Forever Edinburgh's new music reviewer
Forever Edinburgh’s reviewer Stuart Niven pictured outside The Usher Hall. Photo by Lloyd Smith
Forever Edinburgh, the body which promotes Edinburgh to the world, has recently announced an official music reviewer to help sing the praises of the city’s music scene - and Edinburgh Music Lovers has been lending a hand.
Stuart Niven, 37, a Learning and Development consultant from Leith with a passion for music and an interest in writing, was the winner of Forever Edinburgh’s competition to find a local music fan to help tell the story of the city’s exciting and eclectic live music scene to new audiences around the world.
Edinburgh Music Lovers supported the competition as part of our goal to help raise awareness of Edinburgh as a music city.
As Forever Edinburgh’s reviewer, Stuart will be given tickets to gigs between May and December and create a series of reviews that will be published on Forever Edinburgh’s website and social media channels, which are read by millions of people each year, to help showcase the city’s music scene.
The aim of the reviews is to encourage more music fans around the UK to visit Edinburgh for gigs and explore the local music scene including its venues and local artists.
Entrants to Forever Edinburgh’s competition were asked to submit a 250-word review of a gig they’d attended in the past 12-months, describing the event, artist, venue and capturing a sense of Edinburgh as a music-lovers destination.
Stuart’s winning entry was a review of the hotly tipped band, Wet Leg at the Mash House.
His first review of the series will be of Edinburgh artist Hamish Hawk at The Caves. Other gigs to be featured include The Smile, who feature Radiohead members Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood alongside Sons of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner, at The Usher Hall on 1st June.
After each gig, Stuart will write a review for the Forever Edinburgh website and social media channels, which are read and followed by visitors from across the world, as well as local residents. The reviews will also be published on Edinburgh Music Lovers to help further spread the word about music in Edinburgh.
As well as free tickets and the chance to develop and showcase his writing skills, Stuart will be paid for each of his published reviews.
In addition, he will be offered the opportunity to review new music by local acts and interview artists and other figures within the city’s music community to further help shine a spotlight on the city’s music scene.