Jordan Stephens, author and one half of hip hop duo Rizzle Kicks, has got a tattoo designed by his partner, Little Mix’s Jade Thirlwall, inked to raise awareness for a new campaign to save UK grassroots music.
The tattoo, which says “Rescue The Roots” and was inked by artist Tianna Nicola Clarke, is the name of a new campaign by Youth Music. It was revealed in a promotional video that features a sound excerpt taken from his acceptance speech from the Youth Music Awards 2024, where he won the Grassroots Hero Award.
“Creativity is a human necessity / It’s essential / I can’t believe that the creative arts are underfunded by the government,” he said. “When I look around the real heroes in this community are the youth workers, the care workers, the teachers, the organisers.”
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The Rescue The Roots campaign was launched by Youth Music this week, with the charity hoping to raise £1 million to support grassroots music ventures aimed at young people in the UK. For each £1 raised up to that target figure, Youth Music will match £1, with the aim of handing out £2 million in total to youth organisations and young creatives.
According to the charity, 41% of grassroots music projects are currently at risk of closure without receiving imminent support, an increase of 17% from 2024. It comes amid a long pattern of decline for youth services. Last year, a UNISON report found that over two-thirds (1,243) of council-run youth clubs had closed down between 2010 and 2013.
