Out of the Box 2026
Aware of the rich and diverse musical talent in the city, Hull City Council’s Out of the Box Special Commissions support diversity in the music made in Hull. This initiative is underpinned by a belief in the creative benefits which occur when artists from different genres collaborate.
Out of the Box commissions are a Hull City Council initiative to support musicians in Hull to collaborate across musical genres. The Out of the Box project was established in partnership with J-Night in 2023 and 2004 and is part of ongoing music development work for musicians in Hull. It builds on the success of Kickstart commissions of J-Night and Back to Ours in 2022.
The initiative is a partnership project, funded by Hull City Council commissioning fresh collaborative music making. Feedback confirms these opportunities to receive modest funding to facilitate new creative collaborations are valued by the music sector. Three new collaborative works were commissioned for Out of the Box 2026, with funding from Hull City Council, and will showcase as part of Hull Jazz Festival in November 2026 organised by Hull Music Service.
The transition of Hull Jazz Festival to Hull Music Service in 2026 sees a new partnership and a continuation of the commissioning element as part of Hull Jazz Festival 2026, with continued support from Hull City Council Arts Development.
From six applications received, three successful pairings were offered a modest £2,000 commission fee each as follows:
| Project Name | Name of lead applicant | Collaborators |
| Harbour of Unrest | Mahmud Ibrahim | Abidemi Peter Amosu & Avis Ushie |
| To Scream | Niall Thomas | Jenni Harrison & Eddi Pickard |
| Attunement | Jay Moy | Dave Gawthorpe & Matthew Smith |
Artists: Mahmud Ibrahim , Avis Ushie, Abidemi Peter Amosu
The journey:
Mahmud Ibrahim, as lead artist, explains some of the experiences of working on this ‘Out of the Box’ commission.
I met Avis at a party when she performed spoken word pieces she had kept written in her phone for a long time. Seeing her share something so personal for the first time really stayed with me, and when Harbour of Unrest came about, I felt her style of storytelling and emotional honesty would bring an important dimension to the project. I met Abidemi Sax through a recommendation from a member of the Hull Music Board. Abidemi’s experience as a saxophonist and his background across jazz, contemporary and African-influenced music made the collaboration particularly interesting.
What motivated us was the opportunity to step outside our usual creative spaces. Rather than simply putting rap, spoken word and saxophone beside each other, we wanted to discover what could happen when those different forms genuinely interacted and helped tell one story.
Our different backgrounds became one of the most important parts of the creative process. As a rap artist, I am used to thinking about structure, rhythm, lyrics and beats, but I had never created a piece alongside a spoken word artist or saxophonist before. Working with Avis and Abidemi encouraged me to think beyond the usual structure of a song and become more open to other forms of creative expression.
Spoken word brought a different approach to storytelling, emotion and the use of silence, while the saxophone introduced improvisation and the possibility of responding musically in the moment rather than everything being predetermined. Rap brought rhythm and structured lyricism into that environment.
Instead of creating three separate performances, we began thinking about how each discipline could respond to the others: where a saxophone could continue a thought after the words stopped, where spoken word could interrupt or reshape a rhythm, and where rap could provide structure before giving way to improvisation. It has pushed all of us to listen more closely, experiment and create outside our individual comfort zones.
For Harbour of Unrest, I approached the creative process differently from how I would usually write or produce music. Starting with a central idea: exploring identity, migration, belonging and the feeling of searching for stability in a constantly changing environment, using Hull’s history as a harbour city as inspiration. We developed a four-part structure: Arrival, Story, Crescendo and Release, with each section exploring a different emotion and allowing our individual styles to take the lead at different moments.
One of the biggest differences was learning to leave space in the music. As a rapper, I’m naturally drawn to filling rhythms with words, but this project challenged me to appreciate silence, spoken word and instrumental improvisation as equally important parts of the story. It also encouraged me to be more flexible with my writing. Instead of focusing only on how my lyrics sounded over a beat, I had to consider how they would interact with poetry and live saxophone, and how we could transition between those elements naturally.
