When I went to The Jago for Root 73’s 10th Anniversary, I was hyper-aware that I didn't know anyone there. This is not a new sensation for me, as I usually attend concerts alone, prepared for a night of just me, the music, and a G&T to tide me over. Bizarrely, however, I was greeted by less of a concert and more of a family-style house party. With each passing minute, the corners of the venue enlivened; pockets of laughter, dancing, and history present between the guests, lighting up the night. Walking through the room, it felt like bearing witness to friendships and connections that have lasted years (think, a decade). Much to my surprise, you could easily see the setlist enjoying themselves around you as well. Maybe I’m too used to only seeing artists through peeks into the wings, and under bright lights on stage- but it was odd seeing the people that would be performing right behind me in line to also get an espresso martini.

This is not a coincidence. A quick Google Search of Root Seventy-Three online, and you will find that this feeling is not an accident, nor is it a happy side-effect. For this 10-year-old Arts Hub and Recording Studio, community is a decision, and it is at the heart of everything they have worked for. From starting as a humble home studio in Finsbury Park, to becoming a collective that has platformed and launched fantastic sounds such as The Silhouettes Project, Nix Northwest, ENNY, and Manik MC- Root 73 has established itself as perhaps one of the last advocates for spaces in London that uplift creativity, artistry, and community.

I had the immense privilege of talking to just a few of the incredible and kind artists who have made Root 73 what it is 10 years down the line, and got invaluable insight into what it takes to keep such spaces running, and why it is exactly what the music industry needs in this day and age.

Maya Diaz: Co-founder of Root 73

Hey Maya, congratulations on the event! You and Asher started Root Seventy-Three 10 years ago. What was the inciting incident that kind of made you think this is what is needed in this culture right now?

“I think what really happened was, Asher and I - the co-founders of it- we came back from university, we were both making music together, and just going up to Camden, the Roundhouse, after work, making music. And we thought, like, there's more to this- there are a lot of talented artists; I'm sure there's plenty more around in the same kind of situation as us. And there’s just no kind of umbrella for everyone to come underneath. So, we invested a lot of our money and saved up to build a little home studio at my mom's house, back in Finsbury Park. And yeah, we just started inviting people to do sessions, just trying to put stuff out on SoundCloud, and trying to build a community that way.

Later, we saved up enough money from doing events and spent it all building our actual studio. We needed a central hub; we couldn't always just be doing it out of my mom's house for the next however long. It was kind of like a frustration I guess. Places for artists were getting kind of stripped away and eroded over the years, and there was nothing really like it that we knew about.”

The tagline of Root 73 is, “Connecting the dots between artists in our community” How does your ethos of open access and connecting the community inform the artists you take on and how you nurture them?

“Obviously, it's about if we like the music that they make, and if they get the message behind it. We're looking to build a community that's lasting, and we don't want fleeting moments of things. I think one of the best examples we have is ENNY, because, before she came to the studio, she was unknown, but now she's like a global superstar. And, she still uses our studio every Thursday to do her session. Asher is her co-manager, along with Pascal. So, like, everything is really done in-house. like we like to keep it that way. Obviously, ENNY’s off with other labels now, but we don't ever want to stifle anyone. ENNY still gives back in her own way, and it's not like we're not trying to say, oh, you can't go and release music elsewhere because we gave you the space- no, it's like, that's exactly what we want. We want to nurture people, let them grow. It's a launch pad. And it's like, because people see what we're trying to do for them, they also do things for us. It's reciprocal.

You know, because we're at a stage now where we've got older and we can kind of teach people, we are now doing an apprenticeship programme. where we take 5 young people, teach them about the industry, and try to get them employment on the other side. We want to develop young artists, so we bring them through and give them free time in the studio to work on their own projects. And we want artists who get the message as well, and we can't work with any old artists because some people can come and abuse the system, whatever. So we handpick people who get the message and are on the same vibe. And that's why everyone we work with now has been here for so long, because everyone's on the same page, everyone resonates with the message. I think it's a nice way to kind of just keep it going. We want to be able to inspire the next generation of change-makers to come and do something similar to what we're doing or carry on what we're doing when we're done. Because the industry is such a cutthroat place. Everyone's out for themselves. Everyone's out for the numbers. We want somewhere where you can just create and  be free to create and have a good time with it.”

To be an artist in this landscape, what would you say is the 1st thing one should think about?

