New Music From Tees Valley Talents Sparked With Help of Momentum Funding

Talented musicians making waves at home and abroad are primed to make new recordings thanks to opportunities unlocked by fresh grant funding.

Darlington-based Robyn Errico and Teesside duo Smith & Liddle are benefitting from four figure boosts from the pioneering PPL Momentum Music Fund.

Backed by the Combined Authority, Generator, Sonic Futures and the UK Government, the fund supports artists who have reached a crucial tipping point, have a team already in place and are now ready to take the next step in their careers.

Singer-songwriter Robyn Errico received £4,700 from the PPL Momentum Accelerator Fund.

“It’s been amazing,” she said.

“It’s expensive to record and promote – and it doesn’t make you much money back, especially when you’re at the stage I’m at.

“I was at a point where I couldn’t record anything else if I didn’t get funding, so this has been a lifeline.”

Robyn has previously received support from BBC Radio 6 Music and has been looking to raise her profile.

She explained how the new funding will allow her the breathing space to create new music.

Robyn added: “I’m trying to go full-time as a musician – which involves a lot of teaching and gigging for other people. While those things are great and are part of the lifestyle I like and have chosen, they don’t make loads of money to help save for my next album.

“This offers breathing space and allows you to carry on, keeps your finger on the pulse and, as the name suggests, keeps your momentum going.”

Robyn now has a busy festival season planned for 2026 and wants to secure more gigs outside of the North East.

She added: “It’s good to branch out – I’ve got my first gig in Liverpool this month. With this funding, the plan is to start recording an album.

“The provisional plan is to record another single in late Spring and really kick things off recording the album in late Summer, early autumn with the hope to release in 2027.

“Good things take time, and I’m really hoping to add new musicians to the sound.

“The funding is really going to help with that as you want to pay musicians for their skill and time.”

Retaining Quality

The fund provides grants of up to £5,000 to talented artists with a growing fanbase who are working to establish a music industry team.

The funding means Teesside folk duo Smith & Liddle – Billy Smith and Elizabeth Liddle – are now able to produce their second album on the back of their debut LP Songs For the Desert.

Elizabeth said: “We were awarded £5,000 – it’s amazing. We’re going to put it towards our next album – promoting it and marketing it, and this has really allowed to us focus on a lot of other things.

“We were having to put extra work in to be able to save up to record the next album.

“We’re writing a lot of new music but then had no time, or the money, to go in the studio – so this has really helped us.”

The pair have recently had a successful European Tour – selling out the Paradiso, in Amsterdam, on the back of a positive reception to their first album.

Elizabeth added: “We both loved the process of how we recorded that first album, and who we recorded it with. We’ve had some great features in magazines, too.

“With the songs we’re writing, we want to do it using the same process.

“Before we knew the funding was coming, we were worried we weren’t going to have the same quality as before.

“But with the funding, we’re able to keep the high standard in our recording – which is amazing.”

Billy said: “We got the best mixing engineer to mix and master the first album – and we worked extremely hard to pay for that.

“It’s mint to know we can use the same process again.”

The pair are set to travel to Nashville, Tennessee, in the coming weeks with a UK tour to come in May.

Our Creative Powerhouse

Funding has also been provided to Marketplace to write, record and release and promote singles across 2026, and Risco, for music videos and a national tour.

Additionally, PPL Momentum Accelerator support of up to £2,000 has also been offered to Grace Stubbings to strengthen her artistic practice, grow her community impact, and advance her role as an emerging voice in experimental sound and place-based creative education.

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “We want our local talent not just to succeed, but to truly thrive – building careers here and making waves right across the UK and beyond.

“We’ve got incredible musicians coming out of our towns who deserve the chance to record, tour and promote their work at the highest level.

“By backing funds like this, we’re helping ensure they can keep that momentum going, reach new audiences and show that world class music is being made right here in our region.”

Cllr Pamela Hargreaves, TVCA Cabinet Member for Creative Place and Leader of Hartlepool Borough Council, added: “Our creative people are one of our greatest strengths and it’s so important we continue to nurture and champion them.

“Support like this gives artists the confidence and practical backing to develop their craft, retain high production standards and expand their reach into new markets.

“When our musicians perform in Liverpool, Amsterdam or Nashville, they are flying the flag for the creative powerhouse that is the Tees Valley.”