Artistic Director of award-winning charity The Music Works wins Clore Fellowship for his ground-breaking leadership skills

Artistic Director of award-winning charity The Music Works wins Clore Fellowship for his ground-breaking leadership skills helping young people break down barriers and navigate the music industry

August 2022: Malaki Patterson, Artistic Director, The Music Works has been awarded a Clore Fellowship, one of just twenty-five Fellows from UK and Ireland who will embark on the Clore Fellowship programme this autumn, which recognises and nurtures leadership skills across the cultural sector. The 2022 cohort includes artists, curators, producers, directors and educators, many of whom work across disciplines and co-create with communities and underrepresented groups.

Malaki is a musician, music producer, manager and mentor born and raised in Gloucester, he set up his own record label and artist management company in his childhood bedroom and has been transformative in helping lift disadvantaged and underrepresented young people in his hometown through his work as Artistic Director of The Music Works.

The Music Works delivers one-to-one music mentoring, small group work, accredited training, apprenticeships and internships, festivals and events, artist and career development, helping disadvantaged and underrepresented young people access the industry.

The Music Works, which won the Association of Youth Offending’s Award for best delivery programme in the UK and became a PRS talent development partner, guides 2,500 young people aged 8-30 on a regular basis and a further 2,000 through its events programme.?“An organisation like ours can reach the community,” said Patterson. “We can break down barriers, we can bring through young people who are facing those barriers and then we can connect with industry and make that pipeline clearer.”

Warner Chappell CEO Guy Moot and The Music Works industry ambassador said of the charity, “the work that Music Works is doing is absolutely a blueprint for where people can come together, get advice, work with other producers, and meet like-minded people. And hopefully be also then the touch point where the industry can meet these people, an explain to them what they're looking for and what they need.”

Deborah Potts, CEO, The Music Works said, “Malaki’s leadership and the impact he has had on the lives of the young people that come to The Music Works is transformative, and we are delighted that his work has now been recognised by The Clore Leadership programme. And the recent industry day we held for our young musicians with Warner Chappell also bears testament to the power making music has in helping young people to connect and engage and we look forward to its magical formula being replicated all over the country.”

In 2021, The Music Works won a Queen’s Award for enterprise for social mobility and?Malaki was also nominated for Inspirational Music Leader Award at the 2021 Youth Music Awards.

www.themusicworks.org.uk