V&A East Museum to Launch First Exhibition Celebrating Black British Music and Culture in 2025

Inaugural Exhibition Will Span 125 Years of Black Music, Honouring Pioneers from Samuel Coleridge-Taylor to Contemporary Artists Like Stormzy and Little Simz, and Highlighting its Influence on British and Global Cultures.

The V&A East Museum's inaugural exhibition in 2025, titled 'The Music Is Black: A British Story', will showcase the profound influence of pioneering Black British musicians from Samuel Coleridge-Taylor to current artists like Stormzy and Little Simz on British and global culture.
The exhibition aims to emphasize the social importance of music as a tool of unification and an extension of the individual, providing historical and cultural context to a variety of British music genres from Drum & Bass to Grime.
Besides domestic impact, the exhibition also acknowledges the global influence of Black British music and how East London has creatively contributed to this genre.
The exhibition, spanning 125 years of Black music, will not only focus on musicians but also explore the role of Black music in defining British culture, weaving the evolution of Black British music into the complex tapestry of Britain's colonial past and social, political, and cultural developments.
In association with the exhibition, V&A East has commissioned a film to dynamically portray various Black British musical styles, contributing to a deeper understanding of the culture's historical and present narrative.