Young Producers Residency 2025-2026

Marsm was awarded an Industry Connect grant by Youth Music, which allowed us to offer training and mentorship to Young Producers so they could lead on their own creative project with the guidance of experienced industry professionals. Here’s what are our Young Producers created during their time at Marsm:

Tania

Tania was instrumental in expanding Marsm’s reach in Scotland leading on two musical events:

1. Oud and Food, an event that brought together beautiful performances by professional oud player Tarek Al Azhary and food prepared by local SWANA cooks. Together, these elements created a welcoming space for community building and collective brainstorming around future MARSM events in Scotland.
2. Open Mic Night Glasgow united local musicians and artists performing SWANA music, creating a night of improvisation, jamming, and community. Open to all genres, countries, and languages, the night showcased the talented musicians Glasgow has to offer while bringing together members of the SWANA community in an event that evokes memories of childhood and home.

Lilai

With the fusion of Arabic music and jazz at its centre, Lilai created Jam Al Jazz, a live jamming session session. The evening started with a 45-minute set improvised by the house band, then an open jam session for participating musicians. The house band kicked off the jam and then swapped out with other musicians who wished to join. After its successful pilot, Lilai is currently working on organising the next edition!

Lilai also attended WOMEX 2025 with Marsm and travelled up to Nottingham to attend the first in-person Industry Connect Coalition event. At this event, artists, creatives and industry change makers came together to discuss the barriers young people face in music and reimagine the industry as safer, fairer, and more inclusive.

Seun

Seun created Foil Cambridge, a community club night for dancers which kicked off in style with a Boiler Room style party in Clare Cellars in February 2026. Platforming underground techno and electronic sounds from the SWANA region and beyond, the handpicked line up brought uncut gems into the centre of the dance floor, turning Cellars into a buzzing atmosphere of movement.

Foil was facilitated by Marsm and Slipped Disc, and will continue to showcase electronic sounds from the diaspora to Cambridge.

Our Young Producers at Christmas