club and we get to collaborate with them, we get to learn from them, we get to share, to lobby together," he said. Managing director of the Music Cities Network Lena Ingwersen said: "Sunderland is an amazing addition to the Music Cities Network – it has a proud and storied heritage of music, and an exciting future ahead."For us, the mindset of people is paramount, and the Sunderland Music City team's energy, insight and enthusiasm are outstanding."
'Year of music'
A strategy which organisers hope will "try to make Sunderland a better place because of music" has also been launched. It will focus on nurturing local talent, enhancing musical education through mentorship opportunities, developing existing music venues and establishing new ones. A number of initiatives, including The Sunderland Year of Music, have also been announced.Kicking off in June, it will celebrate the city's musical heritage and create new events to highlight underrepresented genres.Sunderland City Council leader Michael Mordey said Music City built on the "already fantastic and exciting redevelopment of Sunderland as a whole".Mr Francis added he hoped music would become a part of the city's identity. "Sunderland for years was known for its shipbuilding and coal mining and while we should celebrate that and never forget it, we need to think of new identities for our city and this will hopefully be one of them," he said. 
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