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Jersey used to be a party hotspot, but nightlife is fading... more venues are closing and young people are continuing to leave. But a bottom-up community of music lovers are fighting back – with house/techno events, a new festival... and a big call for action from the Government.
Tracing the decline of Jersey's once-vibrant clubbing scene, this feature – which first appeared in the May edition of Connect Magazine – explores the challenges faced by young promoters determined to revive the island's nightlife and push for legislative changes to support the industry.
“Jersey is the UK’s answer to Ibiza” isn’t a phrase you would expect to hear from a young person out in the island on a Saturday night.
But it's exactly what a young woman shouted into the mic in 2000, as she was being interviewed by Rapture TV for a series called Trainspotters documenting the British Isles' top clubbing spots which later aired on ITV and Channel 4.
"You've got everything from jungle to house to garage," the clubber exclaimed, as hard house music thumps in the background, her face covered in paint and glitter, and feathers in her hair.
Pictured: “Jersey is the UK’s answer to Ibiza,” a raver at The Venue told Rapture TV.
"There is something for everyone every day of the week! I first came here five years ago and that's when I discovered dance music. I walked through the doors and went: 'This is the life I want.'"
Taken in a Beresford Street nightclub called The Venue, fondly remembered as Lords to the partygoers of the 1970s and 1980s and now known as ROJO, the footage of hoards of visiting and local ravers harks back to a time when Jersey was one of the UK's most popular destinations for partying abroad.
At that time, it had a diverse network of bustling clubs and venues – and, importantly, pints that only set you back £1.40 (or £1 on a special night).
Pictured: Michael Hooker speaks to Rapture TV in 2000 about the nightlife in Jersey during an event at The Venue called 'Out of This World.'
While the now-lost Warehouse, Barrio and Forum Wine Bar, and clubs like The Venue, Maddisons, and Infinity were among Rapture TV's top picks, Jersey also boasted a bottom-up network of underground raves at venues like Inn on the Park, Elizabeth Castle and Fort Regent.
But the scene has faced a gradual decline over the years, and today only a handful of clubs remain: The Watersplash, Havana, The Royal Yacht, and Vittoria.
Progeny of The Venue, ROJO, is the latest casualty.
Announcing its closure this summer, owner JP Anquetil pointed to dwindling audiences, rising costs, and swathes of red tape successive policymakers have been too slow to find the scissors for. "Basically everything is stacked against having a vibrant nighttime industry," he lamented.
Pictured: Rojo nightclub is set to close this summer, with the owner claiming that "basically everything is stacked against having a vibrant nighttime industry" in Jersey.
I wonder what the glitter-covered clubber would say if you told her that the very venue she was standing in would be set to face such a tragic end just 24 years later? (Not to mention that a draught beer can be more than £6.)
With (in)famous castle and bunker parties, at least there was an alternative back in the day, but the underground scene now appears to be buried.
The overall effect of this on youth culture has been chilling. Many, frustrated with the lack of space for socialising and self-expression, have been driven away to seek experiences elsewhere – and it seems they're staying there.
Gut-punching new figures released last year showed that Jersey saw a net loss of around 2,000 Jersey-born or qualified people of working age in 2021 and 2022.
Though the drivers of the 'Bean Drain' are yet to be formally studied, anecdotal reports broadly fall into two camps: cost-of-living and a feeling that there isn't enough 'life' in the island outside of work, of the day or night variety.
It's a shift observed by Michael Hooker, who left his bank job to run The Venue in the 1990s and 2000s.
Now an Arizona-based DJ and music producer, he credits his time in Jersey booking artists and organising events for helping him learn the keys to industry success, but realises the island is a very different place now, as is the industry on the whole, facing a raft of challenges that have steadily increased since the pandemic.
Pictured: Music producer and record label founder Michael Hooker (45) has said that growing up in Jersey introduced him to electronic music and shaped the artist he is today.
A third of clubs in the UK have closed since the covid outbreak, with pubs and cubs grappling with a 40% increase in operating costs in this time.
According to The Night Time Industries Association, the industry's contribution to UK GDP has decreased by £12.8 billion from 2019 to 2021, while nightclub visits for electronic music saw a 9% decrease in attendance last year when compared with 2022.
In Jersey, organisers have also seen declining attendance – soaring inflation has left islanders more choosy with how they spend their time and money.
The picture might seem bleak, but two islanders in their late 20s are determined to be part of the fightback.
Francisco Brazao — who goes by his DJ name of Cisco — and Sam Tumkaew want to start a homegrown "movement" to breathe new life into the music scene – both by creating a community and pushing for nightlife-friendly legislative changes.
Pictured: The Loft team, Francisco Brazao and Sam Tumkaew. (Rob Currie)
In 2021, they founded a company called The Loft to organise and promote a variety of house and techno music events.
