What is Oh Yeah?
Oh Yeah is a music centre in Belfast. The address is 15-21 Gordon Street, a former warehouse, located in the Cathedral Quarter. It measures 14 500 square feet over three floors. The building was vacated by the Outlet recording and record distribution company in 2004.Oh Yeah has taken out a 20 year lease on the building.
Oh Yeah is providing a physical location where various strands of the music industry can grow and interact. These include performance, rehearsals, recording, song writing, networking, PR, marketing, management, graphic design, music media skills, etc. The aim is to give long-term and real-time advice plus office space to emerging music projects.
The phone number is: +44 (0)2890 310 845 E-mail: info@ohyeahbelfast.com
What are the plans for the Oh Yeah Music Centre?
The ground floor will house a café, a music wall of fame, some retail units and performance space. The aim is to present all-ages events whenever possible.
Upstairs, there will be office units, exhibition and rehearsal space and tuition areas. Hire of this space will be important in generating revenue to finance Oh Yeah's training and outreach programmes.
Who is behind Oh Yeah?
The project came together on December 29, 2005. Gary Lightbody from Snow Patrol met with some interested parties in Belfast and they resolved to try and create a dedicated music centre in Belfast. The original models were the Nerve Centre in Derry and the Temple Bar Music Centre in Dublin.
In time, this developed into a particular model to meet the needs of the time and the place. The board of Oh Yeah comprises of: Gary Lightbody, Stuart Bailie, David Matchett, Martin Neill, John D'Arcy, Lisa McIlherron and Mike Edgar.
How is Oh Yeah constituted?
Oh Yeah is a not-for-profit company, limited by guarantee, with charitable aims. It is currently seeking charitable status.
How is Oh Yeah financed?
Oh Yeah is a social enterprise. A social enterprise is a business with primarily social objectives. The surpluses are reinvested in the business or in the community, rather than being driven by the need to maximise profit for shareholders or owners.
Oh Yeah is currently financed by donations, plus income streams from use of the building. We will use the income provided by hire of office and the projected rehearsal space to finance our projects.
Such projects will involve outreach to young people who wouldn't traditionally use a service like Oh Yeah, plus training and mentoring musicians and showcasing their talent.
The project is seeking funding for capital costs to make the building safe and accessible, for example a disability lift, rewiring, heating, sundry building works.
For more social enterprise information, see: http://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/page.aspx?SP=1345
Is there a recording studio?
The recording studio is a separate operation. The space has been rented out from Oh Yeah and the owners work independently from the music centre. For more information, see http://www.myspace.com/starttogetherstudio
Is there office space to let?
We are trying to design a scheme that will connect new music businesses to a structured incubation programme. We hope to announce details of this in the first half of 2008.
Are there any jobs going at Oh Yeah?
There are no salaried positions at Oh Yeah just now. The Oh Yeah project is entirely driven by volunteers. This may change, and interested parties should check the website at regular intervals and register for the newsletter.
How do I get involved?
Please register for the Oh Yeah newsletter on the homepage of this website. When there is a need for volunteers, we will ask for help in this way. Your interest is greatly appreciated.
