Introducing The Birmingham Music Museum

I have lived in Birmingham my whole life, and like a lot of people who call this city home, I have seen how much music is part of Birmingham’s identity. I’ve always been interested in people and their stories, and I think that is a big part of why the idea of a Birmingham Music Museum has stayed with me. Music has a way of connecting people. It can take you back to a particular time, a particular place, or a particular person, and sometimes a song can bring back a memory that you haven’t thought about for years.

Birmingham has an incredible musical history, but I don’t think we always recognise just how much this city has contributed. When people talk about Birmingham and music, names such as Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, Duran Duran and UB40 might immediately come to mind, but there is so much more to the story than the names we already know. There are the clubs, the pubs, the record shops, the promoters, the DJs, the musicians, the fans, the community groups and the people who were simply there. There are stories from the streets and neighbourhoods of Birmingham that may never have been written down.

That is what the Birmingham Music Museum is about. It is about finding those stories, bringing them together and making sure they are not forgotten.

We are starting with an online museum. The idea is to create a place where people can come and explore different parts of Birmingham’s musical history. There will be exhibitions looking at particular artists, genres, scenes and moments in time. These will bring together photographs, artefacts, stories, music and memories to give people a chance to explore the subject in more depth. Alongside the exhibitions, we want to build an archive of oral histories, photographs, memorabilia and personal stories, as well as collections that help people discover and listen to the music itself. We also want to look at the places that have played a part in Birmingham’s music history, from famous venues to places that have disappeared but still live on in people’s memories.

The museum will then move beyond the website. The first phase will lead into pop-up events around Birmingham. These will give us the opportunity to take some of the stories and material out into the city and, just as importantly, meet the people whose memories and experiences can help us build the museum. We want the physical events to be places where people can come along, look at things, listen to music, share memories and perhaps remember something they haven’t thought about for years.

I don’t want this to be a museum that simply tells people what Birmingham’s music history is. I want it to be a museum that listens to people as well.

There are so many stories that exist in people’s memories. Someone might have a photograph from a gig in the 1970s tucked away in a drawer. Someone else might have an old ticket, a poster or a record that has been part of their life for decades. Someone might remember the first time they saw a particular band, the club they used to go to every weekend, or the song that reminds them of growing up in Birmingham. These things might seem small, but put together they become part of the bigger story.

That is why we want people to be involved. If you have a story, a photograph, a piece of memorabilia, a recording or simply a memory of Birmingham’s music scene, we would love to hear from you. You don’t have to be a famous musician or have something rare. Sometimes the most interesting stories are the ordinary ones - the memories of the people who were there.

The museum is only just beginning, and I think that is part of what makes it exciting. We don’t have all the answers and we certainly don’t have all the stories. We are starting with what we know and then building from there, with the help of the people of Birmingham.

For me, this is about more than music. It is about people, places, memories and the history of a city that has given so much to music over the years.

The Birmingham Music Museum starts online, but the ambition is to take it out into the community and build something that people feel a part of. Something that celebrates the artists and the big moments, but also remembers the venues, the scenes, the fans and the everyday people who helped make Birmingham what it is.

This is the beginning. There is a lot of work to do, a lot of stories to find and, hopefully, a lot of people to meet along the way.

Welcome to the Birmingham Music Museum.