“Despite significant barriers and challenges, British black music has broken through from the fringes and the underground to the mainstream over the past 25 years, regularly topping album charts and headlining major concerts and festivals.” BBM/BMC founder Kwaku.
What does it take to move a sound from the underground to the global stage? Find out on Thursday, October 30, 2025, as the Black Music Congress (BMC) forum returns to City University, now known as City St George’s University of London, for the free event, ‘British Black Music 2000–2025: What’s The Story?’.
Presented by BritishBlackMusic.com (BBM), this essential hybrid forum offers an evening of presentations, performances, and conversations examining the history, business, and creativity that’s shaped British black music over the last quarter-century. From the rise of grime to the explosion of Afrobeats and the enduring power of jazz, R&B, reggae and gospel, attendees will hear directly from the key industry figures and organisations that powered the movement.
Honouring the legacy of the late Debbie Dickinson, the former head of the university’s Cultural Industries Unit who supported the launch the forum in 2002, this event is a crucial moment for reflection and forward-looking discussion. Supported by the School of Communication & Creativity, City St George’s Student Union, the Office for Institutional Equity and Inclusion, it is part of the university’s African History Month ‘Colourful Voices Series’.
Whether you’re an artist, academic, fan, or cultural commentator, this is your chance to connect with the stories of challenges and triumphs that have put British black music on the mainstream radar.
Book your free in-person or online ticket now at BBM.eventbrite.com.
