Buxton musician doing a gig a day for a year
A Buxton musician has set himself the target of performing a gig a day for the whole of 2026 to gain a new audience and bigger opportunities.
For Isaac Neilson the start of the year presented a time for a new challenge and a way for him to rekindle his love of music.
The 25-year-old said: “I was becoming very disillusioned with the music industry and was ready to throw the towel in so I decided to change my thinking.
“It felt like there were only opportunities for people who came from a certain background or knew a certain person so I decided to create my own opportunities.”
Isaac has performed a gig every day since January, 1 and his work has already taken him across the country performing in Oxfordshire, Manchester, closer to home in Buxton and Dove Holes and his first festival of the year in Nottinghamshire.
He said: “This is about taking my music to the people, connecting with new people and growing my audience.”
And it seems to be working as he has seen his followers jump by 1,000 since starting his journey.
“That means more people are listening to my music, which is what I want.”
If that was not enough he is also releasing a new single every eight weeks throughout the year and his next single Falling Down will be out on the last Friday in March.
The former Buxton Community School pupil said: “I wonder if I’m going to look back years from now and this was the start of something.
“I had to fully commit, to give it a full year of making music for people and myself and I’m already so much more connected and appreciative of the opportunities that are coming my way.”
Isaac has been contacted by someone with connections in America who says if he can make it to September, 1 doing a gig a day he will work with him to get him a two week tour in the states.
Isaac said: “I’m just a lad from Buxton and these opportunities don’t normally happens to people like me.
“So I’m working hard right now to build myself a future and a new path and to keep making music.”