Every term, overcoming the complexities of mental health, our participants support each other and develop themselves to the point of being able to deliver their own two-hour live show. The result is as spectacular as it is heart-warming.

Our End-of-Term Gig is an event that everyone in our community looks forward to. If you’re an office-bound member of staff, it serves as a timely reminder of why we do what we do. If you’re a friend or family member to someone engaged in one of our programmes, it shows you what Raw Material is all about. If you’re a funder or a supporter of Raw Material, it provides first-hand experience of our work and impact. If you’re a fan of live music and you’re looking for something local, it gives you exactly what you’re after. But, undoubtedly, our End of Term Gig is anticipated most by those members engaged in our music programmes. For them, it’s an opportunity to prove themselves beyond the programme sessions themselves, to experience the thrill of live performance, and to do something real with their music and their creativity.

As we await the completion of our ambitious Capital Development Project, we find ourselves out of a venue to host our termly showcase. That’s why our Winter End-of-Term Gig was held at Off The Cuff and why last Wednesday, Brixton House generously hosted us for our Spring showcase. It’s safe to say that Brixton House, with its multi-purpose theatres, retractable seating, state-of-the-art sound-system and luxurious reception area, brought a new level of sophistication to our End-of-Term gig (one which we expect to emulate once back at our renovated building in October). For our performing members, most of whom aspire to perform live in any capacity, this meant for an all the more special experience. Not only did they finally get the opportunity to perform their own compositions in public, but they got to do so in a setting usually reserved for some of the most talented and successful artists in the area.

If you’ve never been to a Raw Material End-of-Term Gig, imagine an atmosphere where everyone supports each other, where you can feel what it means to the artists to be onstage and where the musical variety is as diverse as the area of Brixton itself. The audience was treated to 5 acts over the course of 2 hours. First off, members of Raw’s Guitar Sessions programme performed 3 instrumental renditions of well-known pieces, before the stage was given to members of The Voice and the group performed a combination of solo and group performances of self-written songs. After that, we were treated to a beautiful performance of gospel by Brixton House’s own Community Choir before our more veteran musicians from the self-led project, Raw Vibration!, performed a selection of uplifting soul and reggae numbers. Finally, the young people of Co-Lab, closed the night with some edgy sounding hip-hop and R&B compositions. Every act was received with delight by our audience, and afterwards we were all treated to dinner in the reception of Brixton House.

It’s worth saying that the End-of-Gig is far from being the only marker of success when it comes to our members creative and personal development. For many, participation in Raw Material’s programmes is not so much about performing in public but more about building a sense of self and of self-worth and about exploring the joy of the creative process. Consequently, our End-of-Term Gig doesn’t just celebrate the achievements of our members who aspire to perform on stage; it celebrates every person who passes through our doors for having the courage to do so, and celebrates the cause that is self-improvement through creativity. If you’ve yet to experience our showcase for yourself, our next one will be in the second half of this year. We’d love to see you there!