It’s early evening in the middle of September and golden hour is beginning to smile over North London. Camden’s historic Roundhouse venue is already bustling, with the Independent Music Awards setting up shop inside the storied building.
For those not familiar, it’s an annual ceremony pieced together by – the Association of Independent Music – and it’s a kind of alternative BRITs, a celebration of the independents, the outliers, and the mavericks. A host of artists are making their way here, ranging from left-field punks to Jorja Smith, whose own FAMM imprint has become a place of refuge for a number of songwriters.
When CLASH hits the carpet – well, factually speaking, it’s an attractive late summer yellow rug – the excitement is already palpable. “It’s insane!” exclaims who catches our eye. “So, so humbling.” He’s nominated – and would later win – One To Watch in association with BBC Music Introducing.
“Independence means taking your own time,” he muses. “I feel like people need to do that, in this world in which people aren’t given enough opportunities to perform in live. Independence means you can make your own world and invite people in.”
“It’s a tough thing to make your own world,” Native James reflects before darting off to enjoy the canapes. “You need to heel. And understand the intricacies of who these people are. When you see them as people, and not just as fans, when you have that connection, you’re dealing in a whole different world.”
is fresh off a red-eye flight, and she’s firmly embracing her newfound freedom as an independent artist. The chic R&B songwriter is all smiles on the carpet, catching up with fellow artists in the process. “Oh my gosh it means so much to be here. I’m newly independent and I feel really, really good about it. This is where I want to be.”
“Independence means freedom,” she nods. “It means tapping in to yourself, it means trusting your team and trusting yourself.”
“Give us money!” she laughs. “It’s the truth! Give us money, give us resources. Allow community to take place, but you can’t really do that without funding.”
Daptone songwriter makes a notable entrance, his snappily tailored suit marking him out as one of the most stylish men in the building. Both performing and winning tonight, he brings a touch of old school 60s soul to proceedings – we can’t help but feel Sam Cooke would be proud.
“I can’t describe the feeling, but it’s good,” he says. Jalen performed at the Roundhouse previously under his own steam, noting that “it was good… it was a good gig!”
If we want to help artists, he continues, then we need to focus on the roots. “It starts in the early development of childhood. If you fund arts for children at a young age they can make up their own minds if they want to keep doing it or not do it at all.”
There’s a neat moment on the carpet when Mod-punk siblings grab Jalen for a quick chat – Matt and Issey Cartlidge are huge fans, and can’t resist showing their appreciation to this impeccably tailored soul guru.
“Busy, busy!” Matt exclaims when CLASH finally peels him away. “Number three album and we did 47 festivals all while making our new album as well. We’re doing two nights at O2 Forum Kentish Town this week. We actually supported The Libertines there, so it’s a full circle moment.”
“We’ve been independent from the start,” Issey notes. “Everything we’ve done, we’ve done under our own steam. We’ve had great support from our label, and a huge degree of freedom.”
“Everyone we respect in music has come from that independent mindset,” Matt notes.
Asked where the industry could improve, and the prodigal songwriter is unequivocal. “Artist development. Instead of signing someone who’ve already got everything going for them aim for someone with good songs and try to build them up. Instead of going for social media followers, a pretty face and a nice arse…”
“Cos he’s got neither!” laughs Issey.
“Exactly!’ he shrugs.
The evening opens with a stark, powerful performance from , a songwriter CLASH has supported right from the beginning of her solo journey. To her, independence is simply a fact of life. “It means being independent from big business,” she says. “And it represents freedom in music.”
Music, you say? Turns out Naima Bock has a new album in the bag, which should emerge in March. “We’ve been working on it for a year, and it’ll come out one day before my birthday! It’s a long one… 14 songs. We did it all independently from a record label. It’s all self-funded.”
While some awards ceremonies can be restrictive in terms of genre, the Independent Music Awards thrives on eclecticism. 2-tone legends The Selector perform, DNB heroes Fabio & Grooverider are honoured, while Robyn sends a beautiful video message upon being awarded Album Of The Year.
Pivotal UK producer has forged a singular sound, blurring the high-octane lines between footwork and jungle, relishing fast tempos and a stunning array of ideas. She’s calm and collected on the carpet, a sign of where she is in life right now.
“My year started tough, but that put things into a lot perspective. In terms of living life in the best, fullest possible way. Using the beauty of music to work through that stuff. I’m really looking forward to the rest of this year,” she says.
“Independent music means that you’re able to have full creative control over anything you do,” Sherelle asserts. “And the beauty, also, of not being bound by certain genres or spaces. Not being bound by what’s happening in the mainstream… which can sometimes be a bit boring. And the music I represent, anyway, is so different, so crazy, people are still discovering it, learning new ways of making and producing it… that is what’s exciting. It’s actually independent music that allows ideas to cultivate, and in a weird way the mainstream is always looking at what we’re doing! Being innovators. Being creative, basically.”
“We just want everyone to win,” she shrugs. “The beauty of being independent is that you’re part of a community already. You’re not in a dog eat dog world. I just want to create freely and see other people succeed.”
Find the full list of winners from the Independent Music Awards HERE.