Self Esteem joined Richard Hawley on stage in Sheffield last night (August 8) during the first night of the latter’s residency at The Leadmill – you can watch fan-shot footage of the moment below.
Hawley is playing four gigs this week in support of the much-loved venue, which remains under the threat of closure from its new owners.
- READ MORE: If Sheffield’s Leadmill – the venue that helped break Arctic Monkeys – closes, we all lose something
The Sheffield artist previously said that the Leadmill was the city’s “Cavern, it’s our Haçienda”, telling the Yorkshire Post in April that Sheffield is “on the verge of cultural catastrophe” if the venue closes.
“The thought of losing it for the city is too hideous to contemplate,” he added. “It would be very desolate without The Leadmill, it’s literally a beacon in the dark culturally and physically.”
During last night’s Leadmill show, Hawley played a career-spanning set which included two covers with Self Esteem (AKA Rebecca Lucy Taylor). Together, the pair played versions of Peggy Lee‘s ‘Fever’ and Nancy Sinatra‘s ‘These Boots Are Made for Walkin” – you can watch fan-shot footage of the performance below.
My @SELFESTEEM___ obsession continues to grow unabated. What an wonderful surprise on a Monday evening on the first night of Mr Hawley’s week long @Leadmill residency @NewYorkOwls #savetheleadmill pic.twitter.com/xqIqFdlKqi
— Andy Fox
(@fox_andy) August 8, 2022
Writing on Instagram following the show, Taylor said: “My GOAT of all time asked me to do a few songs with him tonight and ofc I obliged. Forever inspired and supported by this legend Richard Hawley.
“SAVE THE FUCKING @theleadmill.”
Speaking to NME last month following the nominations announcement for the Mercury Prize 2022, Taylor said of the campaign to save The Leadmill: “Venues start to become carbon copies of each other. You want this authentic, in-the-moment feeling, but when a venue isn’t run by people who are from there then you lose the warmth and the connection.
“It happens everywhere. The music industry is a difficult beast and there’s a lot of injustice in it. I hope they can do something.”
You can support The Leadmill by signing the venue’s petition, which is calling for the suspension of Section 25 of the Landlord and Tenant Act.
In other news, a recent study has found that one in five UK nightclubs have closed their doors for good in the last three years.
The post Watch Self Esteem perform with Richard Hawley during Sheffield Leadmill residency appeared first on NME.