Ultimately, the process has been about experimentation, listening and learning to give up some creative control. It has helped me see music less as something I need to build entirely around my own ideas and more as a shared experience where different perspectives can shape the final work.
One of the biggest surprises for me was watching Abidemi work with his saxophone and seeing how much emotion and expression he could bring into the music without using words. I have always appreciated live instruments, but experiencing his creative process up close gave me a completely different perspective on how music can communicate a story. What surprised me most was realising that the saxophone wasn’t just there to complement the rap or spoken word, it could tell its own part of the story. That discovery has opened my mind.
I would say the entire experience has been a creative breakthrough for me. This is the first time I have worked on a project that brings together rap, spoken word and live saxophone, so almost every stage of the process has introduced me to something new. I’ve always been comfortable creating music in my own way, but Harbour of Unrest has pushed me beyond what I’m familiar with. From experimenting with live instrumentation to learning how different creative styles can complement each other, I’ve discovered possibilities I hadn’t previously considered.
If there was one particular realisation, it was understanding that I don’t always have to approach music with a fixed structure or know exactly how everything will sound from the beginning. Sometimes, allowing room for experimentation, collaboration and spontaneity can lead to something even more interesting.
For me, the biggest breakthrough has been recognising how much more I can grow as an artist when I’m willing to step outside my comfort zone.
For me, the most important lesson was that creating something cohesive doesn’t mean everyone has to sound the same. Sometimes, it’s the differences that make the final piece more interesting, provided everyone is willing to listen, adapt and work towards a shared vision. I think this collaboration has helped me grow both musically and personally, especially because it pushed me into creative spaces I had never explored before.
Musically, I’ve become more open-minded about how I approach songwriting, production and performance. Working with spoken word and live saxophone has taught me to appreciate different forms of storytelling, the importance of leaving space in music, and how improvisation can bring something unexpected to a piece. It’s also made me more interested in incorporating live instruments into my future projects rather than relying entirely on digitally produced sounds.
Perhaps the biggest growth has been in my confidence to experiment. This experience has reminded me that I still have so much to discover as an artist, and that stepping outside my comfort zone is necessary if I want to keep evolving creatively.
One of the most interesting aspects of the project came from Abidemi introducing elements of the traditional Yoruba talking drum, an instrument known for reflecting the rhythms and tones of spoken language. As someone with Nigerian roots, I found this especially meaningful because it connected our cultural heritage with contemporary rap, spoken word and jazz. It tied naturally into the themes of identity, migration and belonging, and reminded me that cultural traditions can be reimagined and given new life through collaboration.
Whenever we had different opinions about a particular idea or direction, we tried not to dismiss anything immediately. Instead, we would experiment with the suggestions, listen to how they sounded and decide together whether they worked for the piece. Ultimately, we learned that disagreements don’t necessarily have to become conflicts, sometimes they lead to better ideas when everyone is willing to listen, experiment and find common ground.
One of the biggest opportunities this collaboration has created for me is the chance to connect with a wider network of musicians, creatives and organisations within Hull’s music scene. Through Harbour of Unrest, I’ve been able to build new relationships, explore different creative approaches and become more involved in the local music community. It has also encouraged me to think beyond my usual projects and consider collaborations with artists from different genres and backgrounds.
I see this as an important step in my development, not just as a musician, but also as a creative organiser and someone who wants to contribute to the growth of Hull’s music scene. I’m excited about the possibilities this could create for future performances, recordings, cross-genre collaborations and community-focused projects. I believe the relationships and experiences gained through this commission could lead to bigger opportunities, both within Hull and beyond.
Most importantly, it has reinforced my belief that there is so much creative potential in bringing people together, and I’m looking forward to building on these connections long after Harbour of Unrest. This experience has shown me how much creative potential exists when artists from different backgrounds come together and are willing to explore something unfamiliar.