They're now three years in, with a number of successful events under their belts, but the journey hasn't been without its challenges.
For starters, overheads for putting on an event are huge – much greater than in the decades before.
"Artists fees have increased a lot. This is because their fees have to cover tax, managers' fees, agents' fees and even on occasion tour managers, travel and accommodation," Michael Hooker explains. "Most artists only walk away with 30% of the actual fee they were paid."
Pictured: Mr Hooker grew up in St Lawrence and attended Victoria College.
So, how much is it to stage a club night on the island, where event-producers of all genres describe there being a 'Jersey Premium'?
"It isn't a fixed price and depends on the artist we book and the sound systems and lighting equipment we use, but booking an event at ROJOs is around £4,000 to £6,000, while the Watersplash can be anything between £5,000 to £12,000," says Cisco.
It means that getting the right volume of people through the door is crucial.
"The difficulty here is that you are limited in the size of your potential audience as only so many people live here and to fill a club regularly can be a challenge," says Sam.
He explained that the only places open to house and techno nights were often ROJO nightclub, Havana or the Watersplash, but that the young crowd can "get bored of the same venues".
"There are only so many times you can do an event in the same location," Sam adds.
Pictured: Jersey used to be a party hotspot, but nightlife is fading...
To help overcome these challenges, Sam and Cisco want to secure sponsorship to invest in improved production equipment while putting on "bigger and better" events both at home and in the UK, with a line-up of events already scheduled for the year.
As part of their grand plan, the duo is organising an annual multi-genre festival that will launch this summer.
Called Mono, it will feature house, disco, techno, garage, and drum and bass music, and aims to draw in fans of different ages and demographics.
"Mono in music means 'one', all of us coming together to make a change in the music scene in Jersey by bringing together international artists and local talent," Sam says.
And, by expanding beyond Jersey and organising events under The Loft brand in cities like Liverpool and Leeds, the pair hope to put their name on Britain's musical map and grow their business, while also attracting more visitors to the island.
Pictured: Over the years, Jersey’s nightlife scene has declined due to rising costs, dwindling audiences, and outdated laws.
"It became evident early on that to expand our reach we needed to venture into new markets.
"We saw that many young DJs on our roster went to University at Liverpool or Leeds.
"We wanted to earn the trust and support of these communities in order to entice them to visit Jersey for our events in the future."
In February, they collaborated with a Liverpool-based events company to host their first event at a venue called WAV Liverpool.
"It went on to be one of the highlight events during February in Liverpool and we were one of the very few promoters to have successfully put on a two-room show at the club," Sam recalls.
It's more than just lofty ambitions, confidence and courage that have secured success so far for the Loft boys – the pair have carefully and precisely built their brand.
Michael Hooker says he has noticed an industry-wide increase in "gatekeeping", where established organisers are considered less risky and are more trusted to put on events – while new faces are often turned away.
Without a solid and longstanding reputation, having a brand that is able to punch through swipe-driven social media and secure both the trust of venues and attention of punters is vital.
"Social media has been the most significant change in the industry and event promotion since the 1990s when organisers replied on posters to advertise events," Michael says.
Pictured: Francisco Brazao (Cisco) and Sam Tumkaew founded The Loft in 2021 to revive the music scene.
"You are able to reach more people and have the added bonus of being able to link the artist and their music to the advertising. In one click, people can be connected to who is playing and be able to hear their sound."
Helping The Loft with their brand identity and strategy is 24-year-old graphic designer Kieran Gaskell.
"In today's world, it's only getting harder and harder to stand out, and with the decline of the event industry on the island, more and more people are looking at much larger, UK-based, event brands like Warehouse Project or Worried About Henry for a night out," says Kieran.
Pictured: Graphic designer Kieran Gaskell.
The Warehouse Project hosts seasonal club nights in Manchester between September and January, coinciding with peak times in the student calendar, while Worried About Henry organises events featuring multi-genre bass line-ups across the UK and has been at the forefront of the drum and bass scene for the last decade.
"When you look at these brands' social media and advertising campaigns, it's clear that they also understand the importance of brand strategy... To compete with the big fishes with dedicated social media and branding teams, it's essential to up your standards – long gone are the days of just sticking up a poster around town," Kieran adds.
Pictured: a poster advertising a 'night of live music’ at The Venue on Beresford Street in 1998. (Courtesy of Jersey Heritage)
Michael Hooker put it another way: "It's like the McDonald's effect – you know what you are expecting, and you would be shocked if they didn't have a Big Mac."
The Loft's own brand attack was two-pronged: a fresh look and focus on video content on their social feeds.
The result was a logo of two connecting shapes representing the coming together of music fans, and a colour scheme of dark shades mixed with vivid hues of blue – the primary lighting colours featured in their events.
Pictured: The Loft team of DJs.
