Celebrating its 10 year anniversary in 2025, the Horizons project is a long-running scheme to support up-and-coming Welsh artists with big things on their, well, horizons.
Since launching just over a decade ago, the project, which was created as a partnership between BBC Cymru Wales and the Arts Council of Wales, has provided direct support to over 450 musicians, and has marked its tenth anniversary by divvying up an eye-catching £60,000 Launchpad Fund to 34 emerging artists and music labels across Wales.
Artists chosen to benefit from the fund include rock band Bau Cat, who have lit up stages at both Glastonbury and Green Man festival in recent years, electro-pop artist LOYD, who dropped his debut solo album, Future Femme, in 2022, and genre-splicing singer Llinos Emanuel, who has previously lent her voice to established artists like Jacob Collier, Tom Odell, and Paris Paloma. A handful of music labels have also benefited from the fund, such as UNTRO in Wrexham, which aids new Welsh artists with the process of recording their debut single.
The money from the grant provides a major boost in helping emerging musicians to further develop their careers, with this year’s chosen artists using the awarded funds for things like booking studio time, creating music videos, producing albums and even financing tours.
Speaking about this year’s Launchpad Fund, Bethan Elfyn, Project Manager with Horizons, said, ‘After celebrating a decade of Horizons recently, it’s wonderful to start this new year celebrating and discovering a whole host of new talent.’
‘It feels like an incredibly exciting time for music in Wales and we’re delighted to be able to support this group of artists this year in a practical, tangible way,’ she added.
Other artists who have received part of the 2025 fund include, LUVLY, a multi-instrumentalist blending Afrocentric rhythms with contemporary beats; Monet, an experimental post-punk quartet; Brynrefail-based singer-songwriter Buddug; and Korrupted, a leading figure in Wrexham’s rap community.
See the full list of the 34 artists and labels benefiting from this year’s Launchpad Fund, or uncover more Welsh bands and singers tipped for a big year in 2025.
For more information about the support on offer for musical artists in Wales, head to the Creative Wales homepage.