Ultimately, I see Harbour of Unrest as the beginning of a new chapter in my creative journey, where I can continue bringing together different sounds, cultures and artistic disciplines to create something meaningful. I’m particularly excited about exploring more collaborations that connect contemporary music with African musical traditions, poetry and live performance, both in Hull and beyond.
I would encourage other musicians to approach collaborations with a willingness to learn rather than feeling like they always have to be the expert. Every artist brings something different to the table, whether it’s their musical background, cultural influences, personal experiences or creative approach. Sometimes, the most valuable thing you can do is listen and allow yourself to see things from another perspective. It’s also important to create room for experimentation.
Most importantly, don’t let the fear of the unknown stop you from creating. Before Harbour of Unrest, I had never worked on a project quite like this, but saying yes to the opportunity has already changed how I think about music and collaboration.
You don’t have to know exactly how something will turn out before you begin. Sometimes, you just have to be willing to explore the possibilities.
The resultant work:
A cross-genre live performance blending rap, spoken word and contemporary jazz improvisation. Rooted in Hull’s identity as a harbour city, the work explores movement, migration, restlessness and belonging through structured lyricism, emotional poetry and live saxophone. The piece examines the tension between discipline and freedom within sound, identity and place.
Artists: Niall Thomas, Jenni Harrison, Eddi Pickard
Niall Thomas – (PhD in Music) with specialisms in Metal Music Production.
Eddi Pickard - Globally touring metal & heavy rock artist, composer of theatre & film soundtrack, ghostwriter to internationally renowned rock & metal artists
Jenni - Creative Director, from a design and film background, amateur singer and creative writer (poetry and short stories)
The resultant work:
Tracing the experience of a lifetime of unexpressed creativity, this commission is a journey led by a self-identifying shadow artist who has always wanted to, but has never formally made or performed original music before, collaborating with two experienced musicians challenged to create through a new lens. This is an artist finally finding permission and someone to listen.
Photography by Sway.
The journey:
Artist, Jenni, explains some of the experiences of working on this ‘Out of the Box’ commission.
I'd wanted to make original music for years but never felt it was the right time. Although Eddi and I are partners, we'd never really had the opportunity to create music together. I met Niall through Hull's music scene and, after several conversations about creativity, confidence and making music, I forwarded him the Out of the Box opportunity with the message, "Fancy making some music together?" He said ‘yes’ and the project began.
The concept behind someone (myself) having never made music before working with professional musicians was a new challenge for us all. Where the cross over lies for us all, is in the vibe that I wanted the music to bring, no matter the genre we settled with. We have overlaps in music tastes and backgrounds, but also a huge well to draw from between us that introduced all of us to new sounds and genres. We also all come from different backgrounds and abilities, so I think we've all learnt a lot from each other.
Knowing we wanted to tell a story of heartbreak, desperation and hope, telling that story of someone who wanted to create but never could, all of the references we brought to the table had to have elements of ambience, deep emotion and huge sound. It was specifically my wanting to use piano, synth and spoken word which brought a real challenge to the table as none of us actually have much experience with those instruments, and much of the influences I drew from and added to the pot were completely different to what Eddi and Niall thought we would.
Another element that none of us had much experience of was true improvisation, and we've made a very conscious effort that every step of this process has been experimenting with new instruments and styles - including piano, cello, voice and poetry. The final performance will be rehearsed and planned, with improvised elements, but every note and sound you hear is created entirely improvised during the process, and we composed everything through play, experimentation and technologies that we hadn't before been able to explore.
The most obvious challenge and wonderful influence has been my complete new-ness to creating music. All I could bring to the table was badly bowing some cello strings, hitting some notes on a piano, but mostly my poetry and the story I wanted to tell. It was imperative to me that the music we composed could be played without voice and the story was still clear to the listener, and that was hard, especially as the musicians in the room were not using instruments or methods they'd comfortably reach for, and I had no way of actually translating what I had in my head into an instrument. Bouncing off each other and just seeing where things went is how this all got made.
