THE PANDEMIC, tighter late-night regulations and social media are redefining how black communities socialise and party in London.

Black nightclub owners are responding by creating new outdoor daytime celebrations to create a festival-style vibe.

Venue entrepreneurs also say they are experiencing new problems securing visas for black artists which is leading promoters to put on concerts in the Caribbean, Europe or Africa and marketing packages for British black music lovers to get around the issue. 

For one black club owner in east London, the pandemic has prompted him to bring in a new team to provide different experiences and address concerns about social distancing. 

Eddy Augustine, is originally from Ealing, west London, and is the owner of Visions Banqueting Suite, which first opened in Dalston, in 1990.

He told The Voice, he has no choice but to adapt after the pandemic. 

He said: “As the way of going out and enjoying yourself is evolving, the venue has to evolve with it to stay current.” 

The club recently re-opened after the pandemic and is now known as The Mix. 

The club is run by Mr Augustine’s son and a new team – who are using things like livestreaming, music video shoots, open mic sessions and up close and personal live performances, to keep new and existing customers happy and ensure they can practice social distancing if that makes them more comfortable.

Mr Augustine says the club was initially used by the community for weddings, christenings, funerals and provided a place for churches to hold functions on a Sunday – but things have drastically changed.

“We are not doing as many weddings because they have dried up in the community and now we are in a different world now and people’s courtship is different, and this has impacted the club,” he said.

According to the Greater London Authority, nearly 14,000 people go to a gig in a grassroots music venue in London every night and for Mr Augustine he is keen to attract as many of these customers to his club.

He told The Voice, over the last 32 years he has seen dramatic redevelopment to the local Kingsland area of Dalston.

He said: “It was slowly gentrified over the last 15 years, with the empty garages near the club converted into apartment buildings and this had a knock-on effect with things like noise levels.

“When I first opened Visions it was deemed a prime trading area and now it is a residential area, and all the clubs in the area have closed down for one reason or another.”

Mr Augustine says it is important for club owners to work with local authorities and the police to ensure their business fulfils its duty of care to its customers and subsequently stays open.

While looking back at the success of his venue, Mr Augustine says he is extremely proud that his club is still operating after the pandemic and that it is an integral part of the community that provided many of today’s top DJs with opportunities. 

The night time economy is very lucrative, according to figures from the Greater London Authority, London’s grassroots venues bring in £92m to the economy every year. 

But for some black nightclub owners in Hackney, they say stricter rules around late-night trade, has led to some clubs failing to secure late night licenses to cater to their core black audiences and has ultimately led to closures. 

Keith McIntosh, from Hackney, east London, was the owner of Silent Whispers Nightclub in Homerton for 10 years, but surrendered his license after his club was targeted in a robbery.

Speaking exclusively to The Voice, he said: “When we first opened up it was training centre providing sound engineering training for unemployed people in the community.

“But in 2000, I opened up another space in the building and made it the club Silent Whispers. 

“We got a late-night license, which is the best license ,and could stay open until 6 am. We brought a lot of the Jamaican reggae artists to perform in the club like The Mighty Diamonds, Big Youth and even Levi Roots.” 

Mr McIntosh says he left the club with people who he thought he could trust and while he went home to rest and it was targeted in a robbery. 

He believes he was left with no option but to surrender his license.

“I was feeling so down about what had happened, if one person objects to you having a license it goes to the committee and if the police are objecting to you having a license it makes things very difficult for you to retain that license,” he added. 

He told The Voice, he now spends his time between representing other black night club owners who are fighting to keep their licenses and recording music under the name Keith Mind Link.

He said: “I have been organising and holding a demonstrations in Stoke Newington about the unfair treatment we face as a black community and the next one will be in June.” 

Mr McIntosh believes more needs to be done to keep black night clubs open.

Hackney Council says licensing applications are treated on its own merit and all club owners are required to apply for a license, if they are selling alcohol, hot food or drink between 11pm and 5am

A Hackney Council spokesperson said: “We work closely with our late night businesses to support them to trade safely and legally. 

“It’s a legal requirement to apply for a late night licence. Applicants must demonstrate how they will not impact negatively on neighbours and the surrounding area. They must also demonstrate how their operation will promote public safety, prevent crime and disorder, public nuisance and protect children from harm. 

“Each application for a new licence is determined on its own merits, in line with the Licensing Act 2003, guidance issued by the Home Office and the Council’s Licensing Policy.”

The council told The Voice, areas like Shoreditch and Dalston have a high proportion of licensed premises and experience serious issues such as disorder and nuisance, and these parts of Hackney are considered a “special policy area.”

The council said in order for anyone to gain a license in these areas “businesses must demonstrate that the proposed activity and the operation of the premise will not add to the cumulative impact that is currently being experienced in these areas.” 

The council also said they do not record the ethnicity of applicants. 

Daytime Music festivals are the future 

Black entrepreneurs are responding to strict indoor venue capacity rules and other indoor-related regulations by creating new outdoor daytime celebrations, which allow the black community to experience “a sense of freedom” at outdoor festival-style events.

Wendy Cummins is the owner of the Radiate Windrush Festival, which has been celebrating Windrush history and the British Caribbean community since it started, four years ago. 

Speaking to The Voice, she said: “In 2018, I knew that we needed to be outdoors, I was ahead of the curve and I looked around and thought ‘what do we have’? 

“Other communities were able to have their outdoor celebrations and village fetes, and were enjoying, celebrating and expressing their cultures and for us, the only thing we have outdoors is Carnival. 

“For me, it wasn’t good enough. There were people doing things in the open landscape but not enough.” 

Ms Cummins told The Voice, owning and running an outdoor festival comes with many challenges and “getting access open space” is not as easy as people may think and putting up any kind of infrastructure only adds to the costs. 

