Grassroots Networking Day 2026: A room full of live music possibilities

On 13 October, GIGNITE joined the grassroots live music community at 229 London for Grassroots Networking Day 2026. We came away with what we hoped for: good conversations with the people who make shows happen, and fresh insight into where a more connected industry could make a real difference.

Venue teams, promoters, agents and festival programmers all work on different parts of the same live-music journey. But the information they need to put on a show often sits in separate systems, inboxes and spreadsheets. That makes it harder to find the right partners, plan viable routes and turn a promising conversation into a gig.

What Grassroots Networking Day 2026 brought into focus

The conversations made the day-to-day pressures clear. Venue teams described juggling spreadsheets, manual requirements and admin that eats into already limited time; one easy-to-use dashboard bringing their administration together could make a real difference. Smaller festivals can assume enterprise software is built for organisations bigger than them. GIGNITE was originally built for the grassroots, and that is exactly the scale and community it is designed to support. Agents and bookers would benefit from stronger gig and tour propositions from artists and managers, backed by tools that help the whole process run more smoothly. Managers also want one place to manage their rosters.

That is the problem GIGNITE is built to help solve. GIGNITE brings artists, managers, crew, venues, promoters and suppliers together in one tour-planning platform, with smart routing, audience insights, communication and transaction tools designed to reduce admin and help more gigs and tours happen.

GIGNITE is a platform, not an artist management service. It is free for artists and gives artists and their teams tools to plan and organise their own gigs and tours with less admin and more control. The new managers interface also gives managers a dedicated place to manage their roster.

GIGNITE offers for MVT venues and promoters

To celebrate Grassroots Networking Day 2026 and the value UK grassroots venues contribute, GIGNITE is giving all MVT members 50% off GIGNITE subscriptions for 12 months with code GND50 — and this offer extends to grassroots promoters too. MVT venues can also claim 50% off for 12 months through the MVT weekly mailer with code MVT50.

Explore GIGNITE, view the Venues & Suppliers interface, or sign up your venue.

Thanks to the people who brought the sector together

Thank you to Music Venue Trust, the Association of Independent Festivals, the Association of Independent Promoters and The Entertainment Agents’ Association for bringing the event to life, and to Arts Council England for public funding through the National Lottery. And a special thank you to 229 London for hosting a day dedicated to the people behind grassroots live music.

Grassroots Networking Day 2026 was a reminder that a stronger live music sector is built through relationships, shared knowledge and tools that help people work together. We’re glad we got to be part of the conversation, and we’re looking forward to what comes next.

GIGNITE™️ - Built by music industry pros & touring specialists