All of the songs come from the root of one cello sample and one poem, and every session we started with plugging those sounds into pedals and building around that. What I think is, having someone with no musician chops in the room brings some freedom and openness to really break apart the music making process – mostly because I want to learn and understand everything that’s happening in front of me so I could build confidence contribute as much as I can (and I’ve learnt so much!)
I think we were all surprised that we felt we had something really solid that we wanted to use after every session, having gone in with no ideas and no expectations each time. Having a deadline also helps!
Improvisation and experimentation has been really new for us all, as far as I am aware. The inability for Niall and Eddi to pick up their usual instruments really took them out of their comfort zones but allowed us to compose sound that we wouldn't have made if we had done things their usual ways. There was a moment where we plugged sounds through a random fx maker pedal and we'd put my voice, a cello and some drum through it, and we were in the zone for hours making these beautiful haunting sounds. Every song was built around that session and the noises that came from that pedal.
I've definitely found my singing voice and style - I can now officially get to a microphone and sing my little heart out confidently in front of other people. Bearing in mind I would literally cry at the idea of that not long ago.
Credit goes massively to Niall, the second song of the set was a brilliant idea as bones but didn't quite feel right. I wanted a big synth electronic pop sound, where we could perform samples and remix live on stage, but we just couldn't get what we were trying to feel right. Niall went off to experiment with the session and what he came back with is essentially the song, it was huge. He pretty much did the same with the third song too. As soon as Eddi and I heard what Niall had sketched out for both, we were SO inspired, and new words and poetry just came flowing out. They're my favourite parts of the set now.
I think after the first session we sat and actually started playing around with sound, we all came out of it secretly wanting to be a band, and we admitted it to each other pretty quickly. We are all now excited to get this performance done so we can make more music and see where the future goes with this. We decided to form a band together before we'd even written one full composition, called ‘mutta’ and we have big plans ahead.
Collaboration for us meant openness and trying everything. If someone brought something to the table that didn't work, that was ok and we'd park it, try it elsewhere. We also allowed each other time and approached the process with patience, and we were all getting to know each others comfort zones and skillsets as we wrote.
I had to swallow a lot of pride as I wasn't going to be good at any of this until I'd practiced and experienced months of the process, and I am still very new to this, so I dealt with a lot of frustration at the beginning. Both Niall and Eddi are natural teachers and incredibly patient, and were so happy to let me work things out or help me through understanding the process and often they approached it without patronising me, and letting me build confidence to just ask when I needed help or a better understanding.
We are lucky that we are all grafters and team players with very little ego involved here, and it became more about getting things right with a gut feeling rather than divvying up equality in ideas and who's driving what.
I personally have found a whole world open up, and I want to invest further in my music learning, and no matter what, I will be making my own music and be calling myself an artist for life. I am interested in working with music makers and artists who can take an idea and completely turn it on its head, or bring a whole new perspective to the storytelling. Any opportunity to broaden your experience and work with people you wouldn't usually is excellent for creativity and artistry, and every single person who is an artist needs to try to get out of that comfort zone. The challenge brings growth and opens new doors.
Artists: Matthew Smith and Fleete (Dave Gawthorpe and Jay Moy)
The journey:
Mathew Smith is a Saxophonist; guitarist & soundscape designer
Lead artists, Matt, reflects on the experience of Out of the Box.
I was approached by Fleete, they wanted to explore a collaboration of their work with another artist to see what creative possibilities there are. I was keen to be involved as their way of working is completely different to any other music making that I do, which is mainly corporate. This project has given me the opportunity to spend time and energy thinking more creatively and experimentally.
I have been recorded playing in various locations around Hull, playing simple long notes, improvised melodies and sound effects. During the process Fleete have directed me where to play and the character of sound they'd like in order to extract sound effects from the environment.
