Sound Waves: Celebrating Newham’s Musical Heritage
Sound Waves: Music in Newham celebrates six decades of the borough’s rich and diverse musical heritage. From youth clubs and sound systems to pubs, nightclubs and community radio, the project explores how music has shaped local identity and community life across Newham.
Developed by Rendezvous Projects CIC in partnership with Newham Music, Sound Waves brings together stories, images, recordings and memories from residents past and present. The project shines a light on underrepresented communities and historic venues that helped define Newham’s sound.
Touring Exhibitions
A series of free pop-up exhibitions across Newham’s libraries share highlights from the project through photographs, films, sound recordings and artefacts from local collections. Each includes listening posts and community stories, inviting visitors to explore Newham’s musical history and contribute their own memories.
- Beckton Globe Library: 1 November – 13 December 2025
- Stratford Library: 5 – 26 November 2025
- Plaistow Library: 10 – 26 November 2025
Through exhibitions, walking tours, digital maps, and workshops with schools and community groups, Sound Waves connects generations — preserving the borough’s musical history and inspiring the next wave of creativity.
Publication
A 76-page full-colour publication exploring six decades of music venues and community in Newham. Featuring photographs, oral history extracts and archive material, the book traces how local spaces shaped the borough’s rich musical history. Designed by Claire Mason, Flush Left and printed at Angel Press.
Contributors
The Sound Waves oral history project features interviews with a wide range of musicians, promoters, producers, and community members connected to Newham’s music scene, including Abdul Hakim, Alex Oma-Pius, Bronwen Eldridge, Carol Grimes, Carys Payne, Catherine Ho, Chris Ayuli, Cillius Victor, Colin Stoddart, Debris Stevenson, Deni Francis, Dennis Lewis, DJ Pogo, Felix Joseph, George Gargan, Greg Caballero, Haji Ameer Khan, Heddi Felice, Ian MacKaye, Jack Singh Sanhu, James Pearson-Howes, Jasdeep Singh Bamrah, John Morris, John Riches, John Withers, Julie Barker, Karen Clarke, Ken Sting, Kevin Cockerell, Kim Chinery, Kuba Novak, Lasha Zorzholiani, Lord Kimo, Maggie Tambala, Mark Norton, Matt Johnson, MC Roachee, Michael G. Spafford, Neil Charles, Nigel Power, PalloJeer, Pamela McCormick, Parminder Singh Gill, Paul Nelson, Paul Romane, Preshus, Pritam Singh Bamrah, Prithpal Singh, Quinton Scott, Rob May, Robbie Watson, Rocky Boss, Roger Huddle, Rudy Tambala, Sharon Carew, Sharon Fell, Sonia Mehta, Sree Sreedharan, Steve Fisher, Swaroop Menon, Taari Sian, Tim Plant, Unmesh Desai, Vaida Narkeviciute, Vinod Kumar Sukumaran, and Zillah Minx.
Project Team & Volunteers
This project was inspired by two Newham residents, John Riches and Roy Thomas, and builds on our previous work in the borough, including Crate Digging: The Influence of De Underground Records (2021) and All Roads Lead to Bentley’s (2023). It has been led by Katherine Green and Lucy Harrison, working with a core team of Jan Cullen, Rose de Larrabeiti and Adam Laurence, with Vicky Sung and Farzana Iqbal. They have been supported by an incredible group of creatives, including Sylvie Belbouab, Emma Crouch, David Djukic, Lorna Lewis, Claire Mason, Alis Templeton, Thi Phuong Mai Vu and Rosie Strickland.
We are also indebted to a remarkable group of volunteers and supporters, whose time, energy and enthusiasm have shaped the project: Nikou Alemi, Olivia Benjamin, Katie Blake, Áine Devaney, Naz Hamdi, Rose-Anna Hyde, Josee Carelle Konan, Aeida X Logan, Etta Levi Smythe, Keith Martin, Hugo Mendez, Elisa Miglionico, Max Nichol, Nina O’Reilly, Rob Parton, Nathaniel Pearn, William Rose, Chanelle Scantlebury, Grace Theokritoff, Sam Toone, Isis Were and Aaron Williams. Particular thanks go to Jack Burnett, Ed Caughlin, Tallulah Griffith, Ife Okwudili, Taibah Shah Richardson and Zara Shaw, who went above and beyond in their dedication to the project.
Using the site
Explore the map
Explore Newham’s musical heritage through our interactive map. Each point on the map marks a place of musical significance — from clubs and pubs to studios and community spaces. Click on a location to discover photos, stories, films and sound clips linked to that site. You can also scan QR codes found around Newham to go straight to the matching page, or browse the full list of venues and themes to explore the borough’s music history in your own way.
About Rendezvous Projects
Rendezvous Projects is an artist-run Community Interest Company that explores social and cultural histories of places and communities through creative and ambitious projects. Our work presents stories in new and inviting ways, to establish narratives that may have been forgotten, underrepresented or ignored.
Newham Music
Newham Music is Newham’s award-winning music hub, providing high-quality music education and opportunities for over 15,000 young people. As part of Sound Waves, we partnered with them to deliver heritage-inspired songwriting workshops in local schools, culminating in a performance at Stratford Town Hall on 2 July 2025.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund
Sound Waves: Music in Newham was made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players.
About The National Lottery Heritage Fund
The National Lottery Heritage Fund is the largest funder for the UK’s heritage. Using money raised by National Lottery players we support projects that connect people and communities to heritage. Our vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future. From historic buildings, our industrial legacy and the natural environment, to collections, traditions, stories and more. Heritage can be anything from the past that people value and want to pass on to future generations. We believe in the power of heritage to ignite the imagination, offer joy and inspiration, and to build pride in place and connection to the past.