10 brilliant artists who emerged from BBC Introducing
BBC Introducing has a longstanding history of championing young, undiscovered talent – cutting through the need for artists to pay record pluggers to get airplay, solidifying itself as a powerful grassroots platform. Broadcast across 32 local shows, BBC Introducing’s consistent dedication to showcasing local talent didn’t just benefit those artists by giving them crucial exposure (online and on the airwaves), but also introduced swathes of listeners to the emerging talent they might not have come across without the Saturday night slot.
But recent BBC restructuring has scaled back the reach of the platform, cutting 32 shows down to 20 across the country. Rumours of downsizing started swirling in January following a spate of redundancies for BBC Introducing presenters, many of whom took to their social media, urging followers to share their positive interactions with the network.
Tim Robinson, BBC Radio 6 Music presenter and host of the BBC Introducing Mixtape podcast, said the network’s “crowning achievement” since its 2007 inception was “helping listeners find interesting new music and [helping] interesting musicians find new listeners year in, year out” in a blog post. Robinson was joined by Elton John, who also pointed out how damaging the cuts would be.
Later, as part of a passionate Instagram post, John questioned the “worrying step” taken to reduce the funding, saying: “BBC Introducing’s network and support of new music has been one of the best ways for emerging artists to get airplay and find listeners from local to national radio”.
Nile Rodgers echoed this in his own post, saying: “While the BBC reprioritise money for online and to create a new team of investigative journalists, local music scenes are to lose out”.
The cuts are said to be part of a wider plan to “modernise” regional services and save money, which includes a £19million budget reshuffle to “reprioritise” broadcast services, gearing them towards online and multimedia production. The scale of the backlash speaks to the cultural importance of Introducing, which offered many now well-known names a vital head start.
To celebrate its valiant efforts in democratising the process of breaking into the industry, we’ve rounded up ten artists who made their name on Introducing.
10 artists who emerged from BBC Introducing:
IDLES
IDLES have become staples of the modern British scene, their angst-fueled politically-inclined roar sent waves of inspiration among emerging guitar bands of the time. And this may not have been possible had they not sent a demo off to BBC Introducing in the West in 2009. This prompted their first radio play and the first glimpse that a career in music was possible.
This started a connection with Introducing, which has been sustained throughout their now-glittering career. In 2022, the Bristol-based band even curated the Introducing stage at Glastonbury Festival. They might be one of the most acclaimed bands of recent times, but they have never forgotten the impetus that BBC Introducing gave them.
Arlo Parks
Earlier this year, Arlo Parks released her second album, My Soft Machine. Once again, the record broke the top ten in the UK albums chart. This success came after long years of nurturing and promotion by BBC Introducing, who first had Parks on their radar when she was just 16.
Four years later, she won the Mercury Prize for her debut. Since then, she has even hosted her own radio slot, evidencing how dearly artists hold the promotion and gateway of BBC Introducing. It is a unique platform that allows for an array of diverse voices to rise out of the grassroots scene. Arlo Parks’ poetic artistry typifies this.
The 1975
In 2014, Huw Stephens dubbed The 1975 “future festival headliners”, and the 6 Music presenter wasn’t wrong. This year alone, they’ve headlined London’s Finsbury Park and are set to headline again at Reading Festival to replace Lewis Capaldi.
Although Matty Healy might be doing all he can to undermine their hard work, the band have received several awards during their rise to prominence, including four Brit Awards and two Ivor Novello Awards. Introducing was pivotal in getting their first EP, Facedown, airplay. Its lead track, ‘The City’, featured as part of Stephens’ show on BBC Radio 1, the band’s first time receiving national attention for their indie-pop sound.
Jake Bugg
Indie folk artist Jake Bugg went from playing the Introducing stage at Glastonbury as a teenager to reaching worldwide success with hits like ‘Two Fingers’ and ‘Lightening Bolt’. At only 16, Bugg was selected to play the Introducing stage at the 2011 Glastonbury Festival, going on to be nominated for Ivor Novello and Brit Awards.
Had he not submitted his songs to their website, he might not have signed with Mercury Records, which he did after a stellar performance at Worthy Farm. In 2022, he revisited his roots in a BBC Introducing Live event, continuing the ethos of Introducing by sharing tips on how to make it in the music industry with budding local artists. He urged the audience to “keep writing the songs”, telling them all they needed was “one good song that people can relate to”.