Usually I focus on creating melody and harmony. In this process I have been providing sound effects, or sound bites that extract a response from the environment. These responses will then be used to create our final work.
Whilst playing and recording in various locations it has been the interaction with the public who happen to be there, or be passing through, that has been fun and interesting. Although this won't directly be represented in our music, we wouldn't have exposed those particular people to art/creativity otherwise.
I have listened to Fleete's work. They have also shared with me recordings by various artists that fit approximately within the genre that they work. Not so that I adhere to their style, but just to explain the prism that they're hearing/imagining music from.
The project has given me the space and time to explore the experimental and creative side to being a jazz musician. As a professional musician I don't often have this luxury. There have been discussions about whether we could take the theme of the project and apply it to other Festivals/locations
A larger funding pot would be helpful. The commission is much appreciated but, inevitably, far more time is put in than the funding is allocated for.
Out Of The Box is a fantastic opportunity for creative musicians to allocate time in their working schedule. Usually creative and experimental work has to be "after hours"; this project is allowing some time to creators to create.
The resultant work:
This collaboration has created a new work exploring the acoustic profiles of built and wild spaces across Hull, integrating their sonic spatial characteristics as dynamic elements within an improvised performance for saxophone, electric guitar and laptop.
Legacy of Out of the Box collaborations
The first Out of the Box initiative took place in 2023, with five artist pairings. Each commission led to further opportunities for the artists involved. A further Out of the Box commissioning project took place in 2024 which saw a further 5 artist pairings.
Nigel Kobby Taylor built on the work developed with Stephanie Halsey to create ‘The Torch’ and in 2026 secured funding to develop this as a fully staged production with a national tour. He was able to showcase this new iteration of this work at Hull Freedom Festival 2026.
Mambo Jambo returned to perform with Joe Martin and have further developed their collaboration. They tour nationally and internationally and feature in the programme of the Hull Jazz Festival this year, in collaboration with Hull Samba school.
Out of the Box is part of a longer music development initiative articulated in Hull City Council’s Music Plan. The creation of new work and new collaborative partnerships offers a fertile ground for local artists to develop their practice and thrive as artists. Make sure you are signed up to Culture News and Fortnightly Fix to receive news of future opportunities.
Out of the Box – commission process 2026
An open call was issued for applications in January 2026 for a third round of Special Collaborative Commissions. This was advertised in via Hull City Council’s Culture News, and directly to music networks and via J-Night’s website which continues to host information about Hull Music Festival. Applications opened on 14 January with a closing date of 1 March 2026.
The commissions focused on the development of new work, focusing on new collaborations between artists of different musical genres, who had not created work together previously. The project enables musicians to create new musical work outside their normal musical 'boxes'. For 2026, in partnership with Hull Music Service, Hull City Council were able to contribute up to £2,000, for three individual commissions.
In addition to the commission fee Out of the Box offered:
- Practical and mentoring support designed around each project
- Opportunities to come together with other Out of the Box artists to share progress
- Live performance at an official Hull Jazz Festival showcase event
- Practical support and guidance on production, career development and profile raising
To be eligible lead applicant had to:
- Be over 18 years old and based in the UK;
- Live or have their work base within the boundary of the City of Hull;
- Not be in full-time education;
- Have a track record of a professional music career;
- Have a clear and coherent project proposal.
Previous recipients of Out of the Box commissions were not eligible to apply for this round.
All proposals had have intrinsic musical or artistic value; challenge collaborators to develop their artistic practice; clearly express the musical ambition of the collaboration; lead to a minimum of 20 minutes performance of new music; have collaboration at heart with at least one creative collaborator; AND be a new pairing – i.e. participants should not have previously collaborated with the collaborative partner/s identified for their proposal.
A selection panel considered applications from six pairings and selected three groups to offer commissions of £2,000 each.