With over 15 years’ experience in organising events, Ms Cummins says the “weaponisation of licensing” during the 1990s and 2000s caused a stagnation in the number of places where the black community can socialise, forcing many to return to home-based parties – which were prevalent in the 1960s and 1970s. 

She said: “There’s been a weaponisation about licensing for a very long time and a weaponisation of policing around our social culture and I started Radiate Festival because of the social marginalisation of our community because we need to be outdoors too.”

Ms Cummins said the pandemic put all event organisers under the same restrictions and regulations, which prompted innovation across the sector and ultimately birthed a renewed demand for “daytime brunch culture.”

Her two-day festival takes place in June and visitors can experience a range of music, art, fashion, hair, dance, and food all celebrating different black communities in the UK. 

Ms Cummins believes outdoor daytime festivals are the future of black socialisation in the UK and urged those entering the sector to think about “land ownership and longevity” to ensure the black community can have “safe spaces” not just for today, but also for the future. 

Party like it’s your birthday 

Birthday parties and Christenings have always been an essential part of black British life. 

But experts believe these types of private parties are becoming more popular because there are no age restrictions and don’t require ID and therefore the entire family can now celebrate together – creating special intergenerational gatherings – which can’t be recreated at nightclubs.

Natasha Lynch, is the founder of N-tertain Events and an event planner, from Shepherd’s Bush, west London.  

She told The Voice, the black community is spending more money on parties because it is a celebration the whole family can enjoy.

She said: “Our community is definitely spending more on parties because they are catering for different age groups at one party, so they want something for everyone.

“We want more décor, we are requesting things like popcorn and hot dog machines and before these would only be used at funfairs.” 

Ms Lynch said she has witnessed a “cultural shift” in the communities attitudes towards funerals and Halloween.

She said: “My bookings for funerals are becoming more child-friendly too with people choosing to include balloon displays and candy floss machines. 

“There has definitely been a cultural shift in how we are doing funerals, they are much more happy now and we are getting requests for the deceased person’s name to be put in lights and they want the entire hall decorated.

“Funerals are no longer what they were 10 years ago, they are not even being called funerals anymore but are referred to as celebration of life, which I think is great,” she said.

“Halloween is becoming more acceptable in our community because people are seeing through social media, with black Americans, you don’t just have to dress up as a witch or a devil, but you can dress up as your favourite celebrity and pay tribute to them, I’m seeing a lot more celebrity themed Halloween parties in our community here,” she added. 

Ms Lynch believes social media is also driving the demand for parties to “look great so pictures and videos can be shared online.”

According to Ms Lynch, other cultures are also influencing how the black British community celebrates life events in the UK.

She said: “American culture has influenced so much of how we celebrate things in the UK, I am doing more baby showers and gender reveal parties and these are not traditionally our celebrations. 

“A lot of parents who are on their third or fourth baby are opting to have a baby shower now because it is available and it wasn’t something they could do when they had their first or second baby.”

While so much of how we socialise is changing, Ms Lynch told The Voice, that she is getting more and more requests for traditional Caribbean games like dominoes, cards and Ludi boards to be included in the parties she organises. 

She added: “It is so nice to see our traditional culture being included in these modern parties, and because families of all ages are now partying together, the elders are teaching the younger generation to play things like dominoes and Ludi, which is helping to keep our culture alive.”

Music Festivals Abroad 

Securing visas for some black artists to perform in Britain can still come up against some problems, but leading promoters are now putting on concerts in the Caribbean, Europe or Africa and marketing packages to British black music lovers, to get around the issue. 

The Voice, spoke to one concert promoter, who didn’t want to be named who said: “There are some big superstars who can’t get a visa to come to England, so what we are doing now is booking them in their home country or in places like Europe, and selling the concert to British music fans, who are desperate to see them but can’t. 

“It is working very well, the music is very powerful and people are willing to travel across the world to hear it.” 

This concept has been happening for decades, as every year black Brits head to Jamaica to experience authentic reggae concerts such as Reggae Sumfest in July or Rebel Salute in January. 

Ghana is also becoming an increasingly popular travel destination for black Brits during the month of December because of its series of colourful events showcasing West African music and culture. 

Over the last ten years several oversees music concerts have proven to be a big hit with black Brits. 

Afro Nation is the fast-growing music festival that has expanded in recent years with events taking place in Portugal, Ghana and Puerto Rico, with each event attracting thousands of festival goers from the UK. 

This year, Jamaica’s biggest dancehall party Dream Wknd is heading to Malta, Europe, and it has already become one of the most talked about events on social media among young black British music lovers. 

Founded by Grammy-winning reggae artist Damian Marley, the Welcome to Jamrock Reggae Cruise, is proving to be a calendar highlight for reggae music fans in the UK, based on online reviews. 

The six-day five-night chartered cruise is now in its ninth year and is a reggae musical extravaganza  that encapsulate a Caribbean cruise experience along with live performances from Reggae’s biggest stars.

History of Black nightlife 

Britain’s black communities have always found a way to socialise.

During the 1950s and 60s, ‘Blues Parties’ were popular house parties started by the West Indian community, who often faced racial discrimination and segregation from mainstream pubs and clubs. 

These parties allowed the community to hear new music from the Caribbean and authentically indulge in the culture many had left behind. 

These parties provided more than a chance to shake a leg, they provided safety, security and sense of unity.

When black nightclubs eventually opened many were forced to close due to unfair police targeting and harassment. 

Nightclubs in Britain have steadily declined since 2005, when the government granted pubs and bars the right to serve alcohol after 11pm. 

In 2022, there are many black nightclubs still open across the UK, and they deserve our support in order for us to grow as community.