“I think, make as many friends as possible. It's about who you know a lot of the time, even though it shouldn't be, but that's the industry. Unfortunately, it's a lot of nepotism, and a lot of like, oh, I have friends here, I'll do that for them because they're my friend. But just make yourself available to people. If you're a singer, go out, do loads of open mics, and go to bands. If you're a rapper, go meet people, meet producers, because you need to build a strong team around you. More and more people are becoming independent artists, but that doesn't mean you're doing it on your own; that means you've got a manager, you've got an A&R, you've got a team that you've assembled yourself.

And that way, when you find people who care about your music, a lot of the time they will help you for free because they see the vision of where you want to go. And if someone doesn't believe in your vision, they're not gonna do their best work for you. So, surround yourself with people who see your vision, who have a similar vision to you, and who want the best for you, because that's how you grow. You all grow together.

For example, you might hire someone as your manager who's never managed before. That's what it was like with ENNY; Pascal had never managed before. But now he's got 8 artists that he manages, you learn as you go. Yeah. Because, like, again, you learn from your mistakes, and as you make more and more of them, you're like, right, I won't do that again. So yeah, surround yourself with people who are good at what they do, who believe in you, and just be good at what you do.”

This sentiment was echoed by virtually every single person I spoke to at The Jago, a deep reverence for the community and network that allows them to create, learn, and grow. The apprenticeship programme is the natural product of such an environment, where five 18-25 year olds are given year-long access to studio services and mentorship under the structure of ‘Five Pillars’: Artist Management, Label Services, Studio Management, Community & Events. For Root 73, artistry and success are not measured in ‘views’ and ‘streams’, but rather by the foundations you build with your people.

As stated by one of the current mentees of the apprenticeship programme, Jed, “ I always think of it like, if you're trying to get over a wall or something. Rather than just, like, trying to jump, why not work with, like, 100 people to build a platform? Right. And then it's easier for everyone after you, as well.”

Speaking to the artists that Maya and Asher work with means learning more and more about how much they are valued in their community. When discussing Jed’s experiences in the programme, he highlighted,

“More than just practical mentoring, Root 73 gives a way to create music and art framed in a very political way rather than just doing it for the sake of climbing a ladder, you know what I mean? They're basically just good people, you know. All the advice they've given me has been rooted in that idea of collectivism rather than individualism. And I think realistically, that's actually the way you build longevity as well; rather than just shooting for your own thing to happen, you need to connect to other people.”

He mentioned the crabs-in-a-bucket mentality (Or syndrome) that many artists have had to adopt in this industry, a conflicting ideology championed by Root 73, but unfortunately, the one most ubiquitous. In the ‘race’ for success as an artist, there is a certain belief that you must do it alone and struggle through it all. I asked him whether participating in the apprenticeship programme necessitated a certain mindset shift.

“I bought into it to an extent, that crabs-in-a-bucket mentality, and was like trying to do this thing on my own, and build events on my own. I realised after a while that as soon as you actually start helping people out, you end up just building a community around you that supports you as well and brings you up. I always think of it like, if you're trying to get over a wall or something. Rather than just, like, trying to jump, why not work with, like, 100 people to build a platform? Right. And then it's easier for everyone after you, as well.

And also, that's part of the reason why I think, after a while, you realise that the stuff that you’ve been told to do, it doesn't work. They're just trying to tell you that's how it works. But then also the other thing that's really pushed me in that direction is more just like a feeling of friendship. It's just so much more enjoyable when you're doing it with other people, and the feeling of building a community and bringing people together. It's lovely, and it makes life just better.”

As the evening turned into night, performers came and went from the stage, bringing their own electric style and energy. I was grateful that I was able to contextualise these performances through speaking to the team, as I could see their ethos working in real-time. In a proud and beautiful moment, the whole crowd sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to Root 73, with all the artists sharing the stage; as collaborators, but more importantly, as friends and even as family.

It goes without saying that London’s landscape has changed since the pandemic. Community is not a lucrative motivation for businesses or for real estate, with valuable third spaces being wiped out, and the arts being defunded and denigrated. We are seeing much of London’s creativity move underground, or worse, not be realised at all. Root 73 provides an interesting case study for why it is exactly what we must be investing in. Redefining success in the creative industries is not easy, but cultivating spaces for us to raise each other up together is the key to thriving.