The Music Industry Therapist Collective CIC (MITC) has launched the Pay It Forward Fund, an industry-funded, free at source, occupational health programme for artists and crew on small and mid-scale tours.
MITC is a collective of specialist music industry therapists based across the UK, US, Europe and India. Over the past eight years, it has supported artists and touring teams including Radiohead, Dua Lipa, The Last Dinner Party, Joji and The Script, as well as AEG International, Warner Music Group, Kobalt and Believe.
Radiohead played European residencies last year, including at The O2 in London.
Philip Selway, drummer for Radiohead and a Pay It Forward founding funder, said: “Over the years, I’ve found that the reality of touring can sometimes feel at odds with the dream of it. Yes, it can undoubtedly be full of excitement, wonder, camaraderie and tantalising rewards, but it can also be an unstable and overwhelming environment to live and work in. It’s one that can heighten a sense of emotional and geographical displacement, leading to exhaustion, isolation and self-destructive behaviours.”
As Radiohead announced a run of 21 shows in Australia and Japan next year, Selway outlined the approach Radiohead took to supporting their team on the road.
“On Radiohead’s European tour last autumn, we had a support network in place, offering confidential access to the therapists of MITC. Even though we’re a cohesive, well-resourced and very experienced touring party, we knew that you can still never completely guard against the trip hazards of touring. Knowing that this support was there was hugely reassuring. I also know that the pressures and demands of touring can be more keenly felt by acts and set-ups which have fewer resources, so I’m delighted to be able to invest in Pay It Forward to ensure that this essential support can be offered more widely.”
A growing number of larger tours now provide welfare or pastoral support as part of the production.
On smaller tours, the pressures can be compounded by tighter budgets, smaller teams and more challenging work and travel conditions. The MITC noted that these teams rarely have the budget to offer people the same resources or opportunities to talk, reflect and reset.
Pay It Forward is designed to address a practical gap in touring infrastructure by making specialist mental health support accessible to smaller teams. An initial £272,000 has been raised to support 50 tour teams annually over a three-year pilot period.
Even though we’re a cohesive, well-resourced and very experienced touring party, we knew that you can still never completely guard against the trip hazards of touring
Philip Selway
Contributors to the fund include leading organisations from across the world of live entertainment, including AEG International, d&b Audiotechnik, Fly By Nite, Live Nation, Lockton, The Team and Universal Pixels, as well as Radiohead’s Philip Selway and Live Free 999, the charitable foundation set up by Carmela Wallace, mother of the late artist Juice Wrld.
MITC’s Tour Health packages include Tour Check-Ins – confidential conversations with qualified mental health practitioners – which are available online 24/7 in several languages.
“Tour Check-Ins can be used by any member of the touring team to decompress after a difficult day, think through a decision, talk about work or relationships, deal with tension in the team, reflect upon coping habits, or plan what comes next,” said a statement.
Also included in each package is a 90-minute occupational health consultation with MITC’s Touring Welfare Officer Sascha Heeney (who supported Dua Lipa’s Radical Optimism tour team), healthy touring workshops, resources to support performance, communication and collaboration, and access to MITC's audiobook Touring and Mental Health: the Music Industry Manual (featured in Rough Trade’s Books of the Year 2023).
Tamsin Embleton, founder of MITC, said: "People who tour are often highly skilled and resourceful. They're used to managing lots of moving parts, adapting quickly and solving problems on the fly. Pressure itself isn't necessarily the problem; touring is demanding by nature, and that's part of what can make it rewarding. The difficulty comes when stress becomes chronic, without enough support to buffer its effects or enough opportunity to recover.
“The Pay It Forward Fund is about making specialist support accessible to tours working within tight budgets, but it's also about moving beyond the idea that support should only be sought when crisis hits. We want to help forward-thinking teams develop the skills to manage pressure, recognise when something is beginning to take a toll, and intervene effectively before things start to snowball."
Alongside providing funded access, the campaign’s wider aim is to establish occupational health on tour as part of normal professional practice.
The Pay It Forward Fund is about making specialist support accessible to tours working within tight budgets, but it's also about moving beyond the idea that support should only be sought when crisis hits
Tamsin Embleton
“Just as touring professionals maintain their trucks and buses, equipment and systems before they fail,” added Laura Newton, MITC’s operations director. “The people who keep the show moving should benefit from the same foresight and planning. You wouldn’t send a rigger 50ft into the air without a harness, and the same applies to health and wellbeing on tour. We believe that this should be the norm, rather than an exception or perk once tours reach a certain level.”
Kirstie Loveridge, chief people officer, AEG International, said: “Live entertainment is an industry built on passion, bringing together people who care deeply about what they do. But that doesn’t mean it comes without its challenges, especially when on the road. The Pay It Forward Fund sends an important message that access to specialist mental health support shouldn’t depend on where you sit within the industry. We’re proud to be a Founding Partner, extending our commitment to wellbeing beyond our own business to the people and companies we work alongside.”
A spokesperson for Live Nation said: “Live Nation relies on an incredible ecosystem of artists, crew, production staff, promoters, venue workers and freelancers to make live events happen. Touring is hugely rewarding, but long hours, constant travel and time away from home can be physically and emotionally demanding. Partnering with MITC gives us the opportunity to help provide practical, timely mental health support for people on the road and contribute to a healthier, more sustainable live music industry.”
Alex Hardee, EVP & managing executive, The Team, said: “Touring is an incredibly rewarding part of this industry, but it can also place enormous demands on the people who make it possible. On smaller tours, people can be doing several jobs at once while working with tighter margins and fewer places to turn when they need help. The pressures of touring are not necessarily any smaller, but the safety net often is. This industry is full of extraordinarily resilient people, but resilience shouldn’t mean having to absorb an unlimited amount of pressure or simply push through when something isn’t sustainable.
“We hope this fund helps make meaningful support accessible before people reach a crisis point and contributes to a culture where seeking support feels normal, facilitating long, sustainable careers.”
A first round of applications is now open to eligible tour teams anywhere in the world for tours that begin between October and December 2026, and closes on 30 September.
MITC’s leadership team will oversee funding allocation, with plans to carry out regular impact assessments to refine and develop the programme in response to feedback.
Eligible artists, crew and tour teams can find out more and apply here.
Organisations and individuals interested in funding future sessions can also find out more via the link or contact info@musicindustrytherapists.com.
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