Wunderhorse
Wunderhorse began as a solo project for former Dead Pretties frontman Jacob Slater during the Covid-19 lockdown. He later joined forces with drummer Jamie Staples, bassist Pete Woodin, and guitarist Harry Fowler to form the grunge-rock band, whose complex rock songs interrogate drug use, love, self-destruction and depression.
In 2022, Wunderhourse toured extensively as a supporting act for other bands, including BBC Sound nominee Sam Fender, as well as Fontaines D.C., Foals, and Pixies. But this year, they played at Glastonbury Festival on both the Woodsies and BBC Introducing stages, playing tracks like ‘Purple’, ‘Butterflies’ and the as-yet-unreleased ‘Midas’ in front of brand new audiences.
Florence and the Machine
Florence and the Machine are one of BBC Introducing’s most prominent success stories. The network played a massive part in her rise to global stardom by promoting her indie-folk output, taking Florence Welch and her band to Texas to play SXSW festival early on in their career.
After being heavily promoted on Introducing in 2008, the band went on to play numerous festivals the same year, including Bestival, Reading and Leeds and Glastonbury. They’ve since gone on to receive massive acclaim, making history in 2015 when Welch headlined Glastonbury with the band, making her the first British female headliner of the 21st Century to do so – and it was BBC Introducing that set them on the path to the Pyramid Stage.
Little Simz
Introducing bought Little Simz to Texas for the BBC Introducing & PRS for Music Foundation showcase in 2015, and since her experimental rap sound has since gone on to win awards for ‘Best Album’ at the Ivor Novello Awards for 2019’s Grey Area. After her stints on BBC Introducing stages, she has gone from strength to strength, gaining a fan and collaborator in Damon Albarn.
Blending reggae, blues and synth-rock, her most recent albums, 2021’s Sometimes I Might Be Introvert, and 2022’s No Thank You, were both released to widespread praise. Way back in 2015, Kendrick Lamar event took to BBC Radio 1 and said that “she might be the illest doing it right now”, so her stardom following her Introducing stint is no surprise.
Catfish and the Bottlemen
Catfish and the Bottlemen first sent BBC Introducing their music in 2010, putting their early recording in the Uploader with a clear statement of intent, saying: “We believe once our music is heard, the people will love it.”
The indie band signed to Island Records in 2014, releasing hit single ‘Kathleen’, which, after Zane Lowe premiered it on Radio 1, was ranked MTV’s number one hottest track. They quickly became festival regulars after increasing exposure, performing at Reading and Leeds, Latitude, and T in the Park – going on to win the BBC Introducing ‘Artist of the Year Award’ at the inaugural BBC Music Awards in 2014.
Soft Play (Slaves)
When Soft Play were still known as Slaves, they uploaded their track to the BBC Uploader at five in the morning on a whim and were surprised the reception was so positive. The Kent duo of Isaac Holman and Laurie Vincent made aggressive, bluesy garage punk, producing hits like ‘Cheer Up London’ and ‘The Hunter’.
Speaking on ‘Introducing Stories’, they remembered BBC Introducing Kent doing their own show dedicated to the band soon after they’d sent in their material. Shortly after, they were invited to play the Introducing stage at Reading and Leeds in 2013, which they say was the moment “the ball really started rolling” for them. They also played a Maida Vale session, going on to produce highly acclaimed punk albums like Are You Satisfied? and Take Control as they gained popularity.
Wolf Alice
After recording and self-releasing their self-titled debut, Wolf Alice, the band sent off tracks to BBC Introducing with the breezy statement: “Wolf Alice were formed in 2011. They consist of two best buddies from London and two cute Cornish lads. They attempt to create music to look out the window to, to bop down the street to.” In 2016, years after being named the ‘Best Breakthrough Artist’ at the UK Festival Awards, they opened for fellow BBC Introducing peers, The 1975, on their US tour.
After enjoying the resounding success of My Love Is Cool and Visions of a Life, they later handpicked the line-up of Glastonbury’s Introducing Stage in 2022. In doing so, they gave acts like Quarry, Dead Pony, and Denise Chaila the same exposure they had early on. Looking back on their history with BBC Introducing, drummer Joel Amey described it as an “incredibly important way for a lot of bands to find themselves on the way up at the start of their journey.”