They have been filming live shows at different events across the island and posted online, as well as giving aspiring DJs the opportunity to showcase their skills and gain recognition through recorded mixes from Cisco's home studio, which are also shared with their following.
It's a neat local twist on the style of the 'Boiler Room' – an online platform that streams live performances and small-capacity, invite-only DJ sets around the world – which has been credited for a fresh wave of interest in DJ culture, helping boost producers like Fred Again to stardom.
Pictured: Cisco and Sam are calling for changes to Jersey's outdated 1974 licensing laws. (Rob Currie)
The format of the Boiler Room's content aims to create an immersive and first-person experience of live music for the viewer – something The Loft has aimed to replicate.
Since the brand revamp last year, The Loft's social media engagement and following have grown massively, and all local events have sold out. They've also bagged larger international acts, and been able to expand their UK presence.
But building a successful business, which they hope one day might expand to a full record label and clothing brand, is just one part of Cisco and Sam's vision.
Not only do they want to drive change from the bottom-up by engaging audiences and supporting local DJ and producer talent, they are also pushing for changes to the legal environment to really bring the beat back to the island's nightlife.
Pictured: The Venue’s former iteration, Lords. (JEP)
Now half-a-century-old, the law governing how nighttime venues operates carries numerous restrictions on operating hours and drinks offers.
Sam and Cisco have joined longstanding calls from pub and nightclub owners in urging the government to cut the prohibition on alcohol promotions like 2-for-1 deals and happy hours.
They believe this will incentivise locals to support the local nightlife industry, while also preventing young islanders from binge pre-drinking before they go out.
Jersey law also sets limits on operating hours for pubs, which must close at 23:00, and for clubs, which must close at 02:00.
This includes the infamous 'no dancing' law on Good Friday when nightclubs are prohibited from playing music or allowing people to dance.
Pictured: The Loft said they are keen to collaborate with other promoters to push Jersey's nightlife scene forward.
Michael agreed that such red tape was stifling business.
"I feel the laws with drinks promotions are very outdated. The cost of living is high and people can't justify going out. It's an incentive for people to want to go out and support local businesses if they could offer happy hour or drinks specials."
Such comments have been made by numerous hospitality business owners for more than a decade, but progress in making changes has been glacial.
A Licensing Law consultation took place in 2009, resulting in the formation of a Shadow Alcohol Licensing Policy Group in 2012. Two years later, a strategy was published recommending a new law, then a slight tweak made in 2016, before (finally!) some white paper emerged in 2017.
Pictured: The Venue’s former iteration, Lords, in the 1970s and 1980s. (JEP)
Controversially for some, that draft included a recommendation that the current Jurat-populated Licensing Bench – the deciders in all licensing matters – be replaced by a 'Licensing Authority' composed of seven States Members and three lay people.
However, that proposal ended up getting withdrawn on the basis that "not enough work had been done to scrutinise the legislation" and that stakeholders were, apparently, "less than unanimous".
Having pledged to cut down as many barriers to business as possible during his term, current Economic Development Minister Kirsten Morel has said he will get the major barrier of the 1974 law finally sorted – but not before carrying out another review. So, any change, it seems, is unlikely to be seen until shortly before the next election in 2026.
They might not make Jersey the British 'Ibiza' again overnight, but such changes could provide a significant "boost" to tourism, Michael Hooker argues.
Pictured: Replacing or updating the 1974 law with a new set of rules and regulations governing how the drinks trade is run, and policed, has been a long-running saga.
"It's only a short flight from the UK and it would be incredible to have people flying over for concerts and events," he said.
Thinking locally, while The Loft pair admit they are nervous about the exodus of young people from the island, they are hopeful that their efforts will help to retain some.
"More people would think about staying if there are things for people to do," Sam says.
But they know they can't do it alone. While the industry is traditionally competitive, they say they are looking forward to collaborating and working together with other promoters to ensure everyone in the nightlife industry can win.
"We can't change the scene alone. It is about everyone coming together to push the scene forward."
A ten-minute clip of ravers enjoying Beresford Street's The Venue in 2000 was aired on ITV and Channel 4.
Video: Footage from 2000 captured the island's vibrant nightlife with diverse clubs and affordable drinks.
It was produced by Rapture TV, a digital satellite service that combines electronic dance music and extreme sports programming, as part of its 'Trainspotters' series.
This article first appeared in Connect Magazine, which you can read in full below...
FOCUS: Another round? Hopes that promises to update Jersey's alcohol law won't run dry
Gov pledges to update "anachronistic" public events law
Music promoter pushes for Good Friday 'no dancing' law change
Could Jersey's Good Friday dancing ban finally be scrapped?
Rojo set to close its doors early next year
ARTIST PROFILE: Jersey-born music producer, DJ and record label founder
FOCUS: DJs with Loft-y ambitions to put a stamp on Jersey nightlife
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