Full list of MEGS recipients in the 13th round of funding: 

  • Ady Suleiman
  • Alpines
  • Anna Calvi
  • Catching Flies
  • Emma McGann
  • Fickle Friends
  • Leon Vynehall
  • LIFE
  • Lucy Spraggan
  • Moose Blood
  • Nothing But Thieves
  • Pale Waves
  • Rina Sawayama
  • Roo Panes
  • Sharna Bass
  • STONE BROKEN
  • The Allergies
  • The Boxer Rebellion
  • TUNNG

Full list of MEGS recipients in the 13th round of funding: 

  • Ady Suleiman
  • Alpines
  • Anna Calvi
  • Catching Flies
  • Emma McGann
  • Fickle Friends
  • Leon Vynehall
  • LIFE
  • Lucy Spraggan
  • Moose Blood
  • Nothing But Thieves
  • Pale Waves
  • Rina Sawayama
  • Roo Panes
  • Sharna Bass
  • STONE BROKEN
  • The Allergies
  • The Boxer Rebellion
  • TUNNG

Nineteen British music acts have been awarded funding from the Department for International Trade (DIT) thanks to the Music Export Growth Scheme (MEGS), designed to help build international fanbases and boost music sales outside of the UK, as part of the Exporting is GREAT campaign.

The BPI-managed scheme began in 2014 and supports small-to-medium sized, mostly-independent music companies by making funding available to supplement their own artist marketing campaigns and touring overseas. MEGS aims to help artists realise their commercial potential in international markets.  The scheme is supported by Exporting is GREAT: a government campaign aiming to inspire and support more UK companies and individuals, including those in the music industry, to take their first steps towards selling overseas and help existing exporters grow further.

In this 13th round of funding, £319,244 has been distributed to support British music exports projects across Europe, North America and Australia.  Artists to benefit include Manchester indie-pop quartet Pale Waves; Stockport-based singer-songwriter Lucy Spraggan; Hull punk band LIFE; Producer/DJ Leon Vynehall; Mercury Prize shortlisted Anna Calvi; Japanese-British singer-songwriter Rina Sawayama, and North-West London’s Sharna Bass, who previously collaborated with Clean Bandit. 

This additional investment means that, since the Music Export Growth Scheme made its very first awards in February 2014 to 15 artists ranging from Afrikan Boy to Zara McFarlane, just over £3,000,000 has been distributed in support of 201 music export projects around the world. 

Chris Tams, BPI Director of International overseeing the MEGS programme, said: “The Music Export Growth Scheme has given a diverse range of British talent the chance to develop their international fanbases through touring and marketing support. This also promotes the profile of British music abroad and to date has boosted our exports with an 11 -1 return on investment for each Pound put in by the UK Government.

“We’ve seen a broad range of artists and musical styles promoted, but we’d love to see more applications put forward to support female acts in particular as well as more specialist genres such as classical.” 

Geoff Taylor, Chief Executive BPI & BRIT Awards, added: “The UK consistently punches above its weight as the largest exporter of music in the world after the US, but this success doesn’t happen by accident. Record labels invest heavily in producing new music, and this commitment is supported by the UK Government, which, through schemes such as MEGS, recognises the win-win value of supporting smaller labels and their artists who have the potential to grow their sales and boost the UK’s exports in overseas markets.” 

TUNNG Manager Nigel Adams (Full Time Hobby) said: “As a fully independent label we really appreciate the support the Music Exports Growth Scheme provides to help take our acts to the next level internationally. It helps us to continue to champion creative, original, inspiring bands like Tunng”.  

Singer-songwriter and MEGS recipient, Lucy Spraggan said: "I’m over the moon to be supported by MEGs for my international touring. This gives me the chance to tour different territories and expand my brand to its fullest capability. I am incredibly grateful and excited to get going!”

Brighton indie-pop band and MEGS recipients Fickle Friends, said: “Playing America has always been a big part of our mission as a band. Not only have a large percentage of our fanbase and listeners been from there from the beginning, America always been a country that we have felt an affinity to, and been desperate to play in. In the UK we had the luxury of building from the ground up, tour managing ourselves, driving in our drummers mum’s Ford Galaxy and sleeping on floors. Unfortunately that grassroots approach isn’t quite as simple in the US so we are very grateful for being given MEGS funding so that we can continue to build a viable career the US and translate some of that DIY approach!”

Round 14 applications opened on 6th August and will close on 3rd September.  This will be the last round of funding in 2018, but there will be three further rounds in 2019.  For details or to download an application form please visit the MEGS page on the BPI website here