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Camden is one of London’s key cultural hotspots. But NME’s not here for the iconic market, the street food, or the day drinking. Instead, we’re at Roundhouse, which has hosted the free music festival Limitless Live since its inception.
The brainchild of Tolu Farinto, who founded Limitless in 2021, the festival is in its third year and the 2024 lineup boasts headliner Stefflon Don, as well as Jords and BackRoad Gee. Past artists to feature have included six-time BRIT Award winner Raye, as well as Krept & Konan, Unknown T, and Ms Banks. There’s serious talent on show here, year in and year out.
So, it’s here that NME meets Farinto – who describes the festival as the “intersection between brands, entertainment, and culture change,” and invites us backstage for a chat.
He tells NME that Limitless came about because brands, like ticketing marketplace viagogo and Warner Music Group, wanted to connect with under-represented young people. “I knew that if I created something grounded in music, it would want to attract brands and organisations because music is amazing,” he explains.
“It will attract under-represented young people, and through that, I can connect them, give them an incredible experience, and signpost them into opportunities available within those organisations.”
A little over a fifth of people working in music identify as Black, Asian, or from an ethnically diverse background, according to the UK Music Diversity Report in 2022, a slight decrease from 2020. Meanwhile, in 2021, 86% of Black musicians and industry professionals said they faced barriers to progression in their careers.
Given the industry’s bias towards the capital, it can be difficult for young people outside of London to get involved with music, too. As a result, eager attendees, brought to Limitless Live in minibuses from cities like Manchester and Liverpool; tickets don’t go on general sale but instead are distributed through Limitless’ charity and community partners.
Farinto himself describes the event as a way for Limitless’ partners who work with young people to keep them engaged and off the street or involved in “serious youth violence.”
Jords tells NME shortly before his set that he wishes there was a project like this one around when he was younger to give him the opportunity to see his favourite artists live. The singer, who himself co-founded Pickni Uniform to support young people and provide them with free school uniforms, explains that his first love was football, but he picked music up at 16.
For BackRoad Gee, the artists he grew up listening to – the “big homies” – have had a huge influence on his present career, and he describes himself as being “lost for words” at getting the chance to work with people like Jay-Z and Burna Boy in recent years.
Farinto stresses the importance of removing the barriers and costs to help young people get into live music, and by doing so, he’s helping to inspire the next generation of artists and the people around them. And the reception Limitless Live has received over the last couple of years? “It’s been incredible,” he says. “Oh, incredible.”
But Limitless Live is just one part of a wider project. Farinto offers 12-month internships, too, paying £25,000 per annum. This scheme is currently in its second year, and 75% of the interns from the first year of the programme have gone on to become permanently employed.
Farinto has ambitious plans, including potentially branching out into holding events in other major cities, but he exudes the sort of understated confidence which makes you believe that he could make Limitless into whatever he wants it to be. “Sneakily, I want to see how big I can make it,” he says. “I think maybe a bigger London show, as well. How big? I’ll keep my cards close to my chest.”
