London Licensing Hits Black and South Asian Music Hardest, Report Finds

Black and South Asian music nights in London are cancelled or blocked from permits more often, a two-year REMEL report led by Black Lives in Music found on 14 October 2026. Commissioned by the mayor's office, it says Afrobeats, drill and dancehall are routinely classed as 'high risk' without credible evidence, while indie, pop and rock face far less scrutiny.