The Brixton Academy Will Reopen in April

The venue has been closed for over a year after two people lost their lives in a deadly crush at the end of 2022

The Brixton Academy, a major south London music venue, has had its licence suspended since Rebecca Ikumelo and Gaby Hutchinson were killed in a crush caused by overcrowding at an Asake gig on 15th December 2022. More than a year later, the Brixton Academy is set to relaunch with gigs planned for Fri 19th and Fri 26th April 2024.

Both nights will see tribute acts to famous rock bands take to the stage. On night one, it’ll be Nirvana UK and The Smyths and on night two, Definitely Mightbe and UK Foo Fighters.

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— O2 Academy Brixton (@O2AcademyBrix) March 4, 2024

There was some concern that the venue was at risk of permanent closure, or at least a significant change of hands. On Mon 11th and Tues 12th September 2023, a hearing saw the Met Police state that they were not calling for the venue (which has been a Brixton fixture since 1929) to close down, but for the license to be permanently revoked from Academy Music Group (AMG), the organisation behind it.

As well as the two fatalities caused by the crush that occurred at the end of last year, a further 10 people were injured. Investigations following the incident also revealed insufficient staffing levels, a lack of medical cover and a culture of staff taking bribes to allow non-ticketholders entry to events.

The Night Time Industries Association has been campaigning to keep the O2 Academy Brixton open, and after it was closed, a petition was set up to save the historic venue (with new security measures in place), which has been hosting gigs since the 1980s and has become one of the most iconic places to see live music in London.

After its hearing, Lambeth Council confirmed that the Brixton Academy would be able to reopen under the management of AMG. But, the venue has had to meet 77 “extensive and robust” conditions to do so. These include the likes of more thorough risk assessments, stronger doors, new ticketing and crowd management systems, among many others. AMG has announced that it would hold a series of “test events” at the Brixton Academy with these new measures in place – the shows in April are apparently the first of these.

academymusicgroup.com