Youth Music’s Sound of the New Generation report

We were thrilled to attend the launch of Youth Music’s Sound of the New Generation (SONG) report last week and so proud to have been the research partners for creating this deep dive into young people’s relationship with music. It’s not every day our work is featured in Rolling Stone!

You can read the full report here, and we’ve collated some of the findings from children, young people and their parents that caught our attention below…

1. Musical needs aren’t being met - despite music topping the list of how Gen Z and Gen Alpha want to spend their spare time… money, time and opportunities at school mean engagement with music is down 9% since 2018, with just 55% saying they are musical

2. Is the modern school system killing creativity? Engagement with music reaches a low at 16-17 as GCSEs take centre stage, and young people say music gets deprioritised vs. education. The grassroots and community music sector is essential to keeping this passion alive

3. Whilst young people say that music helps them feel connected, music is becoming more solitary - more young people are only listening to music alone and fewer are making music in groups, increasingly keeping the music they make to themselves as they get older. With 48% of 18-25 year olds saying they feel lonely, it’s vital there’s space to make music together

4. R.I.P the recorder - 73% of children and young people believe you can be a musician without being able to read music, alongside drops in those playing more traditional instruments like the violin and flute. Making music on devices is the only format of music-making to hold steady since 2018 

5. Despite children from minoritised ethnicities [in the UK] being more musical and feeling a stronger drive to work in the music industry, they become more aware of differences in opportunities as they reach 18, reflecting ethnic diversity slowing in the music industry 

6. The North of England is becoming more and more separated from the musical opportunities of the South - young people in the North East are 18% less likely to play a musical instrument than those in London, and are the least likely region to feel supported with making their own music (despite just as many Northern young people saying how integral music is to their life, so it's certainly not a lack of enthusiasm!)

How should the UK government recognise and protect the contributions of grassroots youth and community music? How can education providers and policy makers seek to re-imagine the music curriculum, in the process improving access, relevance and progression? We’d love to hear your thoughts!